Deontological and Consequential Ethics for Quality Standards: Blurring the Boundaries to Secure Accountability in Policy Compliance for Public Administration Practices

Abstract

The nexus between ethics and accountability has long been assumed and debated in public administration but the nature of that relationship has not been clearly scrutinized and pronounced. This is the essence of this article as it seeks to define how problematic the relationship has been in administrative practices in a Ghanaian public university. The paper makes an effort to provide policy direction for service improvement by introducing two key philosophies that form the basis of ethical behaviour for quality standards in administrative work in public universities. It discusses the major approaches to moral theory (deontology, consequentialism and virtue ethics) and links ethics to laws and statutory regimes of public organisations. Finally, the paper discusses how these theories might inform ethical administrative practices to achieve quality standards in public universities. The paper obtained empirical data from students and administrative staff from a public university, and lays primary emphasis on the general and common elements in contemporary administrative practices that are needed to achieve quality standards, but nonetheless the discussion also considers the contextualisation processes involved in the realisation or enactment of policy or regulatory statutes in specific organisational settings for ethical behaviour. A set of generic ‘problems’ which constitute the contemporary social and political conditions for administrative practices are also adumbrated. The paper sets out philosophical ideas and a number of practical mechanisms for infusing and institutionalizing quality standards in administrative work. It shows that for the introduction of the relevant codes of ethics and conduct to be effective in administrative work, these need to be supported by a range of mechanisms, training, and strong leadership by managers, and these are made possible when the boundaries around deontological and consequential ethics are blurred. Keywords: public administration; good governance; code of ethics; professionalism; moral principles; Kantianism; utilitarianism; moral theories. DOI: 10.7176/PPAR/12-5-01 Publication date: July 31 st 2022