PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS AND ETHICAL PRINCIPLES


It seems that there are several ethical principles worth consideration. First, there is a confidentiality issue. While it may be possible for a couple to carry on a personal relationship without ever once discussing business, in anything past a one-night stand it's hardly believable. Thus, there is the potential for proprietary information to leak from one source to an unplanned receiver. This might be information that a superior should keep from his or her underling, information that a competitor has no right to possess, or a story that a member of the media should not be privy to ”all told under the umbrella of the bed sheet.

Second, there is a potential for professional harm to come to one or both members of the couple. Regardless of what they believe to be the ˜ strictly personal nature of the relationship, how it is perceived by superiors, co-workers and clients , among others, will have the final say in the outcome professionally.

When it comes to assessing harm, it might be wise also to consider the potential harm to those around you. This begins with your immediate colleagues and spreads out from there. Is your relationship likely to be perceived as a problem by others outside the organization? In this way is it likely to have implications for your organization? As you begin to ask these questions, it becomes clear that a personal relationship between you and someone with whom you already have a professional relationship has much wider implications than simply for the two people involved.

Another principle that can be compromised is the issue of truth . To whom must you lie in an attempt to keep your relationship private? And, do you even have the right to privacy, given all of the other potential ethical conflicts?

Since there are no hard and fast guidelines for this kind of behaviour, it is wise to use some common sense and consider what is truly the right thing to do in these situations.




Ethics in Public Relations. A Guide to Best Practice
Ethics in Public Relations: A Guide to Best Practice (PR in Practice)
ISBN: 074945332X
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2004
Pages: 165

flylib.com © 2008-2017.
If you may any questions please contact us: flylib@qtcs.net