Final answer:
Ethicists utilize an Ethical Framework to guide moral decision-making by applying consistent principles from moral theories such as consequentialism, deontology, and virtue ethics.
Step-by-step explanation:
Ethicists rely on what is often referred to as an Ethical Framework to make better ethical decisions. An Ethical Framework helps individuals to analyze and make choices based on consistent ethical principles. It may draw from various moral theories, including consequentialism, which is based on the outcomes of an action, deontology, which focuses on adherence to rules or duties, and virtue ethics, which emphasizes the cultivation of virtuous character traits.
For example, utilitarianism, a form of consequentialism, would suggest that an action is right if it promotes the greatest good for the greatest number, as advanced by philosophers like Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill. On the other hand, deontological ethics, influenced by Immanuel Kant, would argue that actions are right if they conform to a universal duty or rule, such as the Categorical Imperative.