Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The apparent conflict between development activities and the need to preserve environmental integrity, here called the environmental dilemma, serves as the point of departure for this study. With engineers in general, and civil engineers in particular, being major role players in development activities, this study turns particular attention to the role they do, and should play with respect to the environmental dilemma.1 The study commences with an overview of the traditional ethical and environmental ethical theories, but this does not produce an unambiguous, master solution to the environmental dilemma. However, on a more pragmatic level, and based largely on its undeniable widespread popularity, the concept of sustainable development surfaces as the most promising strategy. Notwithstanding its popularity it remains a vague and contestable concept. This is born out by the numerous definitions and interpretations accorded to sustainable development in the literature. In order to lend more rigour to the concept, this study firstly suggests an ethical foundation for it, and secondly proposes a framework through which a fuller understanding of it may be articulated. The ethical foundation is based on the value of beneficence, which is rooted in the reciprocal altruism that is part of our evolutionary heritage, and which has been further reinforced by widespread cultural appropriation. Moderated by the equally widely held value of fairness, and the principles of holism and biocentrism, it is argued that beneficence, as a basic and near universal societal value, is well suited to be the moral underpinning for sustainable development. The sustainability framework, as it is proposed in this study, is hierarchically structured so that it is more monistic and prescriptive at its higher levels, while at the lower levels it is more pluralistic and pragmatic. At the highest level of the framework sustainable development is irrevocably bound to the vision of a sustainable society. At the next level the values that underpin sustainable development, beneficence, fairness and respect for life, are found. At the following levels the message of the vision and the values of sustainable development is expanded further through three foundational and eighteen subsidiary principles, the latter being expressed in categories that represent the dimensions of sustainable development. This study recognises four dimensions within sustainable development, these 1 It needs to be noted that in this study the environment is (frequently) broadly interpreted so as to include social concerns as well as those related to the natural environment. being the environmental,2 the social, the economic and the institutional dimensions. These dimensional categories are not mutually exclusive but are rather used as categories of convenience. The framework is concluded, at the lowest levels, with measurement themes and applications, also dimensionally categorised. With this expanded understanding of sustainable development as background, the study proceeds to an overview of the legal and policy framework of South Africa with respect to the environment and sustainable development. This is followed by two case studies that attempt to discern the sustainability challenges evident in local development practice. The first of these case studies deals with the proliferation of golfing estate developments in the Southern Cape, and the second with the proposed construction of a national toll road through the Wild Coast area of the Transkei. The study then turns its focus to the engineering profession in South Africa, with particular reference to the civil engineering discipline. After reviewing engineering codes of conduct from a number of countries, particularly with respect to their environmental and/or sustainability prescriptions, a proposal for a South African version of such a code is put forward. As it turns out this suggested code leans heavily on the previously proposed sustainability framework. Finally civil engineering education in South Africa is assessed with respect to environmental and/or sustainability requirements, and the conclusion is that sustainable development, in its fullest sense, might be best served by the introduction of a unique educational programme focussed specifically on sustainability engineering. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die konflik wat skynbaar bestaan tussen ontwikkelingsaktiwiteite en die behoefte om die integriteit van die omgewing te bewaar, hier genoem die omgewingsdilemma, dien as die vertrekpunt van hierdie studie. In ag genome dat ingenieurs in die algemeen, en siviele ingenieurs in die besonder, hoofrolspelers is in ontwikkelingsaktiwiteite, word aandag hier spesifiek geskenk aan die rol wat hulle speel, en behoort te speel, met betrekking tot die omgewingsdilemma.3 Hierdie studie begin met ‘n oorsig van die tradisionele teorieë in etiek en omgewingsetiek, maar dit lewer nie ‘n eenduidige meester-oplossing vir die omgewingsdilemma nie. Egter op ‘n meer pragmatiese vlak, en grootliks gebaseer op die onteenseglike populariteit van die konsep, het volhoubare ontwikkeling as ‘n belowende strategie na vore gekom. Desnieteenstaande die hierdie populariteit, bly die konsep van volhoubare ontwikkeling vaag en omstrede. Die veelvuldige definisies en interpretasies wat in die literatuur aan die konsep toegesê word, dien as bewys hiervan. Om meer krag aan die konsep te verleen word daar in hierdie studie, eerstens ‘n etiese fondament ter ondersteuning van volhoubare ontwikkeling, en tweedens ‘n raamwerk waardeur dit beter verstaan kan word, voorgestel. Die etiese fondament is gebaseer op die waarde van welwillendheid. Hierdie waarde is gewortel in die wederkerige altruïsme wat deel uitmaak van ons evolusionêre erfenis, en verder in die samelewing gevestig is deur wydverspreide kulturele toe-eiening. Daar word geredeneer dat welwillendheid, bemiddel deur die ewe wydonderskrewe waarde van billikheid, en die beginsels van holisme en biosentrisme, as ‘n basiese en ‘n byna universele maatskaplike waarde, besonder geskik is om vir volhoubare ontwikkeling die morele onderbou te wees. Die volhoubaarheidsraamwerk, soos dit in hierdie studie voorgestel word, is hiërargies gestruktureer sodat die hoër vlakke meer monisties en voorskriftelik is, terwyl die laer vlakke meer pluralisties and pragmaties is. Op die hoogste vlak van die raamwerk word volhoubare ontwikkeling onlosmaaklik gekoppel aan die visie van ‘n volhoubare gemeenskap. Op die volgende vlak word die waardes wat volhoubare ontwikkeling fundeer, naamlik welwillendheid, billikheid en respek vir lewe, gevind. In die daaropvolgende vlakke word die boodskap van die visie en die waardes van volhoubare 3 Daar moet kennis geneem word dat die omgewing in hierdie studie (dikwels) breed geïnterpreteer word, en dus sosiale kwessies sowel as dié van die natuurlike omgewing insluit. ontwikkeling uitgebou deur drie basiese en agtien aanvullende beginsels, waarvan laasgenoemde uitgedruk word in kategorieë wat die dimensies van volhoubare ontwikkeling weergee. Hierdie studie onderskei vier dimensies in volhoubare ontwikkeling, naamlik die omgewings-,4 die sosiale, die ekonomiese en die institusionele dimensies. Hierdie dimensionele kategorieë is nie onderling uitsluitend nie, maar word eerder as kategorieë van gerief aangewend. Die raamwerk word op sy laagste vlakke voltooi deur metingstemas en toepassings wat ook dimensioneel gekategoriseer is. Met hierdie uitgebreide begrip van volhoubare ontwikkeling as agtergrond, is die studie voortgesit met ‘n oorsig van die Suid-Afrikaanse wetlike en beleidsraamwerk ten opsigte van die omgewing en volhoubare ontwikkeling. Dit is opgevolg deur twee gevallestudies wat poog om die uitdagings wat volhoubaarheid in plaaslike onwikkelingspraktyk hou, te skets. Die eerste van hierdie gevallestudies het die die vinnige vermeerdering van gholf-landgoedere in die Suid-Kaap aangespreek, terwyl die tweede gehandel het oor die voorgestelde konstruksie van ‘n nasionale tolpad deur die Wildekus-area van die Transkei. Die fokus van die studie verskuif hierna na die ingenieursprofessie in Suid-Afrika, met spesifieke verwysing na die siviele ingenieursdissipline. Nadat verskeie ingenieursgedragskodes van ‘n aantal lande oorweeg is, veral met betrekking tot hul omgewings- en volhoubaarheidsvoorskrifte, is ‘n Suid- Afrikaanse weergawe van so ‘n gedragskode voorgestel. Uiteraard leun hierdie kode swaar op die volhoubaarheidsraamwerk wat vroeër voorgestel is. Ten laaste word siviele ingenieursopleiding in Suid-Afrika beoordeel ten opsigte van omgewings- en volhoubaarheidsvereistes, en die slotsom is dat volhoubare ontwikkeling, ten volste begryp, ten beste uitgebou sal kan word deur die instelling van ‘n unieke opvoedingsprogram wat spesifiek gefokus is op volhoubaarheids-ingenieurwese.

