Ethics Course

Lesson 1 • Sources of Moral Beliefs

Examines how culture, religion, upbringing, and emotion shape moral intuitions. Helps students distinguish reliable moral insight from bias or conditioning.

Lesson 2 • Core Concepts in Moral Philosophy

Introduces values, duties, rights, and consequences as the building blocks of ethical argument. Provides the conceptual toolkit used throughout the entire course.

Lesson 3 • Moral Relativism vs. Moral Objectivism

Contrasts the view that ethics is culturally relative with the claim that some moral standards apply universally. Students evaluate both positions and their practical implications.

Lesson 4 • Recognizing Ethical Dimensions in Situations

Trains students to spot when a situation has moral stakes involving harm, fairness, honesty, or rights. Connects foundational concepts to real workplace scenarios.

Lesson 1 • Comparing and Integrating Frameworks

Teaches students to use multiple theories as complementary lenses rather than competing absolutes. Builds the multi-framework analysis skill used in all subsequent chapters.

Lesson 2 • Consequentialism and Utilitarian Reasoning

Explains how consequentialist theories evaluate actions by their outcomes and overall welfare. Students practice calculating trade-offs and identifying whose interests count.

Lesson 3 • Contractarian and Justice-Based Theories

Covers social contract theory and fairness-based approaches to ethics. Students apply principles of fair agreement and distributive justice to workplace decisions.

Lesson 4 • Virtue Ethics and Character

Shifts focus from rules and outcomes to the character traits that make a person morally good. Students identify virtues relevant to their professional roles.

Lesson 1 • Ethical Disagreement and Dialogue

Addresses how to engage productively with genuine moral disagreement without relativism or hostility. Prepares students for ethical discourse in diverse professional settings.

Lesson 2 • Logical Fallacies in Ethical Debate

Identifies common reasoning errors that undermine moral arguments, such as false dilemmas and ad hominem attacks. Students practice detecting and correcting fallacies.

Lesson 3 • Moral Intuitions as Evidence

Examines when strong moral intuitions should override theoretical conclusions and when they should be revised. Connects to the reflective equilibrium method introduced earlier.

Lesson 4 • Constructing and Defending Ethical Positions

Guides students through building a defensible ethical position from evidence, principles, and reasoning. Students practice oral and written ethical argumentation.

Lesson 1 • Risk, Uncertainty, and Moral Caution

Addresses how to make ethical decisions when facts are incomplete or outcomes are uncertain. Introduces precautionary reasoning and acceptable risk thresholds.

Lesson 2 • Justifying and Communicating Decisions

Teaches how to document reasoning and communicate ethical choices to stakeholders clearly. Builds accountability habits essential for professional credibility.

Lesson 3 • Anatomy of an Ethical Dilemma

Defines a true dilemma as a conflict between two or more legitimate moral claims. Students distinguish genuine dilemmas from problems with clear right answers.

Lesson 4 • Step-by-Step Decision Models

Introduces structured decision models that guide analysis from problem recognition to action. Students practice applying a repeatable process to varied case types.

Lesson 1 • Purpose and Structure of Professional Codes

Explains why professions create codes of conduct and what functions they serve beyond compliance. Students analyze the structure and language of representative codes.

Lesson 2 • Conflicts Between Codes and Personal Values

Addresses situations where professional codes conflict with personal moral convictions or competing obligations. Students develop strategies for navigating these tensions ethically.

Lesson 3 • Accountability and Professional Discipline

Covers how professions enforce ethical standards through peer review, licensing bodies, and disciplinary processes. Students understand the consequences of code violations.

Lesson 4 • Fiduciary and Trust Relationships

Examines the heightened obligations that arise when one party places special trust in a professional. Students identify fiduciary relationships in their field and the duties they create.

Lesson 1 • Cognitive Biases That Undermine Ethics

Maps key cognitive biases—confirmation bias, in-group favoritism, and anchoring—to their ethical consequences. Students recognize how automatic thinking produces unfair outcomes.

Lesson 2 • Systemic and Structural Bias

Distinguishes individual bias from bias embedded in organizational systems, policies, and processes. Students audit a process for structural inequity.

Lesson 3 • Moral Disengagement Mechanisms

Explains how people rationalize unethical behavior through displacement, diffusion, and dehumanization. Students learn to detect these mechanisms in themselves and others.

Lesson 4 • Debiasing Strategies and Practices

Provides evidence-based techniques for reducing bias in individual and group decisions. Students build a personal debiasing plan and apply it to a case study.

Lesson 1 • Whistleblowing and Dissent

Examines the ethics and risks of internal and external whistleblowing. Students apply criteria for justified dissent and evaluate protections available to whistleblowers.

Lesson 2 • Sustaining Ethical Culture Over Time

Addresses how organizations maintain ethical standards through leadership transitions, growth, and crises. Students develop a long-term culture sustainability plan.

Lesson 3 • How Leaders Influence Ethical Culture

Examines the mechanisms by which leaders model, reinforce, and undermine ethical norms. Students analyze the gap between espoused values and enacted behavior.

Lesson 4 • Building Ethical Organizational Systems

Covers the structural elements—codes, training, reporting channels, and incentives—that embed ethics in organizations. Students evaluate the completeness of an existing ethics program.

Lesson 1 • Multi-Stakeholder Conflict Cases

Presents cases where stakeholder interests are irreconcilably opposed and no option is cost-free. Students apply full decision models and defend trade-off choices.

Lesson 2 • Ethics in Crisis and Emergency Situations

Examines how time pressure and high stakes alter ethical decision-making. Students apply rapid triage frameworks while maintaining core moral commitments.

Lesson 3 • Cross-Cultural Ethical Challenges

Addresses ethical dilemmas that arise when professional norms conflict across cultural contexts. Students distinguish cultural adaptation from moral compromise.

Lesson 4 • Ethics Under Organizational Pressure

Simulates scenarios where financial, competitive, or hierarchical pressure pushes toward unethical action. Students practice resistance strategies and escalation paths.