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จริยธรรมบนเส้นขอบ
เราอยู่ในห้วงเวลาที่ “จริยธรรม” ถูกท้าทายมากที่สุด แต่ก็จำเป็นที่สุดเช่นกัน
จริยธรรมไม่ใช่ความดีงามอันสัมบูรณ์ตายตัว ไม่ใช่อุดมคติที่ลอยอยู่เหนือความเป็นจริง และไม่ใช่เครื่องมือปิดกั้นความเห็นต่าง ซึ่งล่วงละเมิดเสรีภาพและความหลากหลาย แต่จริยธรรมคือหลักกำกับชีวิตส่วนตัวและชีวิตของสังคม ที่ช่วยตรึงเราไว้ไม่ให้หลุดจากความเป็นมนุษย์ และตัดสินใจเลือกทางที่ทำให้เราภูมิใจได้ทั้งในปัจจุบันและอนาคต
ยิ่งโลกใหม่เต็มไปด้วยวิกฤตและความคลุมเครือไม่แน่นอน เช่น โลกรวน ข่าวลวง โรคระบาด ความเสี่ยงจากเทคโนโลยีใหม่ ภัยสงคราม และแนวคิดสุดโต่งทางการเมือง เรายิ่งต้องเผชิญหน้ากับโจทย์จริยธรรมใหม่ๆ มากมายที่พาเราไปอยู่บน “เส้นขอบจริยธรรม” ซึ่งเป็นพรมแดนที่กฎหมายตามไม่ทัน คุ้มครองเราไม่ได้ เหลือเพียงแต่ “จริยธรรม” เป็นเครื่องนำทาง
ซูซาน ลีโอโตด์ ผู้สอนวิชา จริยธรรมบนเส้นขอบ (Ethics on the Edge) แห่งมหาวิทยาลัยสแตนฟอร์ด ชวนผู้อ่านมาสนุกตื่นเต้นกับการถกเถียงปัญหาจริยธรรมร่วมสมัย ที่ไปไกลกว่าวิธีคิดสองขั้ว (ถูก-ผิด / ขาว-ดำ) ด้วยกรอบคิด “บันไดสี่ขั้น” และ “แรงขับหกประการ” ซึ่งช่วยให้เราตัดสินใจในประเด็น “สีเทา” ได้อย่างรอบด้านและเป็นธรรม ผ่านเคสท้าทายความคิด อาทิ
- แอร์บีเอ็นบีควรทำอย่างไรเมื่อเจ้าบ้านเลือกปฏิบัติกับคนที่เข้าพัก
- สังคมควรรับมืออย่างไรเมื่อเครื่องพิมพ์สามมิติถูกนำไปใช้ผลิตปืน
- เราควรแบนผลงานของศิลปินที่ทำตัวขัดหลักสิทธิมนุษยชนหรือไม่
- นวัตกรรมการตัดต่อพันธุกรรมควรถูกนำไปใช้อย่างเสรีขนาดไหน
- พ่อแม่มีสิทธิโพสต์ภาพถ่ายของลูกน้อยในโลกออนไลน์ไหม
- หุ่นยนต์ควรได้รับสิทธิพลเมืองหรือไม่
นี่คือหนังสือเปิดสมองและหัวใจแห่งยุคสมัย ที่นำเสนอวิถีการหลอมรวมหลักจริยธรรมเข้าเป็นส่วนหนึ่งของการตัดสินใจ ทำให้จริยธรรมเป็นเรื่องของทุกคน เป็นประชาธิปไตย ตอบโจทย์โลกความเป็นจริง และสร้างพลังการเปลี่ยนแปลงเชิงบวกให้เราตัดสินใจได้ดีขึ้น เป็นคนที่ดีขึ้น และร่วมสร้างโลกที่ดีขึ้น
จริยธรรมไม่ใช่ความดีงามอันสัมบูรณ์ตายตัว ไม่ใช่อุดมคติที่ลอยอยู่เหนือความเป็นจริง และไม่ใช่เครื่องมือปิดกั้นความเห็นต่าง ซึ่งล่วงละเมิดเสรีภาพและความหลากหลาย แต่จริยธรรมคือหลักกำกับชีวิตส่วนตัวและชีวิตของสังคม ที่ช่วยตรึงเราไว้ไม่ให้หลุดจากความเป็นมนุษย์ และตัดสินใจเลือกทางที่ทำให้เราภูมิใจได้ทั้งในปัจจุบันและอนาคต
ยิ่งโลกใหม่เต็มไปด้วยวิกฤตและความคลุมเครือไม่แน่นอน เช่น โลกรวน ข่าวลวง โรคระบาด ความเสี่ยงจากเทคโนโลยีใหม่ ภัยสงคราม และแนวคิดสุดโต่งทางการเมือง เรายิ่งต้องเผชิญหน้ากับโจทย์จริยธรรมใหม่ๆ มากมายที่พาเราไปอยู่บน “เส้นขอบจริยธรรม” ซึ่งเป็นพรมแดนที่กฎหมายตามไม่ทัน คุ้มครองเราไม่ได้ เหลือเพียงแต่ “จริยธรรม” เป็นเครื่องนำทาง
ซูซาน ลีโอโตด์ ผู้สอนวิชา จริยธรรมบนเส้นขอบ (Ethics on the Edge) แห่งมหาวิทยาลัยสแตนฟอร์ด ชวนผู้อ่านมาสนุกตื่นเต้นกับการถกเถียงปัญหาจริยธรรมร่วมสมัย ที่ไปไกลกว่าวิธีคิดสองขั้ว (ถูก-ผิด / ขาว-ดำ) ด้วยกรอบคิด “บันไดสี่ขั้น” และ “แรงขับหกประการ” ซึ่งช่วยให้เราตัดสินใจในประเด็น “สีเทา” ได้อย่างรอบด้านและเป็นธรรม ผ่านเคสท้าทายความคิด อาทิ
- แอร์บีเอ็นบีควรทำอย่างไรเมื่อเจ้าบ้านเลือกปฏิบัติกับคนที่เข้าพัก
- สังคมควรรับมืออย่างไรเมื่อเครื่องพิมพ์สามมิติถูกนำไปใช้ผลิตปืน
- เราควรแบนผลงานของศิลปินที่ทำตัวขัดหลักสิทธิมนุษยชนหรือไม่
- นวัตกรรมการตัดต่อพันธุกรรมควรถูกนำไปใช้อย่างเสรีขนาดไหน
- พ่อแม่มีสิทธิโพสต์ภาพถ่ายของลูกน้อยในโลกออนไลน์ไหม
- หุ่นยนต์ควรได้รับสิทธิพลเมืองหรือไม่
นี่คือหนังสือเปิดสมองและหัวใจแห่งยุคสมัย ที่นำเสนอวิถีการหลอมรวมหลักจริยธรรมเข้าเป็นส่วนหนึ่งของการตัดสินใจ ทำให้จริยธรรมเป็นเรื่องของทุกคน เป็นประชาธิปไตย ตอบโจทย์โลกความเป็นจริง และสร้างพลังการเปลี่ยนแปลงเชิงบวกให้เราตัดสินใจได้ดีขึ้น เป็นคนที่ดีขึ้น และร่วมสร้างโลกที่ดีขึ้น
456 pages, Paperback
Published October 1, 2023
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December 7, 2023
ทุกวันนี้เราอยู่ในโลกที่ตอบคำถามต่าง ๆ ได้ง่าย (เปิดกูเกิลสิ ไปถาม ChatGPT สิ) แต่ก็มีคำถามยากที่ตามมาพร้อมกับยุคสมัยด้วย คำถามเหล่านี้เรียกร้องให้เราใช้ "จริยธรรม" ในการตอบ เช่น หุ่นยนต์ควรมีสิทธิแค่ไหน ควรมีการปรับแต่ง DNA ในคนหรือไม่ หรือควรทำอย่างไรเมื่อ influencer ที่เราชอบมีพฤติกรรมที่เรายอมรับไม่ได้
