Ethics refers to “the principles of conduct governing an individual or a group; specifically, the standards you use to decide what your conduct should be."
Making ethical decisions always involve two things. First, it always involves normative judgments. A normative judgment means that something is good or bad, right or wrong, better or worse, “You are wearing a skirt and blouse” is a no normative statement that is a great outfit!”is a normative one.
Second, ethical decisions always involve questions of morality. Morality is society’s highest accepted standards of behavior. Moral standards guide behaviors of the most serious consequence to society’s well-being, such as murder, lying, and arid slander. Authoritative bodies like legislatures can’t change what morality means. Moral judgments also trigger strong emotions. Violating moral standards may therefore make someone feel ashamed or remorseful.
Ethics is a general endeavor that takes into accounts the concerns and values of society as a whole.