Ethics are central to communication. Ethics are standards of conduct and moral judgement. Communication ethics is the consideration of the rightness or wrongness of a given communication act. Whenever anyone seeks effect change in an organization or in a relationship with another person, there are ethical dimensions to consider. The following questions illustrate the issues involved:
- Is the request in the long-term good of the organization?
- Is the request in the best interest of the parties involved in the communication?
- Do all parties have the information and understanding they need in order to make an informed choice?
- Is the information correct/truthful?
In ethical communication, the answers to all these questions have to be “yes”. These are among the ethical questions that are raised whenever a business communication is transacted. It is not ethical to lie or hide the truth when it prevents another person from exercising the right to choose from a full range of options.
These are an inherent relationship between ethics and communication. In addition to deciding what is efficient, effective, and desirable in a communication interaction, the straightforward business communicator will choose what is ethical.
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