The choice for social workers is not whether our work has an ethical dimension, but whether or not ethical questions are addresses explicitly and how they are to be explored. The more common usage of the term Ethics - What would be the right or wrong conduct in relations to others and how ought we to behave.
Ethical propositions are statements of value related to action.
Value statements may draw on abstract or ideal notions, but at the same carry with theme implications for ways in which people act and the relationship between people as members of social groups. For example, the ethical principle that social workers should demonstrate 'respect for the individual' then we must also say something about the context in which the respect occurs and by what criteria we may decide that respect has been demonstrated. Ethical principles are not fixed directions in the manner of an instruction manual but are the basis for making choices in situations where a range of actions is possible. Further more ethical issues can not be divorced from the standpoint of the actors involved. Universalised Vs contextualised ethical principles Early attempts at articulating the values that should guide social work sort to develop a set of universal codified principle.