Bioethics Journal
Year:2019 | Volume:9 | Issue:32|Papers Count:8

Background and Aim: The Cartagena Protocol on biosafety has been formulated based on the precautionary principle. Following Iran's accession to the Protocol, the Iran Biosafety Act was adopted to establish regulations in this field. In spite of the necessity of complying of this law with the precautionary principle, its adherence to this principle is in doubt. Therefore, the present study seeks to investigate the extent of its compliance with the precautionary principle by analyzing this legal document. Materials and Methods: In this analytical study, while studying the literature and published articles, the document of biosafety law was analyzed and criticized from different aspects. Findings: In this law, the ethical principle of precaution and its scope and how it is enforced has not been mentioned and only implicitly it has been mentioned for risk assessment and management by referring to the Cartagena Protocol. In the area of public participation, there are also no requirements and there are many ambiguities regarding compliance with the precautionary principle regarding civil and criminal liability. Conclusion: The biosafety law has failed to enforce the precautionary principle and is in contradiction with the aforementioned approach. The main reason for this matter may be the lack of definition and scope of this principle in view of the socio-economic conditions of the country. Amendments of the law are recommended in accordance with the precautionary principle.

Background and Aim: Observance of professional ethics by managers is considered as one of the most important variables in the success of organizations. The purpose of this study was to explain and present a model of professional ethics for banks managers and identify its determinants. Materials and Methods: The data based theory with a Glaseririan approach was used in this qualitative study, in 2018. Indept semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. After interviewing with 15 managers of the banks of Khorasan Razavi provience, theoretical saturation was accoured. They selected through porposful sampleing. Data analysis was doen using deductive content analysis and the continuous process of data comparison and open, pivotal and selective codifying through Maxqad 10 Software and then, the model was presented. Findings: 403 basic concepts and 23 professional ethics themes emerged for bank managers, which were categorized into three individual, organizational and extera-organizational dimensions and presented as the model. The determinants of professional ethics included: At the individual level, charm, risk taking, selfpromotion, trustworthiness, social habits, top-notch, decisiveness and work conscience; At the organizational level, meritocracy, participatory, honesty, respectfulness, service motivation, values and law adherence, justice and fairness, foresight and competitiveness and at the organizational level, customer-orientation, social responsibility, accountability, public benevolence and trust building. Conclusion: This study presented a comprehensive model of professional ethics for bank managers. It is recommended to use this model as a guide of organizational and professional ethics for bank managers.

Background and Aim: Academic dishonesty has become a worrying problem as students' deliberate attempts to distort, falsify or fabricate their academic assignments. This study aimed to evaluate the Psychometric of academic dishonesty scales for high school students. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive-correlational study, 606 boy and girl students of high schools of Ahvaz city were selected using multistage cluster sampling in 2018-19 academic year. Witherspoon et al. (2010) and Zimbardo and Boyd Time Perspective Scale (1999) were used to collect data. Confirmatory factor analysis, correlation coefficient and convergent validity were used to assess the validity of the scale and internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha coefficient and split method used to assess the reliability of the scale. Data analysis was performed using AMOS 21 and SPSS 22 software. Findings: Two-dimensional structure of the academic dishonesty scale, including traditional and advanced cheating behaviors fitted well with the data. The validity and reliability of the scale were confirmed. There was a significant positive correlation between traditional cheating behavior with past negative, past positive, present hedonistic and present fatalistic (p<0. 05) and also, contemporary cheating behavior with past negative, present hedonistic and present fatalistic (p<0. 01). Moreover, there was a significant difference between mean scores of the girls and boys (p=0. 001). Conclusion: The findings indicate that the academic dishonesty scale is a valid and reliable tool for measuring academic dishonesty behaviors in high school students. Use of this scale in psychological, educational and counseling study on high school students is recommended.

Background and Aim: Given the importance of organizational ethics and the role of organizational virtuousness in fostering positive interactions, present study aimed to investigate the relationship between organizational health and virtuousness with mediating role of organizational justice. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive-correlational study based on Structural Equation Modeling, 218 high school teachers in district 1 of Zahedan city were selected by proportional-stratified random sampling method in 2018-19 academic years. Hoy et al’ s Organizational Health (1996), Cameron et al’ s Organizational Virtuousness (2004) and Niehoff & Moorman s Organizational Justice (1993) questionnaires were used for data collection. Correlation coefficient and structural equation modeling were used for data analysis by Lisrel and SPSS software. Findings: The means and standard deviations of organizational health, organizational justice and organizational virtuousness were 171. 32± 24. 5, 77. 4± 10. 91 and 62. 12± 9. 1 respectively. There was a significant positive correlation between organizational health with organizational justice (r=0. 776, p<0. 001) and virtuesness (r=0. 838, p<0. 001) and also, between organizational justice and virtuesness (r=0. 779, p<0. 001). The direct effect of organizational health on organizational virtuesness (t=2. 89, β =0. 33) and justice (t=9. 78, β =0. 9) and the direct effect of organizational justice on organizational virtuesness (t=2. 18, β =0. 25) was significant. The indirect effect of organizational health on organizational virtuesness with the mediating ’ role of organizational justice was also significant (β =0. 225). Conclusion: According to the findings, managers of organizations can promote organizational virtuesness by promoting organizational health and organizational justice.