In the introductory part, the thesis deals with the description of terms such as senior, old age and basic physical and mental changes that accompany this period. In the next part of the work is characterized the term client, social worker and outlined the possibilities of social work legislation in the Czech Republic. In the third part of the thesis describes in detail terms such as ethics, ethical conduct, professional ethics, code of ethics, ethical dilemmas and supervision. Based on a written questionnaire and subsequent interview, the following chapter describes the ethical dilemmas of the six social services workers. Furthermore, this chapter describes ethically and problematic situations when working with seniors, which the workers in social services formulated as ethical dilemmas. This part of the thesis is followed by another chapter in which the analysis of the selected dilemmatic situation is performed and an insight into the solution of a particular dilemmatic situation using three ethical theories (deontology, utilitarianism and care ethics) is provided.

The purpose of this study is to illustrate where the boundary between being professional and being private in the line of work as a personal assistant lie, this study will focus on the perspective of the unit manager. This to clarify the ethical approach in the assistance matters for the unit manager. To answer the study's purpose and questions, six individual semi-structured interviews have been held with unit managers responsible for personal assistance in municipal activities. During the interviews, the unit managers shared their own experiences about the subject of the study. The empirical material has been analyzed with the help of normative ethics theories of duty and sense ethics. The result of the study shows that unit managers find it difficult to take a stand as where the boundary between being professional and being private in personal assistance lies. There are many different factors to take into consideration when discussion where the boundary lies for each individual. Having good municipal guidelines regarding the work of the assistance is something the unit managers see as a good tool for taking a position on questions about the work of the assistants. The empirical material also highlights that there is a lot of ethical dilemmas in the matter of personal assistance, and how the unit managers handle these.

The aim of this research study is to explore what ethical issues emerge in the Indonesian mining industry? What shapes the emergence of these issues and how do organisations engage with them? Many research studies (e.g. Dierksmeier, 2013; Bowie, 2002; Cragg, 2002; and Moberg, 1997) emphasise the relevance of ethical theories in understanding ethical issues in business organisations. However, there remains a significant gap in the business ethics literature in understanding ethical issues in a context-sensitive manner. There is little awareness in most of these studies of the influence of the social structure of a multi-ethnic and multicultural society like Indonesia or of the specific industrial and organisational contexts which are being explored. There is therefore a challenge for researchers to provide a conceptual framework to study ethical issues which will fit the Indonesian mining companies’ situation. This research employed Critical Realism (CR) and a qualitative approach. Data was collected from forty-eight participant interviews with managers and employees of four mining companies in Indonesia. This made it possible to understand what ethical issues emerge in the mining industry and to examine what shapes their emergence, as well as how mining companies engage with the ethical issues. The findings revealed that the companies’ ethical concerns result from the particular characteristics of the industry and the Indonesian national culture. However, their ethical concerns typically reside in risk management and regulatory compliance. The findings showed that cultural mechanisms shape the emergence of ethical issues in the industry: family perspective and paternalism, religiosity, and multi-ethnicity. The study findings suggest that the mechanisms shaping the emergence of ethical issues at the organisations presented at times conflicting cases of instrumental or possibly unethical behaviour but also evidence of set rules and regulations as well as moral awareness, practices aimed at considering others and stakeholders’ interests. This research argues that to understand the ethical issues and how business organisations engage with them in a multi-ethnic and multicultural context, it is essential to ground the conceptual framework in both ethical theories and specific cultural sensitivities, as only then can the full story be grasped.

En este trabajo, buscamos conocer los diferentes puntos de vista en torno al dilema que surge entre la ética y las finanzas, y partimos definiendo a las finanzas desde su raíz etimológica, la misma que determina que las finanzas son la ciencia para alcanzar fines u objetivos humanos; así también, abordamos diversas teorías éticas, que, si bien es cierto, se desarrollaron en un contexto diferente al de nuestros días, son necesarias para lograr un correcto entendimiento del dilema planteado. Bajo ese mismo enfoque, estudiamos a la ética empresarial, que se define como las reglas, normas, códigos o principios morales que proporcionan directrices para un comportamiento correcto y veraz en situaciones específicas; y el comportamiento ético individual, que es afectado por características individuales, como el desarrollo moral, y por factores situacionales, como la cultura organizacional .Además, como parte del desarrollo de esta investigación bibliográfica, se presentan diversos ejemplos que demuestran como el comportamiento ético afecta de manera positiva y en muchas ocasiones de manera negativa a las actividades financieras, y por ende a la economía, no solo local, sino también global; estos ejemplos apoyan y contradicen las posiciones adoptadas por diferentes autores respecto al tema controvertido. Finalmente, se explica como el modelo de la Economía del Bien Común busca hacer frente al modelo económico Capitalista, apoyándose en los valores que profesa, como la dignidad humana, la solidaridad y justicia social, la sostenibilidad ecológica y la transparencia y la participación democrática. / In this work, we seek to know the different points of view around the dilemma that arises between ethics and finance, and we start by defining finance from its etymological root, the same one that determines that finance is science to reach human ends or objectives; likewise, we approach diverse ethical theories, that although it is true, were developed in a different context to the one of our days, they are necessary to achieve a correct understanding of the dilemma raised. Under the same approach, we study business ethics, which is defined as the rules, norms, codes or moral principles that provide guidelines for correct and truthful behavior in specific situations; and individual ethical behavior, which is affected by individual characteristics, such as moral development, and by situational factors, such as organizational culture.In addition, as part of the development of this bibliographic research, several examples are presented that demonstrate how ethical behavior affects in a positive way and in many occasions in a negative way financial activities, and therefore the economy, not only local, but also global; these examples support and contradict the positions adopted by different authors regarding the controversial topic. Finally, it is explained how the model of the Economy of the Common Good seeks to confront the Capitalist economic model, relying on the values it professes, such as human dignity, solidarity and social justice, ecological sustainability and transparency and democratic participation. / Trabajo de Suficiencia Profesional

