Ethics for the Public Service Professional
Features
- Examines the incorporation of ethics within daily decisions, discretion, and duties of public servants
- Contains a wealth of pedagogical tools to facilitate learning
- Includes current event examples to place concepts in practical context
Instructor’s manual available with qualifying course adoption includes test banks and answers to the end-of-chapter review questions
Summary
Public service professionals — government officials, those in the legal system, first responders, and investigators — confront ethical issues every day. In an environment where each decision can mean the difference between life and death or freedom and imprisonment, deciding on an ethical course of action can pose challenges to even the most seasoned professional. Ethics for the Public Service Professional explores these issues as they relate to virtually all areas of public service.
Examining the history of ethics, codes, and legislation relating to public service, this volume:
- Provides timely coverage of current police and public service controversies
- Discusses important new mechanisms of accountability, including comprehensive use-of-force reporting, citizen complaint procedures, early intervention systems, and police auditors
- Presents real-life situations faced by those within public service, encouraging discussion and debate
- Incorporates news stories throughout the text to demonstrate the diverse scope of ethical issues within the public service workplace
- Includes a list of Web sites to facilitate further research
Each chapter begins with learning objectives to emphasize active rather than passive learning, along with key terms for readers to assimilate. Many chapters contain Ripped from the Headlines current event examples that demonstrate actual scenarios involving the issues discussed within the chapter. Case studies and summations further assist readers in comprehending the material, along with sections offering insight from public servants specializing in a particular area. Review questions at the end of each chapter test comprehension.
Table of Contents
Ethics: A Look at the Basics
What Are "Ethics"?
Revisiting the Basics
Morals, Values, and Ethics
Ethical Subdivisions
Differentiating Ethics and Morals from Law
What Ethics Involves
Further Defining Ethical Makeup
Causal and Moral Responsibility
Ethical Perspectives
Altruism
Utilitarianism
Categorical Imperative
Ethical Culture
Decision Making: The Logic of Ethics
Ethical Decision Making
Making a Decision
Guidelines for Ethical Decision Making
Existentialism
The Logic of Ethics
Good versus Bad Arguments
Deductive versus Inductive Arguments
Truth versus Validity
Sound versus Unsound Arguments
Evaluating the Result of Decisions
Leadership Ethics
Introduction
Deciding How to Lead
Establishing Trust through Leadership
Ethical Behavior as an Organizational Theme
Why Morale Is Important in Organizational Ethics
Ethics in the Workplace Assessment
Ethical Codes and Standards
Establishing Organizational Support
Developing Codes of Ethics
Code of Ethics Types
Purpose of Establishing a Code of Ethics
Arguments against Ethical Codes
Code of Ethics Examples
Ethics in Law Enforcement
Introduction; Randy Taylor
Ethical Frameworks Related to Ethical Training
Codes of Ethics in Law Enforcement
Police Culture
Career Stages and Ethics
Police Misbehavior
Current Practices for the Prevention of Unethical Behavior
Authority
Discretion
Corruption
Conflicts of Interest
Recruitment
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Ethics in Forensic Science
Ethics and Forensic Testimony
Forensic Science Gone Awry
Legal Rulings Regarding Forensic Testimony
National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Report
Ethics at the Crime Scene
Misconduct within Crime Laboratories; R. T. Bowen
Ethics Education in Forensic Science; R. T. Bowen
National Forensic Center; R. T. Bowen
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Ethics in Corrections Systems
Ethics in Corrections; C. Roberson and S. Mire
Subculture in Corrections
Sentencing
The Case against Socrates
Purposes of Punishment
Retribution
Deterrence
Incapacitation
Rehabilitation
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Ethics in the Legal System
Introduction
Judges and Magistrates
Attorneys
Reporting Professional Misconduct
Expert Witnesses
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Ethics in Public Office
Ethics in Governance
United States Office of Government Ethics
Common Ethics Issues
Private Life and Public Office
Integrity in Office
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Ethics in Other Areas of Public Service
Military Ethics
Ethics in Social Services
Ethics in Emergency Medical Services
Ethics in Firefighting
Ethics in Government Contracts
Legislation Regarding Ethics in Public Service
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Ethics Training and Education; Randy Taylor, D. M.
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The Future of Public Service Ethics
Future Research Needs
The Impact of Technology on Ethics Training
Appendices
Index
Author Bio(s)
Aric W. Dutelle has been involved in law enforcement since 1999. He is currently the program director of the Forensic Investigation program at the University of Wisconsin–Platteville. Dutelle has trained thousands of personnel in ethical considerations and proper methodologies. He has worked thousands of crime scenes, including kidnappings, homicides, suicides, robberies, burglaries, sexual assaults, and drug trafficking–related cases.
Editorial Reviews
". . . the moral and ethical concepts gleaned from reading this book are worthy of assimilation into one's professional activities, and indeed into one's personal life."
—Scientific Sleuthing Review
"Dutelle writes with clarity, authority, and a good command of the ethical issues and dilemmas faced by public service professionals."
—Paul Pabla, University of the Fraser Valley, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
