Situational Ethics

Situational ethics is the practice of justifying a change of moral belief or action based on circumstance.

"I am only yelling at you because you yelled at me"
"It is okay to fool around after all we are engaged."
"Murder is wrong except when someone is breaking into your house"
"Lying may be wrong but what are you supposed to do about Sally's dress - hurt her feelings?"
"If I turned it in, it would sit in lost in found or they would just take it, so I am going to keep it"

Active and thoughtful learners are going to begin to think and learn conceptually.  Teachers must have excellent, durable truth available when faced with the "if-then" questions and logic.  Work related and technical teachers might wonder, "How does this article apply to me?"  After all, they teach technical not ethical truths - wrong.  They teach work ethics - or should - constantly to their people.  Work ethics are the how we do, with whom we do and why we do what we do.  Parents, spiritual leaders, educators, supervisors - all of us should be teaching ethical truths that change and improve the lives of people.

Moral teaching - whether work, home, spiritual - is beyond man and calls him to a higher, deeper, better, objective standard.  People are not horrible but, rather, nature selfish and desiring to "do their own thing".  Selflessness is one of the keys to great organizations, people and leaders.  Selflessness is also essential to teaching (and learning) truth.

 If people think a truth to be false, they have no need to follow it and therefore have no need to justify their actions that do not conform to that "truth".  However, if people know a truth to be truth, they are left to justify their actions that do not conform to that truth. 

"There is no excuse..."
"Just because Sally was doing it doesn't..."
"Everyone is doing it is not an explanation, would you...if everyone"
"It doesn't matter if no one was around, the money wasn't yours."
"It is not her fault that he...just because she was dressed..."

We all war against situational ethics in those that we teach.  Well at least at times....other times teachers are more interested and concerned about keeping their followers and avoiding conflict.  In times like these, some teachers find themselves afraid to simply state, teach and explain the truth because: 

• They don't want to make the students feel bad
• They don't want to be unpopular
• They are unwilling to say I don't know
• They can't teach the truth as absolute because they don't live by it.  

Truth gives people the ability to "do right" or "succeed" or "acheive results" when they apply that truth.   When teachers teach that "truth" changes based on the situation, they rob their students of life and direction.  There are things that vary based on situation but truth does not vary.  Truth is by definition absolute.

 Sometimes teachers teach situational ethics in order to support their "opinion" because their opinion can not stand in the face of absolute truth.  In this case, the student is not freed by situational ethics but bound to a standard that is developed by a teacher who has "adjusted truth" to the current situation or belief.

Do not teach that truth changes and do not teach changing truths.  Do not set people free or bind them by teaching them situational ethics or situational truths.  Even if it is uncomfortable, teach absolute truths.  Challenge your students to adjust their life to truth instead of adjusting truth to their life.  Teach them how to apply the truths that you teach instead of settling for "no thinking" situational adjustments.  Most importantly, before you give them all of this advice, accept and embrace it yourself.