Ethical Literacy in Gerontology Programs

Abstract

Ethics has been described as a “bridge” in gerontological education. This article emphasizes the importance of ethical literacy in the professional training of gerontology practitioners and scholars. It gives content to the pedagogical goals of ethics education. The goals include recognizing an ethical issue, stimulating the ethical imagination, fostering critical thinking and analytical skills, cultivating ethical responsibility, and resolving and tolerating ethical ambiguity. The authors also propose an “ethics impact assessment” to facilitate the achievement of these goals. This teaching method is illustrated through a sample case-study.