Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants

TEACHING PROFESSIONAL
BUREAU INTEGRITEITS B E VORDE RING OPE N BARE S E CTO R

ETHICS: SHAPING CIVIL
SERVANTS
Integrity Education in University-level
Public Administration Programmes
Preliminary study by the Dutch National Integrity Office (BIOS)
Alain Hoekstra, Marjolein van Dijk, Jitse Talsma
With contributions from Wouter Sanderse and Willeke Slingerland
June 2016
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 3
Executive Summary _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 4
Introduction_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 5
Integrity of Civil Servants _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 5
Shared Responsibility _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 5
Disturbing Signals _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 6
Reader’s Guide _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 7
1 The Role of Higher Education in the N

ational Integrity System _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 8
NIS and Professional Ethics_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 8
Learning to Stand Firm_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 9
“Living” Integrity_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 10
2 Teaching Professional Ethics to Future Civil Servants_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11

Introduction _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11
Professional Ethics: Code and Character_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11
Striving for a Professional Ethical Attitude _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 12
Teaching Professional Ethics _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 12
Conclusion _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 14
3 Professional Ethics in University-level Public Administration Programmes_ _ 15

Introduction _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 15
Reader’s Guide _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 15
Conclusion _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 20
4 Conclusions and Recommendations _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 21

Introduction _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 21
1 Take responsibility_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 21
2 Don’t be afraid to be normative _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 21
3 Develop practical skills_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 22
4 Provide an Ethics Course_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 22
5 Take a comprehensive approach _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 22
6 Policy-makers: carry out a follow-up study _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 23
7 Authorities: strengthen the introductory course _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 23
Conclusion _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 24
About the Authors_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 25

References_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 26
BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 2

FOREWORD
Emphasis on the right competencies and values in Dutch public administration programmes is very important for the
quality of our public administration. Most public administration students will end up working in or around the public sector
after their studies as civil servants, advisors, administrators or politicians. The BIOS study on the attention to ethics and
integrity in Dutch public administration programmes is important for this reason alone. The results provide us with a mixed
picture.
Dutch public administration programmes hardly pay specific attention to ethics, values and integrity – or on the normative
aspects of administration and politics general – in the literature referenced and course material. This picture also emerges
from interviews with key stakeholders. A few programmes include a dedicated course. A commonly held view is that
normative issues are automatically dealt with in other subjects or form part of academic development in a broader sense.
The question of course is whether that is enough.
Do we now have reason to be very pessimistic? Not necessarily. A large-scale international survey among public adminis-
tration students in which I have been involved over the past few years shows that they are motivated by the public cause
when they start their studies, appreciating the values associated with public service. They consistently score higher on
public service motivation and public values than business administration students. This value orientation is probably an
important reason to actually enrol in a public administration programme, i.e. there is a certain psychological preselection.
At the same time, these studies show that student recognition of public values and motivations and their preference for
public office remains stable or diminishes slightly during study programmes. Therefore, more work needs to be done. In
this respect, the results support those of the BIOS study. With regard to this issue, we can learn something from many MPA
programmes in the United States, where a compulsory course on ethics is practically standard in the study programme. In
short, the results of the study raise important questions about the importance of normative issues and moral competencies
in the prior education of civil servants and introductory courses and on-the-job training throughout their careers.
The Ien Dales Chair and CAOP will continue to put these questions on the agenda. This report is an important step in the
right direction. All of us responsible for study programmes for (aspiring) public servants, and not only for those at univer-
sities, should continually ask themselves how effective and ethical 21st century administrative craftsmanship should look
like in the. And how they can adequately prepare future civil servants and administrators for a rapidly changing working
environment characterized by frequent and complex moral dilemmas. This study highlights the key importance of this this
at a crucial juncture, which is why I heartily recommend it to you.
Prof. Zeger van der Wal
Endowed Professor, Ien Dales Chair

