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Think of deontological ethics as rules based. Deontology is based on the Greek word for duty. Deontological ethicists insist that regardless of the situation, individuals should adhere to moral rules that either require or prohibit certain types of action, regardless of the consequences. We can also think of these rules‐based people as being absolutist in that they often rely on religious tenets or other deeply held values that, in their view, can never be broached. For instance, a photojournalist who believes that they are duty bound to provide photos depicting a “newsworthy” event, regardless of whether others might be injured or shocked in some way, would be an absolutist.

Figure 2.1 Categorical imperative and utilitarianism.

Source: © John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Deontology, also called absolutism, places our duty to do the right thing at the heart of moral reasoning, regardless of the circumstances. For instance, an absolutist believes that it is never right to lie so presumably if a crazed killer breaks into your house and demands to know where you keep the knives, you would be duty bound to tell the truth. This, of course, sounds extreme, but carried to its ultimate conclusion, that is where deontology takes us and why many people don't think it passes the “real‐world” test.

Does the end justify the means? The absolutists will say no. Immanuel Kant is the most famous proponent of this view described as the categorical imperative. Kant believed that each of us should start with the premise that people should only behave in ways that they would want others to behave. In other words, we should act as if our own ethical choices were universal law. As Patterson and Wilkins (1997) explain, the test of a moral act is its universality – whether it can be applied to everyone.