Ethical Decision-Making

There are several perspectives from which to analyze the situation that resulted in my sanctioned action. When it came to being there for my family, I was able to uphold my ethical standard of family coming before anything. But when it comes to my duty and commitment as a student, I demonstrated poor judgment in engaging in the ethical decision-making process. 

I would give my competence level an overall rating of 4 out of 10. I blame myself for everything that happened. I let my ambition get the better of me, and I let everyone down as a result. I have come to accept this more and more as I have thought about my decisions. I have learned so much about what ethical standards are, what options were available to me, how I could have acted differently, and how I should hold myself accountable for my own mistakes. It has been hard to discuss this situation thoroughly repeatedly. But it has been a needed, healing process.

I could have considered how much I value honesty, respect, trust, etc. I have all my life. In this situation, my behavior contradicted who I am as a person, who I have always been. I could have taken into consideration how I was going to affect the faculty, my classmates, my family, and even myself. I should have known that my decisions could have resulted in me losing my degree and all the hard work and dedication I put in throughout the program I set out to complete. I could have considered how this would affect my future in terms of job prospects, further education, and health. If I had considered all this, I would have made a better decision.

I could have been honest and upfront with at least some stakeholder groups (i.e., faculty, family) so that we could talk through the potential options available to me and help me reach a better decision, one that had undergone the serious and thorough consideration that the situation warranted. This could have prevented sanctions and saved me the pain and suffering. 

I did not make an ethical decision in this situation. An ethical decision would have considered all stakeholders and the potential consequences that would affect each of them. I have been angry about the result of this situation, but I am not angry anymore. I want to heal. And if I were given the chance to face this situation again, I would think about all the things I just mentioned and take more time to complete the assignment, even if that meant that I would have had to repeat the course and graduate at a later date because this was the right thing to do.