CAOP and Leiden University

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
University-level programmes in public administration in the Netherlands are not making sufficient efforts for civil service
ethics education. It is more sideshow than purposive moral shaping of future civil servants. This is shown by interviews
which BIOS held with thirteen representatives of eight university-level bachelor programmes and eight master programmes
in public administration in the Netherlands.
Ethics education in public administration programmes is implicit, limited, fragmented, intellectual and optional. Students
receive very little assistance in their moral development to become good public professionals. Practical objections and
other priorities play a role here. However, the main obstacle is the resistance to a more normative, practical and developing
content of ethics education. Students are therefore insufficiently prepared to begin a career in public service with a basic
qualification in ethics.
There is much room for improvement. There is actually a great willingness, and there are many initiatives, to make improve-
ments. BIOS is submitting seven recommendations to educational institutions, policy-makers and government employers:
1 Take responsibility.
2 Don’t be afraid to be normative.
3 Develop practical skills.
4 Provide an ethics course.
5 Take a comprehensive approach.
6 Policy-makers: carry out a follow-up study.
7 Authorities: strengthen the introductory course.
BIOS handled the coordination, interviews, conclusions and recommendations with assistance from CAOP. At the request
of BIOS, Willeke Slingerland (Saxion University of Applied Sciences) and Wouter Sanderse (Fontys University of Applied
Sciences) contributed to the underlying theoretical framework.
In the introduction BIOS outlines the reasons for this report and the underlying questions. In Chapter 1 Willeke Slingerland
describes the role and responsibility of the educational system in a national integrity system. In Chapter 2 Wouter Sanderse
shows what a professional ethical attitude is and how it can be developed. In Chapter 3 BIOS presents the results of the
interviews. In Chapter 4 BIOS assesses these results and makes seven recommendations.

INTRODUCTION
Integrity of Civil Servants

How do study programmes in the Netherlands contribute to the moral development of prospective civil servants? It takes a
broad study to answer this question. About 1 million civil servants, from all kinds of educational backgrounds, at different
levels, work for the government.
Still, in order to be able to form an impression, BIOS carried out a preliminary study on the professional ethical education
of university-level public administration students. This programme focuses on public administration. Many graduates find
work as a policy-maker, manager, adviser or administrator in the public sector. What kind of moral education do they
receive? What do they know about the responsibility and ethics of a civil servant or administrator? What do they learn
about integrity?
Shared Responsibility
Government employers carry a major responsibility for the government’s integrity. Section 12 of the (Dutch) Central and
Local Government Personnel Act and the mutually agreed Basic Integrity Standards for Public Administration and the Police
Force form the starting point. For instance, an integrity policy needs to be developed and determined, various schemes and
registers need to be maintained, risk analyses need to be carried out and there needs to be a focus on integrity throughout
the HRM cycle: from recruitment and selection, through making an inventory of vulnerable positions, to offering training
and schooling.
Government employers should therefore create a working environment in which civil service ethics are given proper
attention and can thrive. BIOS advocates a comprehensive approach for this, and has developed an infrastructure for
integrity management for this purpose. Of course professional ethics instruction starts at an earlier stage. It builds on
the general moral education which children receive. Parents and educators lay the foundation. They teach children what is
appropriate and inappropriate, which general moral rules they should observe and how, for example, they can be respectful,
patient, curious and compassionate.
The educational system also plays an important role. As Willeke Slingerland shows in Chapter 1, the educational system
forms an important part of our national integrity system. In school, children ideally develop a general moral sense: honesty,
respect, responsibility. They learn to get on with classmates and, through various subjects, gain deeper insight into their
civic role in society.
Students are particularly prepared for the labour market during the final stage of their educational career. In this stage,
they are also able to learn about the ethical aspects of their future jobs and how to deal with them. Prospective civil
servants will therefore also have to develop a sense of morality. In Chapter 2 Wouter Sanderse shows that such a devel-
opment calls for more than just the transfer of knowledge. We therefore hope that curricula will contribute to the moral
development of students, which is required for the integrity of the civil service.
Universities are increasingly pointing out the importance of moral education in the educational system. For example,
the law faculty of VU University Amsterdam has identified a demand for “lawyers who can see beyond the legal-technical
aspects of a case, who appreciate the fact that something which is forbidden is not necessarily allowed” (Breedveld, 2016).
In his inaugural address, Prof. Wempe called on universities to “ensure that students learn to be guided by their values in
their studies and, later on, in their work so that they will discover what their roles are in the greater scheme of things”
(Wempe 2016).