เล่มนี้ให้หลักการต่าง ๆ ในการตัดสินใจทางจริยธรรม พร้อมด้วยเคสมากมายและท้าทายในระดับนึง ตัวอย่างหลักการเช่น หลักการ ข้อมูล ผู้มีส่วนได้ส่วนเสีย ผลที่ตามมา, ความโปร่งใส ความยินยอม การฟังอย่างเข้าใจ ตัวอย่างปัญหาเช่นปัญหาที่เกี่ยวกับอำนาจที่กระจัดกระจาย การระบาดของพฤติกรรมผิดจริยธรรม หรือความจริงที่ไม่จริงแท้
ประเด็นในเรื่องค่อนข้างยาก แต่รู้สึกว่ายังคงอ่านสนุก ไม่แน่ใจว่าเพราะตัวเองชอบรึเปล่า บางเคสข้อมูลก็ลึกหน่อย ไม่ได้จำได้หมดหรอก คิดว่าถ้าชอบขบคิดทบทวนเกี่ยวกับการกระทำหรือเหตุการณ์ต่าง ๆ รอบตัวก็น่าอ่านนะ
เล่มนี้ให้หลักการต่าง ๆ ในการตัดสินใจทางจริยธรรม พร้อมด้วยเคสมากมายและท้าทายในระดับนึง ตัวอย่างหลักการเช่น หลักการ ข้อมูล ผู้มีส่วนได้ส่วนเสีย ผลที่ตามมา, ความโปร่งใส ความยินยอม การฟังอย่างเข้าใจ ตัวอย่างปัญหาเช่นปัญหาที่เกี่ยวกับอำนาจที่กระจัดกระจาย การระบาดของพฤติกรรมผิดจริยธรรม หรือความจริงที่ไม่จริงแท้
ประเด็นในเรื่องค่อนข้างยาก แต่รู้สึกว่ายังคงอ่านสนุก ไม่แน่ใจว่าเพราะตัวเองชอบรึเปล่า บางเคสข้อมูลก็ลึกหน่อย ไม่ได้จำได้หมดหรอก คิดว่าถ้าชอบขบคิดทบทวนเกี่ยวกับการกระทำหรือเหตุการณ์ต่าง ๆ รอบตัวก็น่าอ่านนะ
July 12, 2021
The redeeming part about this book was perhaps the wide variety of ethical dilemmas raised - would be useful for the GP students aiming to do Science and Tech questions. However, the main flaw of this work is how it fails to provide a deep discussion of what ethics or what an ethical decision entails. The ethical framework underpinning the entire discussion is just this process of considering "principles, stakeholders, information, consequences" - and the author goes on to decide for the readers why a certain principle overrides another without explaining her reasons for this sufficiently. The chapters don't seem to be anchored on a strong and distinct point each - terms like "Blurring Boundaries" and "Contagion" turned out just to be fluff. If you would like to fund my next book you can buy this on my carou page
October 7, 2021
At first I really enjoyed what this book had to offer: it gave you a guideline on how to approach difficult decisions and what you should consider while relating these to examples to make it more easily understandable. However, I think there were details going into some of the examples that wasn’t needed and the book felt very repetitive and tedious to read. It was also difficult to ignore the author’s bias in some of the ethical dilemmas she proposed- when she’s discussing Amazon employees protesting the company’s climate change stance and states “Are you expecting the company to do more than you are willing to do personally? In this instance, an Amazon employee could consider how if they drive to work, or fly on business trips, they use fossil fuels… As you make your own decisions, keep in mind no company or leader is perfect.” This part of the book was very frustrating to read as the author seems to forget to mention here that the stakeholders of climate change is every person on the planet and shifts the responsibility of controlling fossil fuel usage to your average person instead of the companies that put out the majority of it! That’s one example where I would expect a slightly different view from an expert in ethics and didn’t leave the best impression with me.
The book started off in the right direction, leaving me with a lot to think over but ended on a note where it felt like the author was trying to push their opinions.
The book started off in the right direction, leaving me with a lot to think over but ended on a note where it felt like the author was trying to push their opinions.
