Vanajakshi, a police officer in control room, reaches a scene of a bad accident. Two young persons, a boy and a girl, are badly hurt. They need immediate firstaid or their injuries will prove fatal. No other police patrol or ambulance can reach the site immediately. Vanajakshi has good paramedical training because of her background. She assesses that the condition of the girl is such that the probability of her singlehanded effort succeeding is slim. To whom should she attend first? This is an agonizing dilemma for her.
How will you evaluate the problem?
1. Vanajakshi should toss a coin and decide whom to help.
2. Vanajakshi should help the boy first. .
3. Vanajakshi should help the boy as a boy always has priority.
4. There is no acceptable solution to the problem.
In the first alternative, Vanajakshi is leaving the decision to the toss of a coin. In other words, no moral principle is being applied. We cannot endorse a decision which is not based on any moral criterion. In this situation, the boy has to be helped first, because that choice is more likely to save at least one life. Should she start helping the girl first, it may so happen that both die. This kind of situation is called ‘Triage’ in which (as in war) wounded army men are often selected on the basis
of productivity of resource and time.
In this choice, the reason given for the decision is incorrect. The reason relies on a perverse criterion of the sex of the accident victim. This perverse attitude accounts for the distortion of sex ratio now seen in many states.
It is true that in this case both accident victims deserve help. Ideally, Vanajakshi should try to help both of them. But only one victim is likely to survive with her help. She should save him. The problem has a solution.
Uptil now, we have outlined prima facie moral principles, and given examples to show that moral dilemmas are situations involving conflicts of moral criteria. The next question is about the manner in which we can solve moral dilemmas. According to W.D. Ross, this can be done by looking at the morally relevant facts applicable to a situation, and then deciding which of the conflicting prima facie duties deserves priority. The prima facie duty to which the moral agent accords priority then overrides the others. It becomes the ‘actual duty’ of the moral agent in the situation. In many
contexts, we select the appropriate moral standard unthinkingly, as in our earlier example of the bystander who lies to the thugs chasing the innocent man in order to save him.
There are, however, many situations which lead to rather intractable dilemmas in which it is hard to select one from among the competing moral standards. No simple intuitive judgments help in such cases.Moral philosophers havegiven ethical doctrines which can be used to resolveconflicts between moral criteria. They belong to the domain of theoretical normative ethics.
We have separately outlined two such doctrines: utilitarianism and deontological theories. We need not rehash these ideas here again. Briefly, utilitarianism recommends that course which maximizes social welfare or happiness. Rule utilitarianism in the preferred form of utilitarianism. Deontology recommends moral rules which can be applied across the board without exceptions and deviations. It replaces human inclinations with rigid adherence to duties which are universally applicable.
Frame Work for Analyzing Ethical Dilemmas
In our earlier discussion, we considered frameworks which public servants can use for taking decisions involving ethical situations. Those frameworks also cover ethical dilemmas. Now, we outline a framework from Harold Gortner’s EthicsforPublic Managers. It is from the chapter “Analyzing and Resolving Ethical Dilemmas”.
Answers to the following questions will show whether or not the problem is an ethical dilemma.
(i) Is there a conflict between important moral standards in this case?
(ii) Can the values in conflict be identified straightaway or is it necessary to carry out further analysis to find them?
(iii) Is it necessary to analyze the matter further or to make a quantitative study to determine the values which need priority?
The following points need to be studied to arrive at a morally sound decision.
(i) The law. What is the direction of action which relevant laws indicate in this case?
(ii) The philosophical and cultural background. Philosophical and cultural ideas lead to ethical perceptions and what are regarded as appropriate responses. What light is thrown on this case by suchphilosophical andcultural ideas?
(iii) Professionalism. What are the inputs which are necessary in this case from specialists and general administrators? In government decisions, whether in moral or other contexts, the relevant professional inputs have to be brought in.
(iv) Organizational dynamics. Is the problem traceable in any way to the organization or its personnel? As we note in the chapters on corruption, many problems of citizens originate in the ‘mindset’ of Police Station house Officers, Village revenue officials and field level public works engineers.
(v) Personal aspects. This refers to introspection by decision makers. They have to ask themselves: “What do we need to know about ourselves to properly handle this moral dilemma?”
