Ethics and Leadership: Integration or Disharmony
Abstract
The relationship between leadership and ethics is not a simple one. There are many ethical theories that have been developed to explain it. However, debates about the subject continue to raise more questions. Since the dawn of history, leaders have been responsible for their decisions. Actually, such decisions do not come out of the blue, but rather, are products of the leader's background, their convictions, and how they have been trained. These are all key factors in the ethical decision-making process. In war particularly, professional military ethics, the laws of war, and personal beliefs all interact within that decision-making process. Consequently and further complicated by continuing human social and technological developments, the types of ethical issues commanders encounter are always increasing in their complexity. Hence, they require careful thought and study. This essay discusses of the necessity of ethics in leadership and the influence of ethical theories on leadership decisions. This paper also examines the role of international law in influencing behavior, paying special attention to the laws of war and how law and ethics interact.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 2013
- Accession Number
- ADA589024
Entities
People
- Salah I. Majali
Organizations
- United States Army War College