Ethical Fading: The Commonality of Consenting Deceit

Abstract

Unethical decisions have insidiously become a mainstay of the United States Army. They are so prevalent (and accepted) that what should be obvious to an ethical leader, has instead become a veiled choice of operation in the Profession of Arms. In response to the underlying current of this destructive action, it would seem the Army has mostly turned a blind eye toward the conduct as if almost denying its very existence. The Army must do more than recognize this significant issue, as in good faith it can no longer accept the status quo. Its failure to tackle this behavior head-on would result in further degradation throughout all levels of leadership, adversely affecting the relationship between the leader and the led, while simultaneously undercutting the Armys priority: the readiness of the force. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the ongoing problem with ethical fading through the perspective of the ethical lenses, discuss the military culture that tolerates it, examine the impact it delivers on readiness and relationships, and finally, to provide solutions to reverse course on the consequences of this negligent conduct.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 04, 2017
Accession Number
AD1121169

Entities

People

  • Glen Demarcus

Organizations

  • United States Army Sergeants Major Academy

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Addressing
  • Blindness
  • Casualties
  • Commonality
  • Counseling
  • Deception
  • Doctrine
  • Governments
  • Human Behavior
  • Indicators
  • Interrogators
  • Joint Military Activities
  • Leadership
  • Noncommissioned Officers
  • Physical Fitness
  • Regulations
  • Standards
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Training
  • United States
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Political Violence and Terrorism Studies.
  • Strategic Security Studies