Chapter 4: Weighing the Ethical Issues

Copyright © 2014, 2011, 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

Technical Communication, 13th Edition

John M. LannonLaura J. Gurak

Chapter 4Weighing the Ethical IssuesWeighing the Ethical Issues


Learning ObjectivesLearning Objectives Appreciate the role of ethics in technical

communication Identify workplace pressures that lead to

unethical communication Recognize common workplace examples of

hiding the truth Use critical thinking to help solve ethical

dilemmas Differentiate between ethical practices and

legal guidelines


Learning Objectives (continued)Learning Objectives (continued)

Avoid plagiarism—either intentional or unintentional

Determine when and how to report ethical violations on the job


EthicsEthics

When providing information or persuading an audience, always ensure that your writing is ethical: accurate, honest, and fair.


Recognize Unethical Recognize Unethical Communication in the WorkplaceCommunication in the Workplace

Unethical workplace behaviors are common, but they are not always black and white. Usually they are a result of yielding to social pressure and blindly following the group:


Understand the Potential for Understand the Potential for Communication AbuseCommunication Abuse

Unethical workplace communication usually takes on the following forms:Suppressing knowledge the public needsHiding conflicts of interestExaggerating claims about technologyFalsifying or fabricating dataUsing visual images that conceal the truthStealing or divulging proprietary informationMisusing electronic information


Understand the Potential for Understand the Potential for Communication Abuse Communication Abuse

(continued)(continued) Withholding information people need for their

jobs Exploiting cultural differences


Rely on Critical Thinking for Rely on Critical Thinking for Ethical DecisionsEthical Decisions

Keep in mind reasonable criteria (standards that most people consider acceptable) when faced with ethical dilemmas:


Rely on Critical Thinking for Rely on Critical Thinking for Ethical Decisions (continued)Ethical Decisions (continued)

Reasonable criteria take the form of the following obligations: obligation to yourself obligation to clients and customersobligation to your companyobligation to coworkersobligation to the communityobligation to society


Never Depend Only on Never Depend Only on Legal GuidelinesLegal Guidelines

Legal guidelines often do not go far enough to measure unethical behavior. For example, the following misleading statements are not illegal:


Learn to Recognize PlagiarismLearn to Recognize Plagiarism Ethical communication includes giving proper

credit to the work of others. In both workplace and academic settings, plagiarism (representing the words, ideas, or perspectives of others as your own) is a serious breach of ethics.

Plagiarism can be either blatant or unintentional.

The Internet has only made plagiarism easier than ever before.


Decide When and How to Decide When and How to Report Ethical AbusesReport Ethical Abuses

Whistle-blowing is reporting someone else’s ethical abuses, but is tricky because it can backfire on you and you will not always be legally protected from the consequences. Think very carefully about deciding when and how to report unethical situations in the workplace.


Review QuestionsReview Questions1. What is the definition of ethics?2. What are the two major causes of unethical

behavior in the workplace?3. What are five types of ethical abuses that

are common in the workplace?4. What is the best way to make ethical

decisions on the job?5. What are reasonable criteria and why are

they important?


Review Questions (continued)Review Questions (continued)

6. What are the six types of obligations to keep in mind in order to make ethical decisions?

7. Why can’t you always depend on legal guidelines to act ethically?

8. What is the definition of plagiarism?9. What are the two types of plagiarism?10. What is whistle-blowing?

Chapter 4: Weighing the Ethical Issues

Education

measure unethical

make ethical

elses ethical

withholding

critical thinking

reasonable

legal guidelines

ethical dilemmas