Chapter 6: Teaching Ethical Decision Making: Religious and Spiritual Perspectives

One of the key functions of education is to expand students’ awareness of, and enhance their adherence to, appropriate ethical standards. This function implies that students acquire a knowledge and appreciation of relevant ethical standards. However, if students are to use ethical standards wisely, they must understand that these standards are expressions of consensual moral attitudes and conventions developed in particular religious/spiritual, social, and cultural contexts. In addition, wise use of ethical standards implies that students become aware of relevant psychospiritual, psychosocial and sociocultural factors and processes that may modify the ways in which ethical standards are applied. This chapter outlines some important empirical findings and philosophical issues related to ethical decision making (EDM) and the teaching of ethical standards. In particular, the need for ethical standards to be taught with religio-spiritual and sociocultural sensitivity, in order that these standards motivate rather than constrain self-initiated and self-regulated ethical behavior, is discussed. Conversely, if ethical standards are taught insensitively, especially in the form of rules that apply universally regardless of situation or context, then, paradoxically, what is being taught is not ethics but legalism. The result of this latter approach may be a “good” outcome, but it is not ethical in the sense that it is neither fully informed nor properly motivated.