Business Ethics Chapter 2 Glossary

Ethical pluralism says that we should make ethical decisions by considering the (often-conflicting) obligations that follow from all ethical theories, and then judge how to proceed.

Toleration is the virtue of respecting beliefs, attitudes, and practices different from one’s own.

Cultural diversity is the anthropological fact that cultures differ in their accepted beliefs, attitudes, and practices.

Ethical relativism is the metaethical view that the truth or falsity of ethical judgments is relative to the traditional practices of a cultural group.

Ethical theories are ways of systematizing ethical judgments that philosophers have developed over many years.

The “is/ought” gap means that we cannot derive an ethical conclusion from an argument consisting of purely scientific or factual premises.

The metaethical principle that “ought” implies “can” means that a person cannot be morally obligated to perform an action or bring about a consequence if he is unable to do so.

Ethical reasons are agreement-seeking because we offer them as justifications to others for acting in a certain way. They are reasons about which there can be argument and debate, and they have justifications on whose truth or falsity and applicability we want others to agree.

Ethical reasons are action-guiding because they motivate us to act in ways that we think are morally right, or at least ethically permissible.