Includes bibliographical references (p. 81-83).

A Practical Companion to Ethics is an accessibly written, concise introduction to the basic attitudes and skills that make ethics work, like thinking for oneself, creative and integrative problem solving, and keeping an open mind. This unique volume illuminates the broad kinds of practical intelligence required in moral judgment, complementing the narrower theoretical considerations that often dominate ethics courses. It offers practical instruction in problem solving by demonstrating how to frame an ethical problem and deal effectively with ethical disagreements. This book also addresses issues of the heart - the call to responsiveness and care that underlies formal ethical theories. Appendixes offer students advice about writing papers and offer instructors a range of creative and participatory ways to teach ethics. The optimistic tone and brisk pace of the narrative provide an entertaining and intelligent guide to "everyday" morality.

A Practical Companion to Ethics is ideal for courses in introductory ethics, with applications in any course related to critical thinking and ethical problem solving.

Who Needs Ethics? -- The Dogmatist and the Rationalizer -- Ethics and Diversity -- For Practice and Thinking -- Thinking for Yourself -- Appeals to Authority -- A Biblical Ideal -- The Question of Rules -- Creative Problem-Solving in Ethics -- The Need for Inventiveness in Ethics -- How to Expand Your Options -- How to Reframe Problems -- Don't Polarize--Connect -- "Right versus Right" -- Pieces of the Puzzle -- Going Ahead Together -- Ethics with a Heart -- When the Heart Closes -- How the Heart Opens -- The Expanding Circle -- How to Write an Ethics Paper.