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CEPL09 - What is Ethical Integrity and should we care?

Ethics is not just about how to make decisions where the welfare of others is a concern; arguably it is also about the attitude one takes to one’s life – what sort of person to be.  This is where the idea of integrity comes in.  You may think of yourself as an opportunist who looks after number one or as a decent person, who takes into account the welfare of people you have responsibilities for, or as a heroic person, who is contributing to making the world a better place,  or as some mixture of these.  If you take your ethical identity seriously, then acting in a way that undermines it can be debilitating – ‘I couldn’t live with myself if I did that.’  We consider where these ethical identities come from, how adaptable they should be, and whether they should determine one’s behaviour.  Through a case study based on an example from the seminar-provider’s own professional life we try out different approaches to these questions.

Duration:

2 Hours

Fee: 

€250

Contact the Centre for Ethics in Public Life (CEPL)

CEPL, School of Philosophy, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
E: cepl@ucd.ie