Behavioral ethics is a field of social scientific research that seeks to understand how individuals behave when confronted with ethical dilemmas.Bazerman, Max H. and Tenbrunsel, Ann E. "Blind Spots: Why we fail to do what's right and what to do about it". Princeton University Press, 2011, p. 4. It refers to behavior that is judged within the context of social situations and compared to generally accepted behavioral norms.Trevino, Linda K., Weaver, Gary R., and Reynolds, Scott J. "Behavioral Ethics in Organizations: A review". Journal of Management, 2006, p. 952.
Ethics, a subsidiary of philosophy, is defined as the communal understanding of social and normative values in a particular society. Compared to normative ethics, which determines the 'right' or 'wrong' of individual situations, behavioral ethics is more similar to applied ethics, a subdivision dedicated to the more practical and real-world considerations of moral dilemmas.
History of behavioral ethics The history of behavioral ethics includes the development of scientific research into the psychological foundations of ethical decision-making and behavior. Although the field does not have a precise starting point, its development can be traced through important milestones in psychology, sociology, and related disciplines. Moral philosophy is thus more akin to art or literature that creatively illuminates the human condition without producing the kind of verifiable facts required to support ignoring actual human moral behavior.
The ideology of behavioral ethics given more an emphasis in the middle of the 20th century, when psychologists and social scientists began to study human behavior in ethical dilemmas. Early experiments like the Milgram experiment (1961) and the Stanford prison experiment (1971) shed light on the impact of how situational factors can influence unethical behavior.
The history of behavioral ethics can be interpreted as a journey through the development of understanding of human morality and decision making. It begins with ancient philosophical studies of ethics, where thinkers such as Aristotle considered the nature of virtue and the good life. Over time, as society developed and became more complex, researchers in various fields began to study the psychological bases of ethical behavior. For example, Aristotle asserts in Book II of the Nicomachean Ethics, the man who possesses character excellence will tend to do the right thing, at the right time, and in the right way. Behavioral ethics over time developed models of human morality based upon the fact that morality is an emergent property of the evolutionary dynamic that gave rise to our species. Bravery, and the correct regulation of one's bodily appetites, are examples of character excellence or virtue. So acting bravely and acting temperately are examples of excellent activities.
The moral philosophy of the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant, characterized by the principles of rationality, autonomy and universalizability, serves as the cornerstone of the historical trajectory of behavioral ethics. Arguing against the theory of utilitarianism in favor of using a deontological approach such as his most famous ideology, universalizability, Kant's emphasis on these principles provides valuable insight into the psychological foundations of ethical decision-making and behavior and enriches the understanding of human morality in behavioral ethics. According to this view, judgments of right or wrong are determined by the motives of the person acting, not the consequences of their actions.
Furthermore, the emergence of applied ethics in the latter half of the 20th century marked a significant turning point in the field of behavioral ethics. Applied ethics involves the application of ethical principles to real-world issues and dilemmas, such as medical ethics, environmental ethics, and bioethics. This interdisciplinary approach not only extends the theoretical understanding of ethical decision-making but also provides practical frameworks for addressing ethical challenges in various domains of human activity. Scholars and practitioners in applied ethics draw upon insights from behavioral science to develop guidelines, codes of conduct, and decision-making tools aimed at promoting ethical behavior and resolving ethical conflicts in complex societal contexts. Through the integration of empirical research and ethical theory, applied ethics continues to contribute to the ongoing evolution of behavioral ethics as a dynamic and multidisciplinary field.
Behavioral models Behavioral ethics led to the development of various ethical models and theories.
Bystander intervention Bystander intervention describes the phenomenon where ethical behavior is far harder to display because of what is learned from social institutions such as family, school, and religion. Due to this, intervening in an ethically challenging situation requires an individual to go through several steps and failure to complete all means a failure to behave ethically.
Rational actor model
In the realm of behavioral ethics, the rational actor model serves as a fundamental framework for understanding decision-making. Traditional economic theory often assumes that individuals are rational actors who make decisions by carefully weighing costs and benefits to maximize their own self-interest. However, behavioral ethics suggests that human behavior is influenced by psychological, social, and contextual factors, leading to departures from pure rationality.
Historically, philosophical perspectives on morality have primarily relied on theoretical analysis and introspection, often with minimal consideration of real-life human conduct. Models of human morality advanced by behavioral ethics based on the fact that morality is a new and still developing quality of the evolutionary dynamic that leads to our species.