January 19, 2021
“If we ask a binary question, we get a yes or no answer with little insight into the person’s frame of mind.”
Published just last week, Liautaud’s new book is an easily digestible and highly usable guide for helping the average person make better, more ethical decisions. There’s no getting around the fact that we live in a complex world which is only getting more complex, especially as technology gets more ubiquitous before the law has a chance to catch up.
Instead of just saying yes or no to choices that are presented as black and white, Liautaud urges readers to instead ask “when and under what circumstances” would I . . . delete a social media app over privacy concerns, vote for a candidate whose personal life I disagree with, get into an argument with a loved one about a choice they’ve made, boycott a company, cancel an artist or celebrity, etc.
As she succinctly exhorts: “most decisions we need to make will be non-binary.”
Using a bevy of potent case studies, the reader gets a look at not only where decision making goes wrong, but also, when applicable, how it got corrected and how it could have been handled differently. We get insight into Boeing’s 737 crashes, Lyndon Johnson’s corrupted election into the senate, big tech’s numerous privacy and free speech problems (23andMe, Alexa, Twitter, etc.). These are obviously urgent and relevant questions.
Liautaud then dials it down to more personal ethical considerations — the ethics of curating our social media feeds, how to respond to “alternative facts,” when and how to take the keys away from an elderly parent, and more.
Between the big picture leadership questions about integrity to the very personal day-to-day choices we all make, she covers a lot of ground efficiently and effectively.
Perhaps best of all: For being a book about ethics, it’s far less dense than the kind of reading I was doing in ethics classes at Drake U. The Power of Ethics is a highly readable, narrative-driven book which also gives a helpful and practical framework for better decision-making.
Published just last week, Liautaud’s new book is an easily digestible and highly usable guide for helping the average person make better, more ethical decisions. There’s no getting around the fact that we live in a complex world which is only getting more complex, especially as technology gets more ubiquitous before the law has a chance to catch up.
Instead of just saying yes or no to choices that are presented as black and white, Liautaud urges readers to instead ask “when and under what circumstances” would I . . . delete a social media app over privacy concerns, vote for a candidate whose personal life I disagree with, get into an argument with a loved one about a choice they’ve made, boycott a company, cancel an artist or celebrity, etc.
As she succinctly exhorts: “most decisions we need to make will be non-binary.”
Using a bevy of potent case studies, the reader gets a look at not only where decision making goes wrong, but also, when applicable, how it got corrected and how it could have been handled differently. We get insight into Boeing’s 737 crashes, Lyndon Johnson’s corrupted election into the senate, big tech’s numerous privacy and free speech problems (23andMe, Alexa, Twitter, etc.). These are obviously urgent and relevant questions.
Liautaud then dials it down to more personal ethical considerations — the ethics of curating our social media feeds, how to respond to “alternative facts,” when and how to take the keys away from an elderly parent, and more.
Between the big picture leadership questions about integrity to the very personal day-to-day choices we all make, she covers a lot of ground efficiently and effectively.
Perhaps best of all: For being a book about ethics, it’s far less dense than the kind of reading I was doing in ethics classes at Drake U. The Power of Ethics is a highly readable, narrative-driven book which also gives a helpful and practical framework for better decision-making.
April 9, 2021
I found this really interesting. This book gives and discusses a framework to use to make ethical decisions. It uses real examples from business, science and personal experiences to highlight good and poor decisions. The writer also considers the forces at play in regards to ethical decisions and how they interact with the framework.
April 23, 2025
Overall, a pretty disappointing read. I'm finding more and more that philosophy and ethics targeted at the layperson tends to miss the mark in one of two ways: it is so vague it is essentially useless, or it is too specific and confusing for the average reader. This book finds itself solidly in the former category.
It is my belief that practical ethics is not something that can be arrived about easily through following any formula. Liautaud writes about her extensive background as an ethicist and professor, and the whole book is a drawn out treatise of her beliefs on practical judgement. However, morality and ethics is a far-reaching discipline with a wide variety of contradicting viewpoints. Even in the theater of the mind, there is no consensus on what is moral, so why, in the complicated world of reality, would there be one foolproof moral way of acting? To be fair, Liautaud does not state that this method is the only one, or that it is foolproof, but it is the only method presented. And, more importantly, it is not presented as the author's own method of making right decisions, instead it is presented as THE method for making right decisions.
The core of morality and ethics is understanding the history of the discipline: being presented with differing viewpoints and choosing how to integrate them into your own belief style. No person can arrive at a method simply by following a list. For example, Liautaud writes that we should consider our principles. How do we know that our principles are good? How do we choose between contradicting principles? What should we do if people hold principles diametrically opposed to ours? Is one more right than the other if that is the case? If I hold a principle that people are born equal, and another person believes that some people are inherently better than others, do we just shrug our shoulders and agree to disagree? Moral relativism (the idea that morality can be relative to our beliefs/society/environment) can be a nasty can of worms if you think about it for more than five seconds. Liautaud argues that right actions can be made by considering our principles, but does not consider how we determine whether or not we have right principles.
Additionally, there are some kind of yucky corporate sympathies that I don't super love. In one section of the book Liautaud argues that in the case of an Amazon worker's strike for climate-friendly company policies, the workers should also consider they could lessen their individual climate impact instead. And sure, it is always good to make small changes in the face of a cause you believe in. That being said, equating a worker's 3 mile drive in suburbia without bike lanes to the environmental impact of a billionare's mega-corporation or seems a little disingenuous.
Overall, this is a lukewarm and biased take on personal ethics that goes on for way too long and covers way too little. If you are interested in practical ethics I suggest reading "How To Be Perfect" by Michael Schur.
SIDE NOTE: When I was looking at the reviews on the back of this book, I saw a glowing review from a chairman of the MCKINSEY CORPORATION, as in, the company that does consulting for fascist governments and who advised Purdue Pharma, the company that produced OxyContin and essentially birthed the opioid crisis. McKinsey is like... the Doctor Evil of corporate morality. This is like picking up a book on loving compassion and seeing a positive review from like, Mussolini or Stalin or something in the back. Made me a little suspicious of the message.