Disturbing Signals
The question is: How does the educational sector contribute to professional ethics instruction? The initial signals are
disturbing. In a recent debate with the Polish top economist Tomáš Sedlácek, Joris Luyendijk argued that universities,
which instruct economics and business administration students, share responsibility for the moral system failure in banks.
They argue that universities pay little or no attention to ethical development (see YouTube, 00:11:00).
The same position emerged earlier on from a survey among 157 HR professionals employed at Dutch companies with over
250 employees. More than 90 per cent of these professionals believed that the educational system has an important role
to play in the ethical and moral development of students, but only 50% of them thought the educational system is doing
enough about this (KPMG 2009). One out of every three respondents is dissatisfied with the ethical and moral development
of graduates and labour market entrants.
Other researchers also think ethics should play a more prominent role in higher education. For example, Hoogervorst and
Desmet (2015) showed that managers need to be made more aware of ethics. They argued that the educational system can
make an important contribution by teaching students that it is not only about the results, but also about the way these
results are achieved.
These examples are from the corporate sector. However, similar signals are coming from the public sector. Heres (2016)
recently carried out a study on top managers in public office. According to Heres, bachelor and master programmes in public
administration, business administration and related fields of study mainly give instruction based on a techno-economic
reality. There is not enough focus on moral reasoning and the moral aspects of policy-making and decision-making.
To check these signals, we carried out a survey of the course material of the public administration programme (see insert).
Seven editions of Openbaar Bestuur (Public Administration), a much-used textbook, were examined for content on integrity
and professional ethics. We also did not find many handles here for students as far as their moral development is concerned.
Integrity and professional ethics are dealt with summarily and in a fragmented manner.
OPENBAAR BESTUUR (PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION) LITERATURE STUDY
The textbook Openbaar Bestuur (Public Administration) is This view on integrity is not in line with the developments
an important source of information for first-year public which have taken place in this area over the past ten
administration students. What will we find on civil service years. Integrity is not only about the absence of “criminal”
integrity and (professional) ethics in seven successive behaviour, it is also (and especially) about promoting morally
editions, covering a 35-year period (1977-2012)? responsible behaviour.
The word “integrity” did not appear (in the TOCs and indexes) The term “(professional) ethics” is used in both the earlier
until the last three editions (2001-2012). In these editions, and later editions. However, it is only used in a very abstract
integrity is referred to as “moral rectitude” in a short section. way. The textbooks provide very little information on the
A few incidents concerning civil service and administrative practical application of integrity or civil service ethics.
integrity are also highlighted, and the authors emphasised Students do not learn what the values and standards of
that authorities (should) actively pursue an integrity policy being a good civil servant are exactly, while a great deal has
in order to prevent such incidents from occurring. been set out on the subject: in all kinds of codes, oaths, the
(Dutch) Central and Local Government Personnel Act and the
It is notable that “integrity” is consistently defined very General Civil Service Regulations. As a result, students do not
narrowly and negatively as “satisfying the standards, and learn about the practical application of integrity and civil
the absence of fraud, corruption and other transgressions”. service ethics.

Reader’s Guide
The key question of the study was: do university-level public administration programmes in the Netherlands contribute
enough to civil service ethics instruction? We will answer this question on the basis of the following subquestions:
Chapter 1: What is the role of higher education in the national integrity system?
Chapter 2: What defines proper professional ethics education?
Chapter 3: H
ow is professional ethics education currently implemented in university-level public administration programmes
in the Netherlands?
Chapter 4: Is this professional ethics education up to standards? If not, how can it be improved?
In Chapter 1 Willeke Slingerland describes the role of the educational system in a national integrity system. In Chapter 2
Wouter Sanderse shows what is required to develop a professional ethical attitude. In Chapter 3 BIOS presents the results
of a study on professional ethics education in university-level public administration programmes in the Netherlands.
In Chapter 4 BIOS concludes that this education is still not up to standards and makes seven recommendations for
improvement.
This report originally appeared in Dutch as Beroepsethiek in het onderwijs: van bijzaak naar Bildung.
Morele vorming en integriteit bij wo-opleidingen bestuurskunde. We translated all quotations from Dutch sources in this
report, both from interviews and (academic) literature.

1 THE ROLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE
NATIONAL INTEGRITY SYSTEM
Willeke Slingerland
NIS and Professional Ethics

