Ethical skills

My work on the concept of ethical competency is mainly rooted in understanding the concept of ethical leadership. I realised that, within this concept, there was a capacity that could be developed and consolidated. The concept of competency, as I understand it, is based on the work of Jacques Tardif who defined it as “a complex skill-set based on the effective mobilization and combination of a variety of internal and external resources within a cluster of situations” (Tardif, 2019, p. 51).  It also involves taking initiatives and assuming responsibility within a professional context, all the while mobilizing a network of actors to deal with a given situation (Zarifian, 1999, p. 77). 

In my paper "Developing Ethical Competency among School Administrators", I highlighted the importance of being able to assess, in a given situation, what appears to be best for the organization, i.e. refocusing on its aims and values (Langlois, 1999, p. 19-30). In this sense, ethical competency is a plea for ethics that is more reflective while taking into account the organizational context (p. 28). Thus, questions such as the following are likely to emerge:

• Would such a decision really be the best in this particular situation?
• Is there a group that will be disadvantaged by this decision?
• What are the values to be prioritized in such a situation?

For more information on this, see:

Langlois, L. et Lapointe, C. (2010). Can ethics be learned? Results from a three-year action-research project. Journal of Educational Administration, 48(2), 147-163. https://doi.org/10.1108/09578231011027824

Langlois, L., Dupuis, R., Truchon, M, Marcoux, H. et Fillion, L. (2009). Les dilemmes éthiques vécus par les infirmières aux soins intensifs, Éthique Publique, 11(2), 20-30. https://doi.org/10.4000/ethiquepublique.90

Langlois, L. (2008). Une éthique à deux vitesses : dangers et répercussions sur l’identité professionnelle. Pyramides, 16(2), 33-52. http://pyramides.revues.org/210?lang=en