It is my belief that practical ethics is not something that can be arrived about easily through following any formula. Liautaud writes about her extensive background as an ethicist and professor, and the whole book is a drawn out treatise of her beliefs on practical judgement. However, morality and ethics is a far-reaching discipline with a wide variety of contradicting viewpoints. Even in the theater of the mind, there is no consensus on what is moral, so why, in the complicated world of reality, would there be one foolproof moral way of acting? To be fair, Liautaud does not state that this method is the only one, or that it is foolproof, but it is the only method presented. And, more importantly, it is not presented as the author's own method of making right decisions, instead it is presented as THE method for making right decisions.
The core of morality and ethics is understanding the history of the discipline: being presented with differing viewpoints and choosing how to integrate them into your own belief style. No person can arrive at a method simply by following a list. For example, Liautaud writes that we should consider our principles. How do we know that our principles are good? How do we choose between contradicting principles? What should we do if people hold principles diametrically opposed to ours? Is one more right than the other if that is the case? If I hold a principle that people are born equal, and another person believes that some people are inherently better than others, do we just shrug our shoulders and agree to disagree? Moral relativism (the idea that morality can be relative to our beliefs/society/environment) can be a nasty can of worms if you think about it for more than five seconds. Liautaud argues that right actions can be made by considering our principles, but does not consider how we determine whether or not we have right principles.
Additionally, there are some kind of yucky corporate sympathies that I don't super love. In one section of the book Liautaud argues that in the case of an Amazon worker's strike for climate-friendly company policies, the workers should also consider they could lessen their individual climate impact instead. And sure, it is always good to make small changes in the face of a cause you believe in. That being said, equating a worker's 3 mile drive in suburbia without bike lanes to the environmental impact of a billionare's mega-corporation or seems a little disingenuous.
Overall, this is a lukewarm and biased take on personal ethics that goes on for way too long and covers way too little. If you are interested in practical ethics I suggest reading "How To Be Perfect" by Michael Schur.
SIDE NOTE: When I was looking at the reviews on the back of this book, I saw a glowing review from a chairman of the MCKINSEY CORPORATION, as in, the company that does consulting for fascist governments and who advised Purdue Pharma, the company that produced OxyContin and essentially birthed the opioid crisis. McKinsey is like... the Doctor Evil of corporate morality. This is like picking up a book on loving compassion and seeing a positive review from like, Mussolini or Stalin or something in the back. Made me a little suspicious of the message.
September 17, 2022
This book was approached through both very personal and professional lenses: first, on a personal level I consider myself an evidence-based pragmatist of fairly decent ethical standard, but recognize I fail more often than desired and wish to improve. To look at myself in the mirror and know I’ve done my ethical best is my goal. Second, I co-teach a course of genetic engineering, eugenics and the ethical-societal impacts of good and ‘bad’ science. Prof. Liautaud’s book just screamed for me to read it. And what a read it was. Liautaud is a gifted writer and non-fiction ‘story-teller,’ who gives a master class in modern ethics. I will definitely be applying her framework and asking my students to prepare for their ‘edgy’ work in my class by ingesting and learning from Prof. Liautaud’s book. 5 stars.
December 26, 2020
Drawing upon two decades as an ethics adviser guiding corporations and leaders, academic institutions, nonprofit organizations, and students in her Stanford University ethics courses, Susan Liautaud provides clarity to blurry ethical questions, walking you through a straightforward, four-step process for ethical decision-making you can use every day. As founder and managing director of Susan Liautaud & Associates, which advises clients such as global corporations and NGOs on matters of ethical complexity, Liautaud outlines six forces driving virtually every ethical choice we face, positioning the book as an essential guide to ethical decision-making in the 21st century.
June 21, 2021
Un livre à lire pour toutes les personnes qui se posent des questions sur l'éthique et qui aimerait avoir un framwork sur comment prendre les meilleures décisions. Je le conseilles aussi pour toutes les personnes qui ont ou qui travaille dans le monde des affaires. Ça permet vraiment de comprendre comment prendre des décisions mais aussi comment réfléchir à des enjeux comme on se bute chaque jour. C'est vraiment bien appuyer et ça permet de croire que l'humain est capable de prendre des bonnes décisions comme le processus décisionnel est remplis de questions avec des réponses non binaire. Vraiment intéressant.
February 12, 2021
An accessible introduction to the pillars and structure of navigating and establishing parameters for ethics in your daily life. The author also touches on what is termed the ‘ethics edge’ which is gray areas where ethics and the sciences have been outpaced by the growth and development of technology. Many of the questions and examples she poses for the reader to practice using and honing their framework on are thoughtfully explored and interesting.
April 11, 2021
I enjoyed the personal and professional look at how to make ethical decisions. In a world where ethical decisions can be difficult and we realize that not everything is black and white. Extremely helpful.
April 28, 2022
This book will prompt you to think -- the author provides many examples of how digital technology, artificial intelligence, gene editing, and social media algorithms are blurring ethical boundaries and putting ethics on the edge. The concept of banishing the binary choice in decision-making resonated with me. The author provides a framework to help make better ethical choices.
July 2, 2021
Enjoyed it. Lots of clear examples and scenarios that are thought provoking and highlight the necessity of taking ethics into account for decision making process.
February 17, 2021
I found this book to be very meaningful for a number of reasons:
First, it promotes a topic that many assume should or would be foundational to the operations of entities and institutions, but can easily fall to the wayside. I'm glad Dr. Liautaud places a spotlight on a topic which does not necessarily get the attention it deserves.
Second, it highlights the urgency of ensuring ethical thinking is at the forefront of innovation. As regulation can rarely keep up with the potential negative consequences related to AI, healthcare and other developments, the onus is on individuals and entrepreneurs (amongst others) to be forward-thinking.
Finally, the book provides a number of frameworks to assess dilemmas through your own perspective, based on your own principles. Because of this, it creates the an opportunity to reflect on one's own value system.
