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The Importance of a Code of Ethics to the Practice of Public Relations
In 1996, the Center for the Study of Ethics in the Professions (CSEP) at the
Illinois Institute of Technology (2009a) received a grant to place its collection of
codes of ethics on the Web. More than 850 codes of professions, corporations,
government agencies, and academic institutions can now be found online at
http://ethics.iit.edu. The center was established in 1976 “to promote research and
teaching on practical moral problems in the professions” (CSEP, 2009b) and was the
“first interdisciplinary center to focus on ethics in the professions” (CSEP, 2009b).
CSEP acknowledges that “some writers have suggested that codes of
professional ethics are pointless and unnecessary. Many others believe that codes are
useful and important, but disagree about why” (CSEP, 2009c). At the outer edges of
the first camp is John Ladd (1991), who maintains that to rely on a code of ethics is
“to confuse ethics with law” (CSEP, 2009c). Ladd (1991) contends that there is no
special ethics for professionals that is somehow separate from the ethics of ordinary
human beings. Professionals “have no special rights or duties separate from their
rights and duties as moral persons” (CSEP, 2009c).
Heinz Luegenbiehl (1991) mounts a different attack against codes of ethics:
“The adoption of a code is significant for the professionalization of an occupational
group, because it is one of the external hallmarks testifying to the claim that the group
recognizes an obligation to society that transcends mere economic self-interest” (p.
138); however, “ultimately codes of ethics create moral problems rather than helping
to resolve them” (CSEP, 2009c). He remarks that professionals do not often consult
their codes of ethics for guidance on ethical matters and that the guidelines presented
in the codes are sometimes inconsistent (Luegenbiehl, 1991).
Harris et al. (1995) argue that though practicing professionals do not
frequently consult their codes, that does not necessarily mean that they do not know
about or care about the their contents. “Further, the fact that codes of ethics
sometimes seem internally inconsistent can be addressed by understanding codes of
ethics not as recipes for decision-making, but as expressions of ethical considerations
to bear in mind. We should view them as an ethical framework rather than as specific
solutions to problems” (CSEP, 2009c).
One of the most compelling cases for the value of a code of ethics comes from
Michael Davis (1991), who argues that codes of ethics are to be understood as
conventions between professionals:
The code is to protect each professional from certain pressures (for
example, the pressure to cut corners to save money) by making it
reasonably likely...that most other members of the profession will not
take advantage of her good conduct. A code protects members of a
profession from certain consequences of competition. A code is a
solution to a coordination problem. (p. 154)
Davis (1991) gives the example of an engineer who can use his profession’s code of
ethics to object to pressure to produce substandard work, not merely as an ordinary
moral agent, but as a professional. Engineers or doctors or clergy or public relations
professionals can say, "As a professional, I cannot ethically put business concerns
ahead of professional ethics." Making such a statement and taking such a stand would
allow a public relations professional to avoid deceiving the public or misrepresenting
an issue or withholding pertinent information by telling a client, politely but firmly,
that such behavior is prohibited by his or her code of ethics.
Davis (1991) gives four reasons why professionals should support their
profession’s code of ethics:
1. Upholding the code will help protect them from being injured by
what others in their profession do.
2. Upholding the code will help ensure a working environment in
which it will be easier than it would otherwise be to resist pressure
to do what the professional would rather not do.
3. Upholding the code helps make the profession one in which
practitioners need not feel embarrassment, shame, or guilt about
what they do.
4. Upholding the code reinforces the individual professional’s
obligation to do his or her part in fostering benefits for all those
within the profession (p. 166).
Harris et al. (1995) make the point that a code indicates to others that the
profession is seriously concerned with responsible, professional conduct (p. 35). This
is especially important in the practice of public relations, which often is seen by the
public as the realm of spin doctors and fabricators. A code of ethics that is upheld by
its members can foster consistency and build trust (see Appendices E-H).
Ethics: Though “morality” and “ethics” are often used interchangeably, the
two actually concern different areas of social conduct. The former is primarily
concerned with behavior that either adheres to or is in opposition to spiritual or
religious teachings, whereas the latter concerns standards of behavior set by a
profession, an organization, or an individual (Lattimore et. al, 2009, p. 74). Ethics
concerns what is good and bad, fair and unfair, professional and unprofessional,
proper and improper behavior for an individual, a profession, a company, or an
organization.
Code of ethics: A set of principles that all members of an organization, an
institution, a company, or a profession swear to uphold. For the most part, codes of
ethics have little or no enforcement provisions. To be in good standing, a member is
supposed to adhere to the code’s principles, but if he or she does not, he or she may
not suffer any consequences (Wilcox et. al, 2007, p. 81).