The rational actor model states that rational people make their decisions based on how much the consequences of said decision will benefit them. This would imply that the individuals will assess all available options, weighing them against their personal objectives, and ultimately selecting the most favorable one. Consistently opting for the best choice contrasts with behavioral ethics, where decisions may be swayed by a broader array of considerations, including moral and ethical principles.
Moreover, the rational actor model's focus on rationality as the primary factor shaping human decision-making fails to recognize the complexities of moral behavior. Studies in behavioral ethics have revealed that individuals frequently display systematic departures from rationality, such as framing effects and overconfidence biases, which can profoundly impact moral decision-making and behavior.
Socio-cultural factors, including social norms and group dynamics, significantly influence moral behavior, underscoring the limitations of solely individualistic and rational perspectives. By recognizing these intricacies and integrating findings from behavioral science, behavioral ethics provides a more nuanced comprehension of human morality, overcoming the limitations of the rational actor model's assumptions. This holistic approach considers how social contexts, psychological biases, and emotional responses intertwine to shape ethical decision-making.
Thought experiments
The trolley problem
The trolley problem, first introduced in 1967 by Philippa Foot, is a classic ethical dilemma. In the problem, there is a runaway trolley headed straight for five people who are restrained and unable to move, however, you have the option to pull a lever and divert the trolley to another track where there is only one restrained individual. The ethically 'correct' decision would be to pull the lever killing one individual and saving the five, as the lives of five would outweigh the life of one.
However, when viewing the trolley problem through the lens of behavioral ethics, it becomes more difficult to make an ethically 'correct' decision. Variations of the original problem have been proposed, leading to more blame or guilt being placed on the decision-maker, causing individuals to deviate from the expected response of pulling the lever. One example of this is Frank Chapman Sharp's version of the trolley problem (1905), where the railway's switchman controls the lever and the single restrained individual is the switchman's child.
The prisoner's dilemma
The prisoner's dilemma, while not necessarily an ethical dilemma, but a game theory thought experiment, can still be viewed using behavioral ethics. It features two prisoners who can each either testify or stay silent. If one of the prisoners testifies, the other is arrested and given a long sentence. If neither testify, they are both given a shorter sentence, and if they both testify, they are both arrested and given a medium sentence. Both prisoners are unable to speak or communicate in any way with the other. While the most correct decision would be for both prisoners to stay silent to receive the shortest sentence, fear of the other prisoner testifying typically leads to both prisoners testifying and both receiving the medium sentence.
The trolley problem and the prisoner's dilemma both place individuals in decision-making situations that carry ethical questions. In each, an individual is asked to make a decision that affects another person. In the prisoner's dilemma, the principles of reciprocity and cooperation come into play, but not all who participate behave in the same manner. In the trolley problem an individual has to choose which group of people to save. Both of these experiments shed light on how people behave when confronted with ethical dilemmas.
Sometimes, the small details get missed in strict research. For instance, there was a study in 2008 that said students were less likely to cheat after thinking about moral rules like the Ten Commandments. Based on this, some people suggested using moral reminders to stop cheating. But when another study tried to repeat the same thing later on, they didn't get the same results. This teaches us that things can be more complicated than they seem, even if they're well-known findings.Maesschalck, J. (26 July 2021). "Making Behavioral Ethics Research More Useful for Ethics Management Practice: Embracing Complexity Using a Design Science Approach". Journal of Business Ethics. 181 (4): 933–944 – via Springer Link.
Behavioral ethics in practice
Education In ethics teaching and research, ethics is arguably the "next big thing" because its investigation agenda has generated knowledge on why and how people choose and act when being confronted with ethical subject, which was unknown previously. Based on the extant body of ethics course books and course plans from fields such as medicine, teaching, accounting, and journalism, "moral reasoning" - along with associated skills - is often an established objective. Behavioral ethics, however, is distinguished from the concept of moral reasoning because ethical behavior is primarily driven by a diverse set of intuitive processes over which individuals have little conscious control. Within education it is important to ensure ethics are taken into consideration. Ethical conduct in teaching is a vital factor in making sure students are taught fairly. An individual's "preconceived notions and opinions can emerge through our language choice, teaching methods, grading practices, and accessibility practices and it can have a tremendous impact on our students' learning and connection to school". Biases can influence actions and perceptions of students therefore teaching should be free of bias. Behavioral ethics calls for a model of ethics in education that focuses not on directly modeling good ethical reasoning but on the way people think clearly and impartially about ethical problems.
Behavioral law and economics