If you are in a role or position where where you're facing uncertain ethical boundaries (I suspect most people fall in this category), certainly consider reading.
First, it promotes a topic that many assume should or would be foundational to the operations of entities and institutions, but can easily fall to the wayside. I'm glad Dr. Liautaud places a spotlight on a topic which does not necessarily get the attention it deserves.
Second, it highlights the urgency of ensuring ethical thinking is at the forefront of innovation. As regulation can rarely keep up with the potential negative consequences related to AI, healthcare and other developments, the onus is on individuals and entrepreneurs (amongst others) to be forward-thinking.
Finally, the book provides a number of frameworks to assess dilemmas through your own perspective, based on your own principles. Because of this, it creates the an opportunity to reflect on one's own value system.
If you are in a role or position where where you're facing uncertain ethical boundaries (I suspect most people fall in this category), certainly consider reading.
September 19, 2023
Overall, Susan Liautaud has an expansive collective of information on ethics, from direct experiences as an educator, to a range of scenarios from aeroplane crashes, human-robot relations, food ingredient labels, and more. However, I feel about halfway through (particularly chapters five and six) she has a tendency to drop her professional guise.
After mentioning the ethics of digitally editing a photo of oneself using the Chinese app Meitu, Liautaud goes on a loose-lipped rant regarding how it is impossible for people to be authentic on the internet--And directly juxtaposes this claim with the integrity of museums. Although on the surface, this idea is unequivocally true (in terms of cancel culture, people cite small fractions of sentences and situations that are captured in their digital grasps), she drops character and notes that her friend's documentation of her cancer diagnosis was undeniably an example of the "full story" on the internet.
How can Liautaud not question her friend with the same prose she had beforehand. Why, in this case, is she able to undeniably source a personal connection? Where is the ethics explanation for truth and falsehoods in HER life? Why should we then trust her judgement on worldly affairs if her opinions globally do not connect communally?
She then has the gall to compare 'untruthful' (not addressing every waking moment of your life) posts on the internet as having the same impact as anti-Semitism in the Holocaust (Noting discrimination as a form of untruth). To make a book on ethics, it is vital to comprehend the spectrum of severity from one action to the next. A person posting, to quote Liautaud, "sunny beaches and tropic drinks in our friend's stunning Hawaiian vacation photos" is not at all comparable to the rise of anti-Semitism, climate change denial, cancel culture, or Islamophobia. This section should have been less of a personal vengeance towards the internet, and rather a lengthy detailing of what bystander-behavior allows falsehoods to thrive. How do people obtain ethical information on the internet? How do people approach posting on the internet ethically?
It is not a person's responsibility, when documenting their life, to be unquestionably accurate in every single moment. It is unrealistic. And for a book about ethics--making realistic, thoughtful, and logical choices--it must be willing to adapt and address complex issues, and not victim-blame in these cases.
And for a book primarily about outsourcing past scenarios, her ethics must be put into question even in the smaller comments of her work. She pushes her opinions too roughly, and therefore, is it ethical to then do so in a book advising HOW to make good choices? Why are her opinions 'good' in her book? Shouldn't this be informational?
The first half of the book is excellently worded, and her direct advice is to die for. However, her rants halfway through bring down the ethos and logos of 'The Power of Ethics: How to Make Good Choices in a Complicated World.'
After mentioning the ethics of digitally editing a photo of oneself using the Chinese app Meitu, Liautaud goes on a loose-lipped rant regarding how it is impossible for people to be authentic on the internet--And directly juxtaposes this claim with the integrity of museums. Although on the surface, this idea is unequivocally true (in terms of cancel culture, people cite small fractions of sentences and situations that are captured in their digital grasps), she drops character and notes that her friend's documentation of her cancer diagnosis was undeniably an example of the "full story" on the internet.
How can Liautaud not question her friend with the same prose she had beforehand. Why, in this case, is she able to undeniably source a personal connection? Where is the ethics explanation for truth and falsehoods in HER life? Why should we then trust her judgement on worldly affairs if her opinions globally do not connect communally?
She then has the gall to compare 'untruthful' (not addressing every waking moment of your life) posts on the internet as having the same impact as anti-Semitism in the Holocaust (Noting discrimination as a form of untruth). To make a book on ethics, it is vital to comprehend the spectrum of severity from one action to the next. A person posting, to quote Liautaud, "sunny beaches and tropic drinks in our friend's stunning Hawaiian vacation photos" is not at all comparable to the rise of anti-Semitism, climate change denial, cancel culture, or Islamophobia. This section should have been less of a personal vengeance towards the internet, and rather a lengthy detailing of what bystander-behavior allows falsehoods to thrive. How do people obtain ethical information on the internet? How do people approach posting on the internet ethically?
It is not a person's responsibility, when documenting their life, to be unquestionably accurate in every single moment. It is unrealistic. And for a book about ethics--making realistic, thoughtful, and logical choices--it must be willing to adapt and address complex issues, and not victim-blame in these cases.
And for a book primarily about outsourcing past scenarios, her ethics must be put into question even in the smaller comments of her work. She pushes her opinions too roughly, and therefore, is it ethical to then do so in a book advising HOW to make good choices? Why are her opinions 'good' in her book? Shouldn't this be informational?
The first half of the book is excellently worded, and her direct advice is to die for. However, her rants halfway through bring down the ethos and logos of 'The Power of Ethics: How to Make Good Choices in a Complicated World.'
February 24, 2024
This is an important book. I did enjoy reading it as ethics play a big part in my profession as a financial planner. Ethics is NOT just about right and wrong involving money situations. Even if there were not "damages" in a fiscal sense, there are certainly thorny questions that persist in terms of reviewing behavior and patterns.
