D117

Ethical Courage

BD08 Ethics & Values
Derived LayerMML-3

Version v1.2.4

Definition

Willingness to act ethically under social, professional, or material risk; principle-driven rather than image-driven.

Poles

Each HES element is a spectrum, not a category: the Low and High poles describe how it presents at its two extremes, while the Reference marks the typical, everyday middle. The poles map variation across the range — neither end is inherently better or worse.

Low Pole

Ethical standards collapse under pressure; safety and approval dominate.

High Pole

Maintains ethical action even at substantial personal cost.

Reference

Ethical privately, but yields when stakes and group pressure rise.

Measure

Primary: Threshold — level of risk (status loss, money loss, relationship cost) tolerated before ethical action is abandoned.

Measuring Methods

Ethics-vs-risk scenario ladders + real-episode analysis with independent validation where possible.

Empirical Anchor

Ethical courage / moral courage (Kidder, 2005); whistleblowing courage; standing up for principles under cost.

Notes

Distinct from intellectual courage: this is action under ethical risk, not dissent for truth.

Citation

APA

Human Elements System. (2026). Ethical Courage (HES Passport D117, v1.2.4). hestable.com. https://hestable.com/passport/D117

BibTeX

@misc{hes_D117, author = {{Human Elements System}}, title = {{Ethical Courage}}, year = {2026}, note = {HES Passport D117, v1.2.4}, howpublished = {\url{https://hestable.com/passport/D117}} }