-
469 BCE
Socrates
-
Period: 469 BCE to 399 BCE
Socrates
One of the greatest paradoxes that helped his students explore was whether weakness of will – doing wrong when you genuinely knew what was right – truly existed. He seemed to think otherwise: people only did wrong when at the moment the perceived benefits seemed to outweigh the costs. Hence, the development of personal ethics is mastering what he called “the art of measurement,” correcting the distortions that skew one’s analyses of benefit and cost. -
428 BCE
Plato
-
Period: 428 BCE to 348 BCE
Plato
Ethics is referred to as a concern to act rightly and live a good life. Plato’s main concern is to challenge the views most people have about goodness, for it is here that they go disastrously wrong in trying to live happy lives. Most people think that virtue is a minor good, or even an impediment to living a happy life. Plato considers this to be incorrect; it is only by being virtuous that we can hope to be happy. -
384 BCE
Aristotle
-
Period: 384 BCE to 322 BCE
Aristotle
The ethics of Aristotle is concerned with action, not as being right in itself irrespective of any other consideration, but with actions conducive to man’s good. Aristotle’s “The Golden Mean Principle” states that to be happy, live a life of moderation. In everything that we do, we must avoid extremes. This principle can also be used in determining and planning for profit in business, for example, too much profit results to greed, no profit results to bankruptcy. -
Thomas Hobbes
-
Period: to
Thomas Hobbes
He believes that human beings are basically selfish creatures who would do anything to improve their position. Moral positivism has the following examples in business applications: a. Businesses must follow laws and government regulations
b. Business enterprises must create company policies to maintain discipline and order within the organization
c. Business organizations must promote the common good and the interest of the majority
d. Businessmen and managers must be law-abiding citizens -
Jeremy Bentham
-
Period: to
Jeremy Bentham
The utilitarian ethics is best explained by the maxim, “Do whatever produces the greatest good for the greatest number.” The theory argues that what makes an act right is its consequences and not the motive of the action. The effects or consequences determine the goodness or badness of an action. The principle of Utilitarianism is used in Cost-Benefit Analysis, for example, more benefit, less cost, is a good action. It can also be used in the resolution of Labor Management conflicts.