Dr. Liataud gives the reader an academic framework for analyzing situations and occurrences in several different contextual parameters. She also goes into how many people see things in a broader right/wrong perspective and miss so much in between as it is not that clear cut. Her framework is listed below:
• Banished Binary - seeing the shades of gray and working to use framing from different angles to see who and how stakeholders are affected
• Scattered Power - When products, ideas, services are taken from an intermediary and brought to the masses - while the masses are not sufficiently aware of secondary & tertiary implications of it
• Contagion - The process of certain behaviors that cross the line becoming normalized, thus the populace doesn't seem to feel it is unethical - b/c it is "normal"
• Crumbling Pillars - This is really cool, BTW - this is an issues with what she calls the 3 Pillars. They are: Transparency, Informed Consent, Effective Listening - THIS is the heart of the book
• Blurred Boundaries - She refers to it as "Ethics on the Edge" and it is basically a dispute between parties as to where "the line" is drawn
• Compromised Truth - This is the "fuzzy math" or "fake news" that is so pervasive now, and where will it end and what will it lead to (or as led to)
She goes on to discuss how she teaches it in her Stanford classes as "Ethics on the Fly" as we do not always have all the information, nor the time, to fully analyze, but need to be able to make a judgement. Her method is rather simple but seems wise, to identify the principles and values in play in that instance and then prioritize, if necessary, to determine what is the most ethical/proper course.
Then she wraps it up with a section on Resilience and Recovery. This was actually nice perspective. She states that everyone has had transgressions in their lives, but it is how you RESPOND and move forward that sets the tone. That response also shows the true character of someone (do they try to sweep under the rug, or do they have the courage to admit poor prior judgement and move forward).
One final note: While it appears obvious to me there are left-leaning tendencies in the author, she states some recent rather provocative and controversial scenarios and her conclusions are not stereotypical at all. So, I really enjoyed her perspective.
Give this one a try as I will be using this book as a reference tool going forward for helping with any future dilemmas that are sure to arise.
Dr. Liataud gives the reader an academic framework for analyzing situations and occurrences in several different contextual parameters. She also goes into how many people see things in a broader right/wrong perspective and miss so much in between as it is not that clear cut. Her framework is listed below:
• Banished Binary - seeing the shades of gray and working to use framing from different angles to see who and how stakeholders are affected
• Scattered Power - When products, ideas, services are taken from an intermediary and brought to the masses - while the masses are not sufficiently aware of secondary & tertiary implications of it
• Contagion - The process of certain behaviors that cross the line becoming normalized, thus the populace doesn't seem to feel it is unethical - b/c it is "normal"
• Crumbling Pillars - This is really cool, BTW - this is an issues with what she calls the 3 Pillars. They are: Transparency, Informed Consent, Effective Listening - THIS is the heart of the book
• Blurred Boundaries - She refers to it as "Ethics on the Edge" and it is basically a dispute between parties as to where "the line" is drawn
• Compromised Truth - This is the "fuzzy math" or "fake news" that is so pervasive now, and where will it end and what will it lead to (or as led to)
She goes on to discuss how she teaches it in her Stanford classes as "Ethics on the Fly" as we do not always have all the information, nor the time, to fully analyze, but need to be able to make a judgement. Her method is rather simple but seems wise, to identify the principles and values in play in that instance and then prioritize, if necessary, to determine what is the most ethical/proper course.
Then she wraps it up with a section on Resilience and Recovery. This was actually nice perspective. She states that everyone has had transgressions in their lives, but it is how you RESPOND and move forward that sets the tone. That response also shows the true character of someone (do they try to sweep under the rug, or do they have the courage to admit poor prior judgement and move forward).
One final note: While it appears obvious to me there are left-leaning tendencies in the author, she states some recent rather provocative and controversial scenarios and her conclusions are not stereotypical at all. So, I really enjoyed her perspective.
Give this one a try as I will be using this book as a reference tool going forward for helping with any future dilemmas that are sure to arise.
January 12, 2023
This was probably written with the best of intentions but unfortunately, the result was an un-self-aware and somewhat parochial essay that was waaaay too long (300+ pages, really???)
While the first 40%-ish was pretty good, with Liautaud laying down the groundwork for her "framework" to making ethical decisions, she leaves behind her case studies of Boeing, Air BnB and Pret a Manger (without showing how her framework would work in those cases and throwing around empty words like "contagion" which go unexplained) and goes off in a tangent. And never comes back. The second half of the book felt like a different book altogether.
The author goes on ad nauseum about the problems with "designing babies", motions to grant rights to robots, privacy concerns, racism and biases being present in machine learning blah blah blah. These phenomena were presented in blobs without any meaningful common thread tying them together in any that was RELEVANT to her framework, which was what the author purported to be The Point of the book!
I felt cheated when I was done reading this. I was annoyed because I was treated to a whole slew of information that was not parsed by the author herself. With all due respect, the second half of the book needed a lot more editing and re-editing.
The biggest issue I had with this book was the glaring blindspot the author had with her own worldview. How she decides whether an ethical decision was a binary one versus a complex one (already, an extremely unhelpful and arbitrary distinction) is so strongly informed by her own values. I agree with her that some things like racism and sexism makes tough ethical decisions a little easier. But to arbitrarily decide that when something involves sexism, the ethical decision-maker should forego whatever other competing value (if any at all) in pursuit of gender equality is reductionistic. I wish the author had spent time to explore the complexities and nuances that would come into the decision-making process, EVEN IF the resulting decision would be the same. It does not help that the author made no effort (or was simply ignorant) to acknowledge this inherent bias / flaw in her framework, which shaped the foundation of this book.
This topic has probably been done better in other books. Kind of upset that I wasted quite some good hours of my life on this.
While the first 40%-ish was pretty good, with Liautaud laying down the groundwork for her "framework" to making ethical decisions, she leaves behind her case studies of Boeing, Air BnB and Pret a Manger (without showing how her framework would work in those cases and throwing around empty words like "contagion" which go unexplained) and goes off in a tangent. And never comes back. The second half of the book felt like a different book altogether.
The author goes on ad nauseum about the problems with "designing babies", motions to grant rights to robots, privacy concerns, racism and biases being present in machine learning blah blah blah. These phenomena were presented in blobs without any meaningful common thread tying them together in any that was RELEVANT to her framework, which was what the author purported to be The Point of the book!
