Final answer:
An ethical code is a set of guidelines that helps individuals make morally right choices. It can also comprise the crucial rules, like a code of conduct, within an institution and offers a basis for evaluating one's actions against those of a reference group. Normative ethics provides a philosophical framework for defining these moral standards.
Step-by-step explanation:
The key word defined as guidelines we use to do the right thing is ethical code. An ethical code offers a set of values and principles that guide individuals in making morally right choices. Implementing such codes is vital in personal and professional contexts to ensure integrity and trustworthiness.
In terms of institutions, the most important set of rules could be considered a code of conduct, which aligns with the concept of an ethical code. This set of rules dictates acceptable and expected behavior within the organization.
When discussing the standards by which we gauge our behavior, we often refer to a reference group. This is a group whose values and norms serve as a benchmark for our own actions and decisions.
Normative ethics is a branch of philosophy concerned with moral behavior and what actions should be taken. It tries to establish criteria for identifying standards of correct behavior, based on different moral theories such as consequentialist, deontological, and virtue ethics.