Ethics
 | When we talk about ethics we are talking broadly about the principles and rules which govern our behaviour – a sense of what is right or what is wrong. Of course what we consider to be ethical behaviour can mean different things to different people. Basically, we decide the difference between right and wrong based on our conscience, religion, laws of the country, etc. |
Etiquette
Etiquette can be described as the expected behaviours for individual actions within society, group, or class. (Within a place of business, it involves treating co-workers and employer with respect and courtesy in a way that creates a pleasant work environment for everyone.)What is the difference between Ethics and Etiquette?
Ethics and Etiquette both deal with how we behave as human beings. Ethics is basically a set of moral principles which govern how we behave and relates to what we perceive as being ‘good’ or ‘bad’. Etiquette is the customary code which tells us how to behave in a proper and polite way. Ethics can be a grey area - that is why many companies have what is called a code of conduct – a set of guidelines as to how employees are expected to behave. This will be covered in more detail in a later section.
So to summarise, ethics relates to principles or conscience, whereas etiquette relates to how we behave.
Why are Ethics and Etiquette so important?
Acting ethically, responsibly and legally when using computers is hugely important to businesses – failing to do so can have serious consequences, not only in terms of being legally liable but also reputational risk. You may expect to be able to use computers at work just like you do at home, but doing so could put a business at risk. It is unethical, for example, to be spending time on personal social networking sites during work hours - productivity is affected. Think about too what could happen to a company's reputation if an employee participates in unethical activities online, not only is it a bad look for the company, there could be legal implications.
