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Deontological theory kant
Deontological theory kant
Deontological theory kant
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Perhaps one of the most influential philosophers associated with deontology was Emmanuel Kant. Kant believed that consequences of one’s actions were irrelevant, as long as the intent and motives were to do what is morally just (Black, 2017, p. 132). As nurses, we have the capacity to do right, as well as wrong, yet it is our ability to overlook discrimination, respect individual autonomy, and value another person, that is the most moral. It is with this intention that our actions are performed and that remains central to this theory. One of the greatest strengths of deontology is that it fits with the intuitive knowledge of right and wrong that we all live by. How we determine our actions is further defined by two variations: act deontology
Deontology diverges from consequentialism because deontology concentrates on the rightness or wrongness of the actions themselves instead of the consequences. There are different types of deontological theories. According to Kant, theoretical reasoning helps us discover what we should believe whereas the practical reasoning tells us what we should do. Morality falls under theoretical reasoning. In Kantian deontology, motives matter. Rather than consequences, it is the motive of an action makes that action morally right or wrong. Likewise, if an action intends to hurt someone, but eventually it benefits the other person, then it does not make that action morally right. All in all, deontology comes down to common-sense: whether it is a good action or a bad
The deontological view would be that we should act according to a set of rules, obligations, or duties that we must fulfil, unmindful of the consequences. Kant, a popular deontological philosopher of the 19th century, wrote in his “Foundations of Metaphysics of Morals”,
This paper explores the legal, ethical and moral issues of three healthcare colleagues by applying the D-E-C-I-D-E model as a foundation of decision making as found in Thompson, Melia, and Boyd (2006). Issues explored will be those of the actions of registered nurse (RN) John, his fiancé and also registered nurse (RN) Jane and the Director of Nursing (DON) Ms Day. Specific areas for discussion include the five moral frameworks, autonomy, beneficence, Non – maleficence, justice and veracity in relation with each person involved as supported by Arnold and Boggs (2013) and McPherson (2011). An identification and review of the breached code of ethics and the breached code of conduct in reference with the Nursing, Council, and Federation (2008) will be addressed. Lastly a brief discussion on how the three schools of thought deontology, teleology and virtue had effects on each colleague (McPherson, 2011) .
This paper will focus on two BNUR leaner outcomes (University of Calgary, 2013) relevant to my learned understanding of nurses as ethical decision makers. I will outline the ways that I have seen ethics used and not used in practice, what I learned about ethics and its use in my theory courses and throughout my practicums, and I will reflect on how this understanding will translate into my professional practice moving forward.
Deontology is an ethical theory concerned with duties and rights. The founder of deontological ethics was a German philosopher named Immanuel Kant. Kant’s deontological perspective implies people are sensitive to moral duties that require or prohibit certain behaviors, irrespective of the consequences (Tanner, Medin, & Iliev, 2008). The main focus of deontology is duty: deontology is derived from the Greek word deon, meaning duty. A duty is morally mandated action, for instance, the duty never to lie and always to keep your word. Based on Kant, even when individuals do not want to act on duty they are ethically obligated to do so (Rich, 2008).
Ethics and professionalism are an essential aspect of nursing foundation. Traditionally, nursing has been known to have an illustrious history of concern for the welfare of the injured, vulnerable, the sick as well as social justice (Wheeler, 2013).Normally, this concern is symbolized in the offering of nursing care to not only individuals but also the entire community. Consequently, nursing entails preventing sickness, alleviating sickness, as well as protecting, promoting and restoring health by caring of groups, communities, families and individuals (Wheeler, 2013). Persons who choose nursing as a career are anticipated to not only adhere to moral norms and ideals of the profession, but also firmly embrace it as an aspect of what it entails being a nurse. Proponents of virtue ethics consider that if a nurse’s character is not virtuous, the nurse cannot be depended on to act in good or moral ways even with a professional code as a guide.
Deontological moral theory is a Non-Consequentialist moral theory. While consequentialists believe the ends always justify the means, deontologists assert that the rightness of an action is not simply dependent on maximizing the good, if that action goes against what is considered moral. It is the inherent nature of the act alone that determines its ethical standing. For example, imagine a situation where there are four critical condition patients in a hospital who each need a different organ in order to survive. Then, a healthy man comes to the doctor’s office for a routine check-up.
Deontology in Immanuel Kant’s point of view is all about duty and not inclination of morality. For example, the First Proposition of Morality is an action that must be done from duty to have moral worth (298). In other words, if one were feeling generous and wanted to give money to the ones who really need it, this technically would not be moral worthy according to Kant. The reason why for this is because that person did not do it out of duty but instead out of free will. For one’s action to have moral worth, it could be an example of one going to work everyday. Everyone has their own specific job to do at work and that is their duty. All in all, Kant views that deontology must come from an action of duty in order for it to be moral worthy and it is not the consequences that determines what is right or wrong.
