Many people today are in agreement that America's attention to ethical standards is declining. Individual ethics are being replaced by dependence on organizational ethics. Groups are depending on their organizations Code of Ethics as guidelines for ethical regulations. People need to understand the importance of personal ethics and make a commitment. The key to understanding and committing is awareness of one's core beliefs. The Ethics awareness inventory is a profile of one's core ethical beliefs, and can be used to help one better understand his or her ethical philosophy.
The Ethics Awareness Inventory results are broken up into four categories. "The key word for each category (Character, Obligation, Results and Equity) represents a primary core value that forms a basis for decision making within this ethical perspective." The results of my inventory profile show that my ethical perspective is most likely based on Obligation and is least likely base on Equity. I will go into my core key word after discussing the three other categories first.
Individuals that possess Character ethical perspectives tend to base their ethics on "what it is good to be rather than good to do." When judging another person's actions, he or she will look for ethical behavior based on their character. In this perspective, the character of a person is more important than their actions. "This category is most likely aligned in philosophy with the virtue theory." Qualities values in this category are wisdom, honesty and integrity. Demonstrating these qualities for those in the Character category are more important than following the rules. This perspective also believes that individuals are incapable of ethical behavior and choosing between right or wrong, without possessing good character.
Individuals that posses the Results perspectives tend to "base their ethical perspective on the results or consequences of their actions. These people also believe