Integrity is not only the responsibility of the government, but also of every institute or organisation. The “National
Integrity System” or NIS country study (Slingerland et. al. 2012), which was presented by Transparency International in
2012, is based on the belief that fighting against corruption and promoting integrity requires an integrated integrity
system in which everyone has a role to play, learning from and with others about how integrity can be better guaranteed.
This European country study assessed the ability of every country to promote integrity and prevent, discourage and punish
corruption.
The thirteen main government and non-government organisations (so-called “pillars”) were examined, including the Lower
House, the public sector, the media, civil society and the corporate sector. These pillars rest on the politico-institutional,
socio-political, socio-economic and socio-cultural foundations of society. This included an assessment of whether integrity
is sufficiently regulated, the degree of self-regulation and how this works out in practice.
In addition to the literature study, more than forty representatives of governments, civil society and the corporate sector
were asked about their role in this integrity system. The assessment focused on the factors which are particularly relevant
to the promotion of integrity, namely the independence, transparency and responsibility of each pillar.
The metaphor of the Greek temple is used to showcase the NIS model. This concerns the relationship between and depend-
ency of the various institutions and practices. If one of the pillars were to weaken, it would lean more heavily on the other
pillars, risking their collapse and undermining the entire NIS. On the other hand, properly functioning institutions set an
example for other institutions and it is collaboration between these institutions which makes learning from and with each
other possible. This makes the entire NIS stronger.
It was concluded that the Netherlands has a relatively strong NIS but that many find discussing the (possible) unethical
behaviour of immediate colleagues and confronting them about it difficult. Also, it is not always clear whether something is
an integrity violation or not. Partly for this reason, the government has invested in the development of integrity policy over
the past few years. The NIS shows that the pillars which represent the authorities are making progress with the introduction
of integrity laws and the implementation and monitoring of integrity policy. Offices such as BIOS can provide assistance
with this, by providing information, manuals and trainings courses to ministries, local councils, water authorities and other
government organisations, by which means they can further shape their own integrity policy. The Transparency International
report rated BIOS as a very useful organisation for promoting integrity in public administration (Slingerland et. al. 2012:
198-201). BIOS was even referred to as a best practice in the EU Anti-Corruption Report (European Commission 2014: 10).
However, this does not alter the fact that there are vulnerabilities in the Dutch NIS. The socio-cultural basis of the NIS
is particularly vulnerable since not enough attention is paid to the younger generation’s awareness of norms and values
(Slingerland et. al. 2012: 40-41). It also appears that the public has not been educated and that Dutch civil society hardly
plays a role in raising awareness of integrity among its citizens.

Learning to Stand Firm
Civil society consists of numerous organisations concerned with important public interests such as human rights, health
care and education. The NIS makes the realisation of integrity contingent on the existence of an active civil society
dedicated to achieving an ethical society (Slingerland et. al. 2012: 241-253).
The role of education is highly relevant here, since there is no clear-cut integrity framework. You need to have sufficient
knowledge, skills and competencies in order to be able to identify integrity issues and dilemmas and do something about
them. Upbringing and education are the key concepts here. With regard to the integrity of the public administration,
government organisations train their civil servants in this. The role of the educational system in integrity education and the
attention paid to professional ethics within the system are both minimal (Slingerland et. al. 2012: 40-41, 123-127).
However, this raises the question whether highly educated professionals and civil servants can be encouraged to develop
their integrity awareness if no or little attention was specifically paid to this during their prior education. It is quite
legitimate to ask whether enough attention is paid to professional ethics in higher education.
GIVING VOICE TO VALUES

how to resist this. The method is now used by more than
Education specialist Mary Gentle (Yale University) wrote 800 educational institutions and organisations to give
the book Giving Voice To Values: How To Speak Your Mind practical shape to ethics.
When You Know What’s Right (2010). This book is intended
for professionals in the corporate sector, but the didactic The method provides advice, practical exercises and scripts
concept can also easily be applied in higher education. on how to deal with ethical dilemmas. It is not a question
of discussing shared values but of talking through the
Gentle offers her readers an innovative method teaching practical application of these values with one another.
them skills which enable them to translate the prevailing It transpired that it was discussing ethical issues in
values into words and actions and to align their profes- particular that proved to be a weak point of the Dutch
sional attitude with their principles. The method pays NIS. The interactive Giving Voices to Values curriculum
attention to the pressure sometimes exerted on people to can be accessed free of charge on the internet
stray from their norms and values. It shows people (marygentile.com).

