Ethics Notes for UPSC IAS Exams
In this post you’re going to get ethics notes for UPSC exams.
In fact, you can score more marks in ethics paper than other general studies papers. Because of its crisp syllabus and easy to understand concepts you can easily score good marks.
So, without wasting time. Let’s dive right in.
What are ethics?
Ethics seeks to resolve questions of human morality by defining concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime. As a field of intellectual inquiry, moral philosophy also is related to the fields of moral psychology, descriptive ethics, and value theory. Source: Wikipedia
Why do we need ethics ?
Ethics help us navigate the area between what is absolutely right and what is morally wrong. They provide the structure that helps us make a decision we can be proud of in the context of our societal, familial and personal value structures.
Ethics vs Morals
While they are sometimes used interchangeably, they are different:
Ethics refer to rules provided by an external source, e.g., codes of conduct in workplaces or principles in religions.
Morals refer to an individual’s own principles regarding right and wrong.
Dimensions of Ethics
Meta Ethics
Deals with the “after” or “beyond, and questions such as: “What is goodness?” and “How can we tell good from bad?” It also questions the origin of ethical principles, whether they are human or divine in origin. It also deals with questions like: What are the meanings of ethical terms: right, wrong, love, compassion? It also questions whether moral judgments are universal or relative, and if they are of one kind or many.
Also Read: List of Ethics books for UPSC Exam
Prescriptive Ethics (Normative Ethics)
Normative Ethics is concerned with the criteria of what is right or wrong. IT includes the formulation of moral rules that have direct implications for what human actions, institutions and ways of life should be like. It deals with questions like: How should people act? What is the correct action?
The different branches are:
- Virtue Ethics
- Consequentialism
- Deontological Ethics
Descriptive Ethics
Descriptive ethics studies people’s belief about morality. Describes and compares between objectives of different ethical theories. It deals with questions like: What do people think is right? It is different from normative and applied ethics.
Applied Ethics
Applied ethics is a philosophical examination from a moral standpoint of particular issues in private and public life that are matters of moral judgment. This uses application of moral knowledge to practical problems and uses philosophical methods to identify the morally correct course of action in various fields of human life.
The different branches are:
- Bio Ethics
- Business Ethics
- Military Ethics
- Political Ethics
- Environmental Ethics
- Publication Ethics
Values
Values can be defined as those things that are valued by someone. In other words, values are what is considered “important” by an individual or an organization. Examples include courage, honesty, freedom, innovation etc.
Value = Degree of Importance of Something Particular
Value denotes the degree of importance of something (even an action). Values help in determining what actions are best to do.
Values are ‘beliefs’ about ‘what is important’
Values are the beliefs of an individual or a social group about what is held important that motivate people to act one way or another. “Equal rights for all”, “Merit above all else”, “Dignity of labour” etc are representatives of values.
Values are created by formal and informal education. Formal education is what we receive in schools through our teachers, books and the education system. Values inculcate discipline in us and add diversity to our thoughts. Values also helps us to solve problems in particular ways unique to ourselves. Values are also the underlying basis of our attitudes that determine our behavior. Finally, values help develop a love for one’s own country.
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