Professional ethics: what is it?

According to one of the definitions, professional ethics is a set of rules for the behavior of a particular social group, providing a moral character of the relationship, conditioned or associated with professional activity.

Most often, with the need to comply with standards of professional ethics, people working in the service, medicine, education - in a word, everywhere, where daily work is connected with direct contact with other people and where high moral demands are made.

Professional ethics originated on the basis ofsimilar interests and requirements to the culture of people united by one profession. Traditions of professional ethics develop along with the development of the profession itself and at present the principles and norms of professional ethics can be fixed at the legislative level or expressed through generally accepted norms of morality.

The concept of professional ethics is connected, beforeall, with the peculiarities of one or another profession in respect of which this term is used. Thus, for example, the "Hippocratic oath" and medical secrecy are some of the elements of the professional ethics of doctors, and an impartial presentation of truthful facts is an element of professional journalism ethics.

Features of professional ethics

In any profession, honest and responsiblethe performance of one's duties is one of the most important rules of professional ethics. However, some features of professional ethics may be ignorant or inattentive missed by a novice specialist - then such an employee may be declared unfit to perform his duties.

To prevent this from happening, remember basic norms and principles of professional ethics:

• its work should be carried out professionally, strictly in accordance with the assigned powers;


• in the work you can not be guided by your personal likes and dislikes, you should always observe objectivity;


• when dealing with personal data of clients or other persons, companies should always observe the strictest confidentiality;


• in the work it is impossible to suppose occurrence of out-of-service relations with clients or colleagues, heads or subordinates;


• should respect the principle of collegiality and not discuss their colleagues or subordinates in the presence of clients, partners or others;


• one should not be allowed to disrupt an already accepted order by giving it up in favor of another (more profitable) order;


• It is unacceptable to discriminate against clients, partners, colleagues or subordinates on a gender, race, age or any other basis.

Currently, professional standards are developing and improving, social relations are changing. And in this new picture of the world, more important than ever the ability to respect the nature and surrounding people is the main advantage of the professional ethics of representatives of any profession.