SYNTHESIS: MAKING INFORMED DECISIONS

FOUR MAJOR ETHICAL THEORIES OR FRAMEWORKS

1) Utilitarianism

2) Natural Law Ethics

3) Kantian Deontology

4) Virtue Ethics

The ethical or moral dimension compared to the realms of the aesthetic or of etiquette is qualitatively
weightier, for the ethical or moral cuts to the core of what makes one human.

Identify. Consider. Act. Reflect.

These steps form the foundation of the ethical decision-making framework we developed to guide
investment professionals as they resolve ethical dilemmas in the best interests of their clients.

Using case studies to illustrate real-world situations, we've designed the online ethics course, interactive
webinars, and in-person workshops to help you apply this framework with confidence.

We developed this Identify-Consider-Act-Reflect framework for ethical decision making to help

investment professionals like you analyze and evaluate ethical scenarios where there is not a clear
"right" and "wrong" path.

This framework is not a linear checklist, but a summary of the key elements of making ethical decisions.
Although you will likely encounter unique influences, conflicts, and actions beyond those detailed
below, this framework can help you make ethical decisions in common day-to-day situations.

Identify

Ethical principles: Which fundamental investment professional principles (fair dealing, full disclosure,
loyalty, diligence, etc.) are at issue?
Duties to others: To whom do you owe a duty? Your client, employer, colleagues, others? Some duties,
such as protecting the integrity of the capital markets, may be more important than others.

Important facts: What facts do you know and what additional information do you need to make an
informed decision?

Conflicts of interest: Are there any encumbrances, relationships, or incentives influencing your actions?

Consider

Situational Influences: Are outside pressures (such as conforming to the group or obeying authority) or
internal biases (such as overconfidence) affecting your decision?

Alternative Actions: Have you brainstormed multiple solutions and avoided a particular preconceived
path?

Additional Guidance: Have you sought the independent, objective assessment of other people to gain
additional perspective?

Act

Make a decision: The specific action required depends on the individual aspects of the situation. Your
decision may require multiple actions or steps, or none at all.

Elevate the issue to a higher authority: Alternatively, the best course of action may be to elevate your
concerns to a more appropriate person. You may need to follow up with the other person to ensure
appropriate action was taken.

Reflect

What did you learn?: After you take action, review the path you chose. The lessons you learn will help
you reach ethical decisions more quickly in the future.

Know your strengths and weaknesses: Regardless of the consequences your decisions and actions bring,
understanding your strengths and weaknesses will help you make ethical decisions in the future.
REFERENCES:

 https://www.cfainstitute.org/en/ethics/ethical-decision-making

THE MORAL AGENT AND CONTEXTS

Moral Agent

A moral agent is a person who has the ability to discern right from wrong and to be held accountable for
his or her own actions. Moral agents have a moral responsibility not to cause unjustified harm.

Traditionally, moral agency is assigned only to those who can be held responsible for their actions.
Children, and adults with certain mental disabilities, may have little or no capacity to be moral agents.
Adults with full mental capacity relinquish their moral agency only in extreme situations, like being held
hostage.

By expecting people to act as moral agents, we hold people accountable for the harm they cause others.

So, do corporations have moral agency? As artificial intelligence develops, will robots have moral
agency? And what about socially intelligent non-human animals such as dolphins and elephants?

Indeed, future philosophers and legal scholars will need to consider moral agency as it applies to these
situations and others.

While reading the article entitled “Man and Historical Action” written by Ramon C. Reyes, I came to
realize that, even though we talk and do these simple things every day like how we chat with our friends
about what we want to do with our life or when we learn how we are different from one another or
how we fight with our siblings because we have our different personalities, at first, I am not aware that
these things are called cross-point or point of intersection. Based on what the author said “cross-point”
or point of intersection is a certain line of events, there are different kind of “cross-point” or point of
intersection: physical cross-point, interpersonal cross-point, social cross-point, historical cross-point and
existential.

Everyone is a physical cross-point and so I am, that is because every single one of us are consist of
elements like matters and particles, and with this I concludes that I am composed of materials from
billions of years ago, that took billion years before I can finally be conscious, a psycho- biological
organism. The point here is that we are conscious of ourselves and our point of intersection. We are gift
of nature, we did not create or design ourselves.