I felt cheated when I was done reading this. I was annoyed because I was treated to a whole slew of information that was not parsed by the author herself. With all due respect, the second half of the book needed a lot more editing and re-editing.
The biggest issue I had with this book was the glaring blindspot the author had with her own worldview. How she decides whether an ethical decision was a binary one versus a complex one (already, an extremely unhelpful and arbitrary distinction) is so strongly informed by her own values. I agree with her that some things like racism and sexism makes tough ethical decisions a little easier. But to arbitrarily decide that when something involves sexism, the ethical decision-maker should forego whatever other competing value (if any at all) in pursuit of gender equality is reductionistic. I wish the author had spent time to explore the complexities and nuances that would come into the decision-making process, EVEN IF the resulting decision would be the same. It does not help that the author made no effort (or was simply ignorant) to acknowledge this inherent bias / flaw in her framework, which shaped the foundation of this book.
This topic has probably been done better in other books. Kind of upset that I wasted quite some good hours of my life on this.
April 9, 2022
I think I heard of this book a while back, but I totally forgot about it. Up until now, I’ve been unfamiliar with Susan Liautaud’s work, but she just gained a massive fan with this book. I personally believe ethics and moral philosophy are two of the most important topics any of us can learn. I legit think it should be mandatory that we teach these subjects because we all think we’re good and want to do good, but so many of us do bad things unintentionally. And that’s what I love about this book because figuring out the best action is hard sometimes, but Liautaud provides a framework that I have yet to see in any other book on the topic.
Most books on ethics/moral philosophy break things down and get you to ask questions. They show you the view of a situation from all angles and often go through the ideas from various philosophers and say what they’d think. Susan has starts this book by explaining four main factors that make ethics difficult, and then she gives the reader a sort of checklist when making ethical decisions. These are clear, actual questions you can ask yourself about your personal values while also taking into consider others who are affected by your decision as well as people who may be affected in the future. Throughout the book, Liautaud also uses some major news stories as examples such as when the Boeing jets were crashing a few years ago and many other stories. She breaks down how these companies made ethics a low priority, and lives were lost.
There’s far too many great things to say about this book. But just know that this book is easy to read for everyone, which is very rare from an academic. So I definitely think you should grab a copy of this book. And now, I’m going to go buy her other book The Little Book of Big Ethical Questions.
Most books on ethics/moral philosophy break things down and get you to ask questions. They show you the view of a situation from all angles and often go through the ideas from various philosophers and say what they’d think. Susan has starts this book by explaining four main factors that make ethics difficult, and then she gives the reader a sort of checklist when making ethical decisions. These are clear, actual questions you can ask yourself about your personal values while also taking into consider others who are affected by your decision as well as people who may be affected in the future. Throughout the book, Liautaud also uses some major news stories as examples such as when the Boeing jets were crashing a few years ago and many other stories. She breaks down how these companies made ethics a low priority, and lives were lost.
There’s far too many great things to say about this book. But just know that this book is easy to read for everyone, which is very rare from an academic. So I definitely think you should grab a copy of this book. And now, I’m going to go buy her other book The Little Book of Big Ethical Questions.
May 21, 2021
(3.5) So! What I liked: The author sets up an excellent framework for making decisions, including setting principles/values & having all choices flow from there. I agree with that! She also provides great questions - like, who will be affected by this choice (all the stakeholders, even ones you may not know), an obvious question that becomes less obvious as think of the stakeholders outside of your immediate circle.
What bothered me: She includes her own analyses/ethical decisions on very spicy topics to show you how to use the framework and some of her opinions are bad. Maybe I’m triggered because I’m a fairly binary person and she roots for non-binary decisions as much as possible, but. Her chapter on “separate the art from the artist” was cringy and naively insensitive and I had to LA LA LA my way through the chapter. She contradicted herself a LOT which felt dicey for a book following a logical framework but again - I might have just been set off because I tend to be all or nothing.
On another note, her chapter on robots and pigs with human kidneys was astonishingly bonkers and not in a bad way! It was a cool risk of a chapter that she pulled off. It was really interesting! She, in general, seems like a fascinating human.
I’ll definitely use her framework in the future!
What bothered me: She includes her own analyses/ethical decisions on very spicy topics to show you how to use the framework and some of her opinions are bad. Maybe I’m triggered because I’m a fairly binary person and she roots for non-binary decisions as much as possible, but. Her chapter on “separate the art from the artist” was cringy and naively insensitive and I had to LA LA LA my way through the chapter. She contradicted herself a LOT which felt dicey for a book following a logical framework but again - I might have just been set off because I tend to be all or nothing.
On another note, her chapter on robots and pigs with human kidneys was astonishingly bonkers and not in a bad way! It was a cool risk of a chapter that she pulled off. It was really interesting! She, in general, seems like a fascinating human.
I’ll definitely use her framework in the future!
May 8, 2025
3.5*s. I felt that this is a necessary book that should be popular and just part of common knowledge and discourse, but for me personally the book didn't go as deep as I wanted it to, and it didn't illustrate the trail of consequences far enough in either of the examples or concepts that were discussed. At the same time, I fully understand that the level of depth and technical framework discussion I want would have made this book less accessible, and probably even less useful to the general public, so I am hopeful that it will at least help with the book's popularity.
The book is worth revisiting as a reminder and, due to its examples, as a useful reference point of how fast the landscape is changing and in what direction. Spoiler alert: right now seeing what has changed since the book's publication, and in what direction, is downright depressing. My deepest hope is that if I reread it in 5 years, I will be pleasantly surprised by the social pendulum having self-corrected since, however impossible that seems right now.
The book is worth revisiting as a reminder and, due to its examples, as a useful reference point of how fast the landscape is changing and in what direction. Spoiler alert: right now seeing what has changed since the book's publication, and in what direction, is downright depressing. My deepest hope is that if I reread it in 5 years, I will be pleasantly surprised by the social pendulum having self-corrected since, however impossible that seems right now.
July 7, 2021
This is a must-read for everyone especially because we are living in a fast-changing world where old religious/cultural models of ethics cannot keep up.
