Rational Decision Making Model

Ethical Quandaries and Decision-Making Models

Ethical quandaries have become commonplace in today’s environment. And they can only be solved by using decision-making models. As a result, I select rationality as one of the choice models to address a problem. Individuals in this scenario choose alternatives that require gathering data, assessing facts, and following a method to make fact-based decisions. The approach disregards people’s feelings and ethical considerations, although it tends to favor individuals in terms of benefits while minimizing any costs. Additionally, the model takes the decision maker to have the complete information about the options and is in a position to examine and make the best decision out of it (Lorenz, 2008). Therefore, to my classmates, as you can see rational decision making is one way to solve an ethical dilemma problem as the model follows the ethical decision making steps.

Steps in Ethical Decision Making

The first phase involves, to address an issue in this approach is; defining the problem whereby you have to describe the hindrances, identify the requirements and formulate goals. After which you can decide whether the decisions about the solution you are to opt is the right one. But for you to define this problem, you have to understand what contributes to the problem and template the requirements which will determine the evaluation criteria. The next step is criteria identification on decision-making where an individual needs to recognize the methods which are relevant in making the decisions and leave the irrelevant one. Typically, the rules depend on the decision maker’s interest’s values beliefs and outcome to determine the decision outcome. After identifying the criteria, you now identify the alternatives; by weighing which are the best criteria to use in analyzing and evaluating the problem. After getting the necessary methods, you now develop these alternatives by listing them, and the reliable solutions are applied. Then these options are evaluated, and one is supposed to select the one which solves the ethical dilemma depending on your problem. According, to rational decision making model the six steps in ethical decision making the steps have been followed.

Ethical Dilemmas

An ethical dilemma is a situation or circumstances where there are two options, and a choice is made out of them. It does not solve the problem in an ethical manner as much as the decision maker decides to address the issue by following the cultural beliefs, religious practices, and laws. Thus, personal ethical practices do not favor the chooser by whatever decision results. Apparently, there are many situations of ethical dilemmas, ranging from friendship, workplaces, in the society just to mention a few of these circumstances.

Example of a Moral Dilemma in a Working Environment

For instance, here is an example of moral dilemma in a working environment. James is the finance manager of one f the biggest company. One day, as he reports to work his chief executive officer, calls him to his office, and informs him that he should go to the another branch, which is in a different town to conduct an interview exercise of some interns in the finance department. Alternatively, James is to use the company vehicle, where he’s supposed to drive himself to the other branch. On his way there he makes a stopover at some town. And walks to some supermarket and gets a few bottles of beer which the manager takes along as he drives. Unfortunately, due to reckless driving he gets a head on collision with another vehicle, he’s severely injured, and the company’s vehicle breaks down. Good Samaritans take him to the hospital. His boss is called and told about the incident. So he’s in a dilemma whether James should buy the company the vehicle or sympathize with him because he’s also undergoing serious injuries.

References

Altschuller, S., & Benbunan-Fich, R. (2009). Is Music Downloading The New Prohibition? What Students Reveal Through An Ethical Dilemma. Ethics and Information Technology, 11(1), 49-56.

Lindy, C., & Schaefer, F. (2010). Negative Workplace Behaviors: An Ethical Dilemma for Nurse Managers. Journal of Nursing Management, 18(3), 285-292.

Lorenz, S. G. (2008). 12-Hour Shifts: An Ethical Dilemma for the Nurse Executive. Journal of Nursing Administration, 38(6), 297-301.