Of course, I have my own different uniqueness. As I am conscious physical cross-point, have a certain
quality of my own like having skinny body, having big eyes and being tall that could probably help me to
achieve a certain work and that is my future career and I acknowledge those traits because all of these
traits made me special. Since I am conscious, I know my limitation, these are the things that might
prevent me to explore myself, and the things that I can do, by working, I can change my own lines of
events.

I am a source of creativity. Since I have my consciousness with this body that I learn a certain type of
work, which is part of what I do in school, that helps me to achieve my future goal or future career. This
work will serve as my guide to know what are my abilities and skills.

Secondly, I am also a interpersonal point of intersection or simply interpersonal cross-point. This cross-
point has the same idea from the psychologist and the psychoanalyst that human psychological
personality is a cross-point of various personal relationship, meaning I am a product of a certain
personal lines of event from a certain people, from both my mother’s and father’s. The personality that I
have, come from various people that I interact with every day. For example, my sisters, my mother, my
father and my friends. The personality that I have today is not just from myself and because I am a
conscious cross-point, and I am conscious of myself, there is a possibility that I might change my
personality depending on what might happen in the near future and these certain changes can also
change a intersection of personal lines of events of a certain person. With this conscious cross-point I
can develop and improve myself more, even though my personal sense is not final because it is still
made up and still being made by myself and the people around me. For example, since my mother is a
talkative person, I grew up with her traits. I also have fears like fear of heights that came from father and
fear of too much attention that I am not aware where did it originated.

Moreover, because I am conscious cross-point in the personal sense, I have my own possibilities and
limitation that will serve as my strength and thus I also am a source of creativity. I can change the future
based on what I can do and I can also change a certain personal line.

As I am a conscious cross-point of physical and interpersonal, I am also a social cross-point wherein,

whether I like it or not I have a social trait that came from an even that is way past my control and that is
being a Filipino. It is something that happened without my concern, like how I was baptized without me
knowing if that was what I want or not. Hence, it also made up my personality and characteristics.
By signing the contract of being a Filipino I gain my own task to serve for this country. The culture that I
am doing today is a proof that I am a social cross-point and it is my responsibilities as a social cross-
point, to pass down and develop the culture of Filipinos by doing it with my daily life like kissing the
hands of the elder or simply by saying po and opo or adding ate and kuya even to strangers and also
respecting our nation anthem by simply singing it.

As I am a social cross-point, I am also a historical point of intersection. As I said, I can’t also hide the fact
that I am a historical product for the reason that I am here today, not 30 years ago and not 30 years in
the future thus, it is not within my control and all I can do is to accept that fact. I am the product of the
changes made by the past, and with this I also have the power to change the future. It is simply because
I am born today that made me who I am now. I can change my own future by creating a historical line of
events such as creating my own name in the field of medicine and promoting a program that I made.
Sometimes I start to wonder what if I will be born when time machine is already invented? But of
course, as I said I am born today that I have my own time.

And so, I am also part of the highest level of point of intersection which is existential. This is where I will
determine my purpose in life by simply knowing my limitation and possibilities. I, myself, have different
purpose for example if I say that my purpose in life right now is to get a stable job, what will be my
purpose in life after that, is what I think.

To think that at the moment that we were born we have our purpose in life that we have to accomplish,
makes it hard for me to know my own purpose in life. But that was in the past and today is different.
With these cross-points that helped me see my purpose clearer, it is easier for me to decide about
things in the future. Now I am focusing in what is my mainly purpose in life and that is to serve God and
my family but it is within my limitation and within the things that I can do. As I have these cross-points, it
is my destiny if I were to change my lines of events. Whether I became a doctor who save lives or a
computer science graduate that programs software and my destiny and it is my task to fulfill this
destiny.

REFERENCES:

https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/glossary/moral-agent

https://www.google.com/amp/s/neglectedbtfblog.wordpress.com/2017/11/06/man-as-a-cross-point-
reflection-paper/amp/