Background and Aim: Because of the innate desire of human to eternal life, he tries to use every effort to continue life. In the cryonics method, scientists trough freezing the patient take him into a deep sleep, hoping to bring him back to life after discovering his cure in the future. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ethical challenges in freezing of the patients with incurable disease. Materials and Methods: In this analytical study, relevant and published articles were purposely searched and retrieved, and then ethical arguments for and against freezing of patients with incurable disease were discussed and criticized from a principlist approach. Findings: From the perspective of respect for individual autonomy, the implementation of cryonics according to the wishes and interests of the patient with incurable disease is an ethical choice and also has no harm to the patient as it prevents death. On the other hand, it resulted in social utility through preserving scientists and social capitals life. Public access to this procedure can mean that justice is done. However, ethical challenges in the three domains include: individual (uncertainty of the patient's returnability to life and psychological differentiation in the eventual return); family relations (imposing financial costs on the family and causing legal turmoil in the family relationships) and social (the loss of the function of death as well as the increased willingness to suicide) causes a lack of strength and logic of the implementation of cryonics. Conclusion: Although it may be ethical to freeze patients with incurable disease, it still faces challenges.

Background and Aim: Technology transfer is a process used to benefit from the scientific experiences of countries in development. The purpose of this study was to investigate the legitimacy of the lease contract in the process of technology transfer from the perspective of Islamic ethics. Materials and Methods: This qualitative study was conducted using an analytical approach and using published texts, books and articles. After examining the legitimacy of the lease contract in the technology transfer process, its alignment with Islamic ethics was examined and analyzed. Findings: The contract of hiring of individuals enjoys legal and Jurisprudence validity and legitimacy in Iranian and Islamic law. Legally, in the process of technology transfer, companies and foreign countries are recognized by the technology owner and its transferee as contractors who in the process of transfer do not own any of the manufacturing sectors and receive only wages for their activities, services and consultants. Economically, these causes benefit from both the benefits of technology and the protection of its ownership. Conclusion: From the point of view of Islamic ethics, the lease agreement has considerable legitimacy for the technology transfer process, which demonstrates the compatibility of the law with Islamic jurisprudence and ethics; it can be a guarantee for the development of the country in the light of technology transfer.

Background and Aim: In recent decades, environmental crises have been added to the list of global crises and the consequences of unethical human behavior toward the environment is rapidly emerging. Therefore, the present study aimed to analyze the factors affecting ethical behaviors towards the environment. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive-analytical research, the study population consisted of 70 managers of agricultural production cooperatives of Ilam province in 2016 that were studied through census. Data were collected using a researcher-made questionnaire with closed ended questions, which its validity and reliability was confirmed. The data were analyzed by binomial and Pearson correlation tests using SPSS 19. Findings: The value orientation of altruism with mean of 3. 32± 0. 76, awareness of consequences for others with mean of 3. 31± 0. 84 and environmental concern for oneself with mean of 3. 7± 0. 48 had the highest scores. Value orientation of success had a positive and significant relationship with environmental behavior (p=0. 01). Conclusion: According to the findings, the value orientation of success was positively and significantly correlated with ethical behavior towards the environment. There was a positive and significant relationship between the value orientation of success and ethical behavior towards the environment. As values are often derived from the environment and the cultural context of community, culture building and training of ethical behavior to the managers about environmental protection are recommended.

Background and Aim: Nowadays, the environment and its protection have become one of the most important social and bioethics issues in the world of humanity. This study was conducted to investigate environmental crimes and provide prevention strategies. Materials and methods: In this analytical study, published materials related to the topic were collected and analyzed using library method. Then, recommendations have provided based on a preventive and ethical approach. Findings: In general, the most important environmental problems are air pollution caused by industrial activities, pollution of water resources through the entry of urban and industrial wastewater into rivers, the lack of standardization in urban waste management, soil pollution due to the input of toxic substances and construction waste. Some environmental offenses include threats to public health, deliberate destruction of trees, excessive livestock grazing, unauthorized construction. Among the ways to prevent such crimes include legislative changes, conduct training courses for lawyers, the use of alternative prison sentences and the participation of people and NGOs in preventing environmental crimes. Also, criminal offenses enacted by legal entities and their importance require a criminal liability plan. Conclusion: Environmental crimes are one of the most important problems of human communities that have the ability to destroy it by affecting all aspects of community's life. Therefore, public participation in environmental protection in the form of NGOs, promoting community culture through mass media and cyberspace and updating the rules and regulations in this area are recommended.