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7-Step Model for Ethical Decision-Making

The document outlines a 7-step moral reasoning model for ethical decision-making, emphasizing the importance of understanding the facts and ethical issues involved. It guides the reader through identifying relevant values, proposing alternative actions, evaluating these actions against moral principles, and considering the consequences before making a justified decision. The model acknowledges that ethical decisions often involve trade-offs and may not be free of negative consequences.

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Angela Sarmiento
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23 views8 pages

7-Step Model for Ethical Decision-Making

The document outlines a 7-step moral reasoning model for ethical decision-making, emphasizing the importance of understanding the facts and ethical issues involved. It guides the reader through identifying relevant values, proposing alternative actions, evaluating these actions against moral principles, and considering the consequences before making a justified decision. The model acknowledges that ethical decisions often involve trade-offs and may not be free of negative consequences.

Uploaded by

Angela Sarmiento
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

American Old Testament scholar, theologian, and

professor of Christian ethics. He serves as dean of


the faculty and chair of the department of
philosophy at Biola University's Talbot School of
Theology. In 2014, Rae was elected to serve a term
as president of the Evangelical Theological Society.

7-STEP MORAL REASONING


MODEL
It is essential that in moral decision-
making, one has to know the
general facts of the moral situation,
before coming up with a moral
analysis, more so, a decision or an
evaluation.

Ask: Do you have all the facts that are


necessary to make a good decision? What
do we know? What do we need to know?
In this light it might become clear that the
dilemma is not ethical but about
communication or strategy (Rae, 2018).
Determine the
the ethical issue/s involved in the
ethical issues situation, must be clearly stated in
order to specify what issue one has
to make a decision to

Ethical interests are stated in terms of


legitimate competing interests or goods.
The competing interests are what create
the dilemma. Moral values and virtues
must support the competing interests in
order for an ethical dilemma to exist.
In an ethical dilemma certain values and
Applicable ethical values and principles principles are central to the competing
relevant to the case must be identified and positions. Identify these. Determine if
briefly explained in order to justify how some should be given more weight than
such principles could be used in coming up others. Ask what the source for the
with a decision concerning the moral principle is - constitution, culture,
dilemma later on. natural law, religious tradition...
Creatively determine possible courses of
After having identified relevant values, action for your dilemma. Some will
virtues, and principles involving the moral almost immediately be discarded but
situation, possible alternative courses of generally the more you list the greater
actions must then be proposed and briefly potential for coming up with a really
explained. good one. It will also help you come up
with a broader selection of ideas
This step eliminates alternatives as
The initial list of suggested courses
they are weighed by the moral
of actions must then be evaluated
principles which have a bearing on
from the vantage point of the
the case. Potentially the issue will
identified ethical values and
be resolved here as all alternatives
principles.
except one are eliminated.
If principles have not yielded a clear decision consider the
consequences of your alternatives. Take the alternatives and
work out the positive and negative consequences of each.
Estimate how beneficial each positive and negative
consequences are – some might have greater weight than others
 After having analyzed the moral dilemma situation (from
steps 1 thru 6), one must now make a decision based on
what has been previously discussed and must clearly justify
the decision that has been made.
 Ethical decisions rarely have pain-free solutions - it might be
you have to choose the solution with the least number of
problems / painful consequences

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