Describe the five major problems in laws reflecting ethical standards.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

ANSWER: Members of society make moral standards based upon the information that is available to them. If the public is misinformed or not informed at all, the judgments they create will not be based on the truth. Therefore, it is not possible for society to make personal moral standards to influence or to establish laws if relevant information is missing.

People of society assemble into small groups with similar norms, beliefs, and values. Within these groups, they formulate standards that are similar among all the members and act from motives instead of morality. The problem lies in the fact that the personal moral standards that should influence the laws are replaced with the standards of the small group. Just as there are problems with the moral standards of the smaller groups, there are problems with the misrepresentation of moral standards of larger groups. As large organizations share the same norms, beliefs, and values, the individuals and groups within the organization do not share equal weight and influence with regard to the consensus. An example of this would include hospitals where the norms, beliefs, and values of the doctors and staff set the majority of the visible standards. Looking at the larger picture, not all organizations have equal influence or equal influence weighted by size to determine the law. This is another example of misrepresentation of moral standards. The meaning and application of some laws need to be clarified. Under the condition of product liability and equal employment issues, incomplete or imprecise legal requirements must be supplemented by judicial court decisions or by administrative agency actions. As a result of this, personal moral standards cannot influence the laws directly, if at all, in two of the means of formulating the law.