The diploma thesis deals with concrete ethical aspects, which a social worker can encounter when working in a low-threshold facility for children and youth. The following basic objectives are defined in this thesis: To find out what ethical issues are encountered in dealing with risky youth. To find out how to deal with these problematic phenomena in practice. The thesis is divided into 4 chapters and each chapter is divided into several subchapters. The first chapter deals with social work with risky youth. The second chapter deals with the ethical aspects of social work from a general point of view. In the third chapter, respondents' testimonies are used to identify more specific ethical aspects of their practice. In the last chapter, individual ethical aspects are subjected to the view of ethical theories.

ABSTRACT The purpose of this essay is to contribute to an understanding of how ethical theories manifest in the political debate in Sweden, where the focus is on the debate on surrogacy. This to contribute with an understanding of the relation between ethics and politics. The purpose will also be to contribute with and understanding of the potential differences in the use of the concept “freedom” in the political discourse in Sweden. The ethical theories that was part of this paper where consequentialism, deontological ethics and ethics of care. In order to answer this questions, propositions regarding the subject of surrogacy from all the parties who are represented in the Swedish parliament where analyzed.  During this paper I discovered that all three of the ethical theories where manifested in motions from every party and in all the different positions in the matter, regarding surrogacy, even if the arguments differed. When it came to how the concept “freedom” was used, there were no clear pattern regarding which party who used it in a certain way. However, I could see that arguments related to negative freedom were mostly used as the head arguments while arguments related to positive freedom was more used to back up the head arguments. There were also no clear pattern regarding how the concept of freedom was used in relation to the parties’ respective position on surrogacy.

This theses is focused on ethical dilemmas, which can appear during the work with people with disabilities. This work is divided into five main parts. In the first part I describe specifics of the target group and the negative impacts of disabilities which can appear. The second part is focused on social work with this target group. The third part deals with ethics and ethical dilemmas. Here I describe ethics in general view and also in the context of social work. Then I define ethical dilemmas and I describe possible solution, all based on literature. The fourth part is about ethical dilemmas in practice. Namely dilemmas, which were mentioned during research probe under which I have conducted interviews with social workers. The last part concerns the analysis of the ethical dilemma according to three ethical theories.

Thesis deals with the ethical problems at the wards of psychiatric hospital. The environment of a psychiatric hospital in the context of its target group psychiatric patients is a source of ethically important situations, which must be solved by the medical social worker. This puts high demands on the worker as he is the/an executive tool of medical social work.The goal of the thesis is to identify ethically important situations, to suggest their solution and eventually to reflect these solutions with the ethical theories, ethical codes, inner rules of the psychiatric hospital and other statutory norms. The structure of the thesis is adjusted to this goal: first, I define the environment of the hospital, describe the target group and medical social worker profession. Secondly, I describe ethical problems identified before, suggest their solutions and reflect them. Finally, in the last part of the thesis, in the discussion, I contemplate about preliminary ethical understanding as a basis for identification of the ethical problems and I ponder other factors that matters in reaching the remedies of ethical problems.

The task of this diploma thesis is to describe and summerize the ethical dilemmas that occur in the work of social workers in low-threshold facilities for children and youth. The aim of this work is to formulate individual ethical dilemmas faced by social workers in social work with risky youth in low-threshold facilities for children and youth, and then to perform subsequently the analysis of one selected ethical dilemma using three ethical theories. The basis for collecting information was a qualitative research - the research probe, specifically, the method of questioning, the technique of the semi-structured interview with social workers. The diploma thesis is divided into five chapters in which I describe the formation and development of low-threshold facilities, the clients of these facilities and the aspects influencing their risk. Other chapters are devoted to ethics and ethical dilemmas in general. In conclusion of the thesis, the analysis of the specific ethical dilemma from the practice of the interviewed social workers is carried out, using three ethical theories deontology, utilitarianism and ethics of care. This is the case when ethics and social work link and point out the possibility of using ethical theories in professional practice.