Summary
¤ Ethical dilemmas are situations in which decisions involve conflicts between two or more moral principles. In these situations, moral agents (who have to make decisions) find themselves in a quandary since they have to choose between two ethical norms (N1and N2) which have equal status.
¤ Situations which involveissues of right andwrong are ethical situations.
¤ Ethical situation involves actions and decisions which are based on a moral agent’s choice and volition and which significantly affect other individuals. In addition, ethical situations are also defined by the norms, standards, criteria or principles which guide decision-making.
¤ Dennis P. Wittmer defines an ethical situation essentially as one in which ethical dimensions are relevant and deserve consideration in making some choice that will have significant impact on others.
¤ According to Rest, ethical dimensions are those norms and principles that “provide the basic guidelines for determining how conflicts in human interests are to be settled and for optimizing mutual benefit of people living together in groups”.
¤ In addressing ethical dilemmas, government servants can be guided by normative theories, decision making models and decision processes. Normative principles help in determining what should be done and what is the correct course of action.
¤ Ethical decision making in public sphere requires detailed analysis of the situation and identification of the norms and criteria that apply to it. Standards and norms provide guidance to a decision and constitute its rationale. It is application of principles which makes decisions consistent, coherent and predictable.
¤ Terry Cooper has reduced ethical decision making to a series to steps which begin with identifying the problem and end with its resolution.
¤ These are:
(i) perception or recognition of an ethical problem
(ii) fully describing the situation
(iii) spelling out clearly the moral issues and moral norms involved in the situation
(iv) visualizing the possible alternatives
(v) projectingthe consequences of the alternatives
This process involves four steps which are interactive.
(a) Identifying the moral principles involved in each alternative
(b) Analyzing the extent to which each alternative can withstand criticism
(c) Considering to what extent higher moral principles apply to the situation
(d) Examining to what extent each alternative reflects on the decision maker’s image
(vi) resolution of the problem
¤ The solution is likely to be a compromise on the whole more desirable than undesirable.
¤ Gerald pops and Thomas Pavlak, in The Case forJustice: Strengthening DecisionMakingin Public Administration have proposed another method based on procedures of justice.
¤ The criteria which Pops and Pavlak suggest are outcome or distributive justice and process or procedural justice.
¤ Outcome justice has to: follow facts of the case; follow public policy; comply with the formal canons of justice; strike a balance between strict adherence to rules and exercise of discretion; take decisions which serve the people; and balance the interests of individuals and society.
¤ Process justice involves: equality of access; impartiality; transparency; efficiency; participation
and humaneness; and right to appeal.
¤ W.D. Ross traces moral issues or dilemmas to conflicts between certain prima facie duties.
Prima facie duties are commonly accepted moral principles.
¤ A moral presumption means that a moral agent should act in a particular way under any given circumstances. But if there are special reasons or justification opposing the presumption, the moral agent can ignore the presumption.
¤ There are six prima facie principles to which most moral philosophers subscribe: honesty; promise-keeping; not harming others; beneficence; autonomy of reason (Moral agent has to think for himself); and equality before law.
¤ These principles can also be used to explicitly define a moral dilemma in terms of conflicting principles.
¤ A moral agent has to accord priority to one of the conflicting principles based on the specific circumstances.
¤ Framework for analyzing ethical dilemmas: The following will show if there is an ethical dilemma.
¤ (a) Conflict between important moral standards; (b) Ease or difficulty in identifying values in conflict and (c) whether a quantitative study is necessary
¤ Theother aspects which need consideration are: law; philosophical and cultural background; professionalism; organizational dynamics; and personal aspects.
PRACTICE QUESTIONS
1. How will you define an ethical dilemma?
2. What are the steps involved in resolving an ethical dilemma?
3. Give three examples of situations which involve ethical dilemmas.
4. What are the principles of substantial justice and procedural justice applicable to resolution of ethical problems?
5. How does W. D. Ross visualizethe problem of moral dilemmas?
6. Describe the analytical framework which can help government servants in handling ethical questions?
7. Are ethical dilemmas which philosophers discuss too remote from administrative situations? Discuss.
REFERENCES
¤ John S. Mackenzie, M.A., A Manual of Ethics
¤ William Frankena, Ethics
¤ Terry l. Cooper, Handbook of Administrative Ethics (A collection of 34 essays by eminent public administration theorists) Consult relevant articles.
