Professional Ethics: An Empirical Test of the “Separatist Thesis”

Abstract

The appropriate contribution of professional judgment in a democratic society is an especially acute problem when decisions involve ethical choices. The “separatist thesis” is a theoretical proposition stating that professionals have distinctly different ethics than do citizens. Using a large sample of physicians and citizens, this study tested the separatist thesis on seven ethical dimensions. The findings indicate that these professionals do have separate ethics, but more in degree than in kind and with greater emphasis on individual ethics than on social or substantive ethics. Dialogical communities, reasoned ethical discourse, and practical strategies of ethical review communittees are necessary to blend professional and citizen ethics in the public interest. This research raises numerous questions for the empirical study of ethics in public administration.