The four fundamental nursing responsibilities of promoting health, preventing illness, optimizing health and alleviating the ill are represented in the code of ethics. (Arnold & Boggs, 2016) One can say that the code of ethics are rules that a nurse needs to follow in order to effectively communicate and protect the patients. The American Nurse Association provided the code of ethics to guide nurses to ensure that patient’s care, safety, rights and health are well cared for and well managed. Models like Utilitarian, deontological, and the human rights-based all contribute in answering dilemmas that can arise with a patient. Thus, explaining what some of the code of ethics are, and how the code of ethics influence our responsibilities as a nurse will impact the overall care of the
The act version of deontology believes every situation should be judged individually and no overarching rules can fully determine every situation as morally right. Instead of hard set rules act deontologists have guidelines for how someone should act. This makes a very situational ethical theory that could have very different answers for similar situations. This high variance is a common agreement against act deontology. On the other side rule deontology is very rigid and set in stone. The rules must be followed to be morally right. The universal rules that act deontology uses comes from universalizability. Universalizability states that an action is morally right if it can be applied for all similar actions, no exceptions. For example, if lying was morally right in all instances then all communication would be in jeopardy, that would fail the test of
6). Good intention is the main moral principle considered and consequences are irrelevant (Joel, 2013, p. 526). Seemingly, the deontological ideology focuses on the actions of the agent and would disregard patient focus and individuality. It is difficult to apply contemporary ethical theories to the nurse because of the values of the nursing profession. “Contemporary ethical theories do not lend themselves to the health-care professions or to ethically defensible decisions in health-care practice. None of the dominant ethical theories could be discovered in, or derived from, the profession of nursing” (Joel, 2013, p. 526). Casuistry, while not an ethical theory, is a case-based approach to practical decision-making. Cases that have set precedence are identified and comparisons are made using similarities, differences, and previous experiences. This concept is used to complement ethical theories in patient decision making by clinical ethics committees (Slowther, Johnston, Goodall, & Hope, 2004, § C4). Personally and professionally balancing ethical perspectives to be able to consider all details on a case by case basis seems like a more appropriate
A nonconsequentialist act is the deontology theory. Deontology is a moral obligation or duty to act relating to a principle or rule. Deontology requires the act of humanity. It is never the treatment as a means to an end. A rule of deontology is that one should act in a manner that maxim the act intending to develop the act as a universal law. However, deontology can obligate someone to act in a way that seems wrong and unethical (Mossier, 2013). It is a rigid theory that fails to capture the complex issues that arise. Therefore, one would need to act as everyone would act in that specific situation. When applying the deontology theory, one should focus on the will of the person acting, the person’s intention of carrying out the act, and the rule according to which the act is carried out. Deontology can impact human life within society through the application to the principal in gender equality in areas of employment, health care, and the education system. The
These are two ethical theories, they both have similarities and differences. While Consequentialism usually focuses on the moral worth of an act, deontological theories usually focus on judging the actual actions themselves. According to Peterson (2013) consequentialism usually focuses on the consequences of taking some decision or the results of a specific ethical decision that was chosen by an individual. It is about how many people will benefit from the act that will be taken by the police. This means if the police are making the decision, according to this theory, they need to ask themselves what exactly they want to do and who is the beneficiary of the action (Carlson, 2013). Deontology more less is the sense of morality, what is right and what is deemed wrong.
Deontological comes from the Greek word deon or duty. Deontological ethics looks to a set of moral standards to determine good, right, regardless of the good, or evil generated from the action. In deontological ethics actions are evaluated in and of themselves and not the ends they produce. For example, on May 31, 2014 the U.S. traded five prisoners for the release of SGT Bowe Bergdahl after almost five years as a prisioner. A deontological ethic would conclude that the action was ethical, not based on what SGT Bergdahl did or the consequences of his actions, but on the fact that the Soldier’s Creed states the U.S. will never leaves a comrade behind. Likewise, a deontological analysis of AWS would consider them ethical if they are able to abide by the rules of IHL regardless of the outcome or
A deontologist asserts that you should do your duty even if you or others suffer as a consequence. Deontology is seen as an obligation to protect regardless of the impact it has on others, whether it be people, animals, and/or the environment and so on. “Deontology focuses on the duties and obligations one has in carrying out actions rather than on the consequences of those actions” (Mosser, 2013). According to deontologist Immanuel Kant, when doing your duty as a deontologist there are “categorical imperatives” that should be followed. In other words there are exceptions for why one is not taking action. “All imperatives command either hypothetically or categorically” (Kant,