Susan's ethical framework comprises 4 simple questions:
1: What are my guiding principles?
2: Do I have the information I need to make this decision?
3: Who or what stakeholders matter to my decision?
4: What are the potential consequences of my decision in the short, medium, and long term?
She discuss 6 forces that are currently influencing ethics:
1. Binary Thinking
2. Scattered Power
3. Contagion and Mutation
4. Crumbling Pillars
5. Blurred Boundaries
6. Compromised Truth
She shares a 4-step process to make ethical decisions on the fly:
1. Choose the two most important principles.
2. Choose the two most important and irreparable consequences.
3. Choose the two most important forces.
4. Choose two alternatives.
All of these are illustrated with relevant and interesting examples and anecdotes. Highly recommended!
Susan's ethical framework comprises 4 simple questions:
1: What are my guiding principles?
2: Do I have the information I need to make this decision?
3: Who or what stakeholders matter to my decision?
4: What are the potential consequences of my decision in the short, medium, and long term?
She discuss 6 forces that are currently influencing ethics:
1. Binary Thinking
2. Scattered Power
3. Contagion and Mutation
4. Crumbling Pillars
5. Blurred Boundaries
6. Compromised Truth
She shares a 4-step process to make ethical decisions on the fly:
1. Choose the two most important principles.
2. Choose the two most important and irreparable consequences.
3. Choose the two most important forces.
4. Choose two alternatives.
All of these are illustrated with relevant and interesting examples and anecdotes. Highly recommended!
January 31, 2021
Liautaud provides a motiviating argument for the democratization of ethics by providing people with a framework for doing so. She argues for the necessary and sufficient condition of truth and condems the rise of "alternative facts" what she appropriately rebrands as compromised truth. She enumerates 6 forces that hinder the realization of ethical decisions and actions but demonstrates how the framework provided not only could help prevent such ethical follies yet also provide key insight into how such unethical decisions were reached. All-in-all, Liautaud has provided and buttressed a good ethical schemata to handle decisions from what should germ cell modification be legal and the intricacies of rights with robots, that present as more and more human, to what candidate should one vote for and ought I post pictures of my children online before they have a say in the matter. I really liked this book.
April 15, 2025
This book has a no fluff approach, diving in immediately to provide value. The extensive exploration of the topic by a university professor gives all the considerations that must be weighed before making a difficult decision. With case studies showing poorly made decision etc.
There were times while reading that I had to go back to a previous section to find what was being referred to, but I really appreciated the author's assumption that they were dealing with an intelligent reader. I feel better equipped now to both discuss difficult topics and make better decisions. I will reread this book.
There were times while reading that I had to go back to a previous section to find what was being referred to, but I really appreciated the author's assumption that they were dealing with an intelligent reader. I feel better equipped now to both discuss difficult topics and make better decisions. I will reread this book.
January 28, 2021
Not a bad read. I’ve done quite a bit of reading in Christian ethics, but this was my first foray into non-religious ethical work. I noticed some overlap, especially some places where I’d have the same conclusions but for different reasons. I think ethics become so much more rich when they are rooted in a robust story of God’s redemptive work in the world, but that isn’t the reason I’m only giving this 3-stars. See, this book has endnotes. Also a few of the stories, though informative, were a bit drawn out.
September 19, 2023
I enjoyed this book for its fresh perspective on Ethics. While exploring various texts on the subject, I sought new approaches to simplifying complex theories. Not everyone grasps philosophical concepts and terminology easily, especially in Ethics. This book provided me with significant inspiration and a diverse range of conversation starters.
The writing is easy and straightforward. I wholeheartedly recommend it to those attempting to comprehend some ethical concepts. Additionally, it may equip you with valuable tools for ethical thinking.
The writing is easy and straightforward. I wholeheartedly recommend it to those attempting to comprehend some ethical concepts. Additionally, it may equip you with valuable tools for ethical thinking.
June 5, 2024
ok this is a super late review, i read this book summer of 2023 for the first time and i really liked it! it’s definitely a dense read and can be challenging but was worth it. i was looking through my old journals today and saw that i had written down my top 7 values (a prompt to readers within the book) so i wanted to share mine from when i read last year:
1. integrity
2. independence
3. balance
4. compassion
5. loyalty
6. optimism
7. growth
if you want to share yours, i would love to see them :)
1. integrity
2. independence
3. balance
4. compassion
5. loyalty
6. optimism
7. growth
if you want to share yours, i would love to see them :)
May 12, 2021
Susan Liautaud's The Power of Ethics is an outstanding compilation of contemporary ethical cases. The writer casts light on many incidents that are troubling. She analyzes these problems with inteligence and clarity. She further makes the point of the benefits of having an ethical perspective as people encounter the many troubling events in society. Being ethical is the basis of how to navigate intelligently this landscape that confronts us.
August 10, 2021
An awesome and dynamic entry text for the concept of ethical decision making. It provides effective frameworks and teaches the necessary concepts to best use those frameworks.
I myself started using the frameworks and forces listed in the book ask serious questions about how I wanted to do my work with refugee, and what standards my research and projects should hold to. Extremely effective at giving the proper perspective one needs to make sure their principles and their actions align
I myself started using the frameworks and forces listed in the book ask serious questions about how I wanted to do my work with refugee, and what standards my research and projects should hold to. Extremely effective at giving the proper perspective one needs to make sure their principles and their actions align
May 19, 2025
I can see how this would make for a good college course. There were absolutely points in the book that I found interesting and thought provoking. Yet, the book dragged on for me. Without dialogue or conversation, it felt stale and like a non-stop lecture. I would also say the book felt very political in the types of examples that were used. I know that politics is life but I think some more balanced examples would have been useful.
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January 31, 2021I like the books that make me think "If ethics are so valuable then why is it so hard to find these qualities in our 'leaders?'" Interesting many professions have codes of ethics:insurance, fitness, social services yet the professions that seem to control the world:politicians, bankers and the like do not have to subscribe to a code of ethics.
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