HPI Discussion Week 6

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HPI 501 LESSON 6 - ETHICS

  • Objective – Summarize how standards and ethics of performance improvement are reflected in professional organizations such as ISPI, ASTD, SHRM, APQC, CCQI, etc.
  • Required reading: Articles 44 and 45 of the Handbook of Human Performance Technology

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STANDARDS AND ETHICS IN HPT

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  • “ Ethics and performance standards are integral to the competence of HPT professionals and the value they add. Just as the ADDIE model and its numerous variations shape the way we view, solve and avoid performance problems, ethics and performance standards also do so…”(Guerra)

WHY THIS TOPIC?

  • Ethics or moral philosophy, is concerned with the analysis of morality, moral problems, and moral judgment
  • Ethics is concerned with values i.e. what ought to be rather than what is
  • It seeks to understand what is wrong or right in a moral context to establish principles of right behavior to guide the actions of individuals and groups

ETHICS AND MORALITY

  • Ethics: The rules or standards that govern the conduct of the members of a group
  • Morals: Personal judgments, standards, and rules of conduct based on fundamental duties of promoting human welfare, acknowledging human equality or justice, and honoring individual freedom or respect of persons
  • Values: The core beliefs or desires that guide or motivate the individual’s attitudes and actions such as honesty, integrity and fairness
  • Business ethics: Moral principles or standards that guide behavior in the world of business

DEFINITIONS

  • HPT professionals must consider the consequences of the decisions they make especially contracting, planning, assessment and solution selection
  • It is important to have clarity on who is affected and how. The more we consider this, the fewer problems we will have down the road come implementation time

CONSIDERING CONSEQUENCES

  • Absolute or relative?
  • There are arguments for both
  • Absolutists will argue that there are certain universal truths that guide all human beings
  • Relativists will say that morality can be different for different people at different time and in different cultures
  • The author argues for a middle point somewhere between these two extremes
  • See pgs. 1029-1030

ETHICAL BEHAVIOR

  • - Moral awareness is a key behavior the HPT professional needs to exercise
  • - It is defined as “a person’s recognition that his/her potential decision or action could affect the interests, welfare, or expectations of the self or others in a fashion that may conflict with one or more ethical standards” (Butterfield, Trevino and Weaver, 2000)
  • - Moral awareness is the first step in the four-step process of ethical decision-making (Rest, 1986)

ETHICAL DECISIONS IN AMBIGUOUS SITUATIONS

Recognize a moral issue (moral awareness)

Make the moral judgments

Establish the moral intent

Engage in moral behavior, i.e. take action

  • See pages 1031-1032 for details

THE FOUR-STAGE PROCESS FOR ETHICAL DECISION-MAKING

  • Many companies, organizations and other groups write these to help their members deal with ethical situations that may arise in their workplace
  • Many companies now embrace the notion of Social Responsibility as they see that adherence to this idea can benefit their bottom line
  • HPT specialists should always consider all of the ethical factors of their decisions and the consequences of their recommendations in terms of the impact they will have (see pg. 1033)

CODES OF ETHICS

  • Many professional organizations have documented standards and ethics principles that are detailed in the article starting on page 1034-1043
  • It is recommended you look through these as good examples of ethical standards to follow

GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF ETHICS

  • Using codes of ethics and standards strengthens the credibility and influence of the HPT specialist
  • It also elevates the profession to the same high standards practiced by other professionals such as lawyers and physicians

USING STANDARDS AND CODES OF ETHICS

PROFESSIONAL ETHICS

  • Add value
  • Make use of and promote validated practices
  • Work collaboratively
  • Continuously improve efficiency
  • Exhibit integrity
  • Uphold confidentiality
  • These are considered the bedrock of the HPT code of ethics

HPT – SIX PRINCIPLES

  • The author quotes a study by Webley and More (2003) that Firms not explicitly tied to codes of ethics tend to have higher employee turnover and, on average, 15% lower profitability
  • When people engage in unethical behavior, Varca and Valutis (1993) showed in their research that the work of highly skilled workers decreased by 25%
  • In essence, ethics is not only desirable, it also makes for a more successful organization

WHY WORRY ABOUT ETHICS?

  • The author explains in this article that our ethics are closely tied to our beliefs and those beliefs are linked to religion and culture
  • Please read pages 1052-1056 to understand ethical considerations tied to different cultures around the world

ETHICS AND BELIEFS

  • Colero (2000) states that there are basic principles of personal and professional ethics that can be universal
  • Personal Ethics
  • Concern for the well-being of others
  • Trustworthiness and honesty
  • Willing compliance with the law, excepting civil disobedience
  • Being fair
  • Refusing to take unfair advantage
  • Doing good
  • Preventing harm

UNIVERSAL ETHICS?

  • Based on Colero’s model
  • Objectivity
  • Full disclosure
  • Confidentiality
  • Due diligence
  • Avoiding conflict of interest
  • Fidelity to professional responsibilities

PROFESSIONAL ETHICS

  • In developing an ethical performance-improvement environment team, we should look to our own performance technologies (Hill 2006)
  • What then, are the right steps to begin building such an environment?
  • Hire ethical people
  • Set clear expectations
  • Provide the Necessary Support

BUILDING AN ETHICAL ENVIRONMENT

  • The first step to developing an ethical team is to hire ethical people committed to the stated code of ethics
  • Training unethical people is a waste of time, money and effort
  • Careful interviewing is important to find the right folks who embody the values of the organization and also have a good track record of good results

HIRE ETHICAL PEOPLE

  • It’s extremely important for leaders to set clear expectations and send messages that support clear, observable and measurable ethical standards
  • People will always observe their leaders closely. The saying “it’s what you DO that counts” (rather than what you say) holds very true in this situation
  • It’s also a good idea to reward behavior that supports the organization’s ethical standards as this will help propagate and maintain a healthy, ethical environment

SET CLEAR EXPECTATIONS

  • Bryant (2005) states six key factors that contribute to supporting an organization in fulfilling its ethical standards:

A well-defined doctrine

An efficient organizational structure

Effective training

Available and useful materials and facilities

Focused leadership

Capable people

PROVIDE THE NECESSARY SUPPORT

  • Bardwick (1998) States:
  • “…people need the structure of powerful and unambiguous values. They need clarity in order to achieve worthwhile lives. A preoccupation with rights without responsibility leaves people without bonds or belonging. For people to know they’ve made a contribution, they need criteria for what is worthy.”

A FINAL QUOTE

ASSIGNMENT

  • Answer any of the following in 300 words or less

Do you believe there are universal codes of ethics that are independent of culture or religion? Elaborate

Do you work for an organization with clearly stated ethical standards? If so, how are these disseminated and practiced?

Why do you the topic of ethics is important to HPT specialists? What kind of ethical decisions might an HPT specialist be faced with?

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