“Living” Integrity
The educational system educates the professionals and civil servants of the (near) future. It is important that professional
responsibility is discussed within the educational system. Lecturers and students ideally enter into a discussion about the
norms and values which apply in our society and how these correspond to and/or differ from the norms and values which
apply in their own profession or sector.
The educational system has a role to play within the NIS, as a trainer of professionals and (in particular) civil servants. As
already stated, education plays a role in teaching how to recognise integrity issues, in helping to form an opinion and in
deciding on an appropriate course of action. This not only requires a theoretical basis, but also an introduction to these
issues in practice. This can be done in the form of case-studies, role-plays, experiments and TEDx conferences. Integrity
must be practised and “lived”.
Knowledge of the applicable rules is important, but it is particularly important to identify and weigh up dilemmas and apply
ethics to everyday life and future professional practice. This essentially concerns Bildung (edification); the intellectual,
cultural and (especially) moral education of students and lecturers. Throughout the world there are good examples of
concrete educational concepts which satisfy this requirement (see insets).
SUMMER SCHOOL FOR DEMOCRACY
Another example is from Romania, where the Summer The strength of the programme lies in the collaboration
School for Democracy is organised (Slingerland et. al. between government organisations and civil society. This
2014: 67-68). The authorities and civil-society organi- collaboration makes it possible to relate various everyday
sations organise this summer school, in which approx. experiences to the issue in hand. This also means that the
200 students enrol every summer. These young people speakers must be from various walks of life (journalists,
receive training and together set to work on issues such judges, CEOs and activists) so that it will be possible to
as the rule of law, transparency and norms and values. The draw upon theory and, above all, their practical experien-
teaching methods range from lectures, fora discussions, ces. It is important that there is an open and informal
theatre to preparing policy papers. Both lecturers and atmosphere and that emphasis is placed on acquiring
students put ethics into practice during this course. skills rather than knowledge. In this way, students will
Awareness is the main objective. develop a moral compass and learn how to act before they
enter the labour market.

2 TEACHING PROFESSIONAL ETHICS TO FUTURE
CIVIL SERVANTS
Wouter Sanderse
Introduction
Government institutions promote the professional ethics of current civil servants in a number of ways. However, most
civil servants will have already received moral education before they enter government service, during their preparatory
education in, for example, public administration. This does not mean that Dutch government is no longer responsible for
promoting the professional ethics of civil servants. However, it does mean that it makes sense to seriously examine the
quality of the prior education of future civil servants. The main theme of this chapter is what professional ethical education
in a study programme such as public administration is actually about. How can prospective civil servants be educated so
that they have a basic qualification in terms of professional ethics?
Professional Ethics: Code and Character

What does it mean for civil servants to have a code of professional ethics? In practice we use all kinds of concepts, such
as norms, rules, ideals, values and virtues to talk about the moral dimensions of life and work. Roughly two different
approaches to professional ethics can be distinguished in the academic literature (Sanderse 2013b): the deontological
approach and the aspiration approach.
The deontological approach (derived from the words to deon, “duty”) regards professional ethics as a collection of
professional standards which are usually laid down in a code and enforced by committees. Such codes are mostly about
the duties and rules by which professionals are bound. The emphasis is on the absolute dos and don’ts. Codes are rarely
about conducting yourself optimally within these limits (Kole & De Ruyter 2007: 3). You have to comply with certain
rules, whether you are personally interested in them or not (Van Tongeren 2003: 28). Therefore it is still an open question
whether professionals are motivated to act according to the code.
We cannot do without rules in the professional ethics of

civil servants, but rules alone will not get us where we WHAT IS A PROFESSIONAL ETHICAL ATTITUDE?
want to be (Paine 1994). Ethics not only specifies what is
required, but also “what is good and worth pursuing in a An example can clarify what it means when someone
broader sense, what could be done even if it is not required, has a certain attitude or virtue (Hursthouse 2012). Take
what personal positions and attitudes contribute to the Aidan for example, an honest civil servant. What does
search for quality in work and happiness in life” (Kole 2007: this mean in practice?
3). This is why, apart from rules and duties, the ideals,
values and virtues of good civil servants also play a role in Aidan not only does honest things, he does them for a
professional ethics. This is also referred to as the aspiration certain reason, namely because he thinks the truth is
dimension. Over the past few decades, the idea that the important, and not for example because he wants to
work of civil servants can also be characterised by such an make an impression on his supervisor. He chooses to
aspiration dimension, and that the public ethos and the work with honest people and mostly establishes friendly
motivation, values and virtues of civil servants are impor- relations with people who are also honest. He disappro-
tant for being a good employee (Talsma & Becker 2015) has ves of colleagues who lie. He is not impressed by people
become rooted in the academic literature. This shift is not who boast or exaggerate and thinks colleagues who
only evident in the literature, but also in policy practice achieve success by dishonest means and are promoted
(Becker, Van Tongeren, Hoekstra, Karssing & Niessen 2010). are not “smart”. He rather feels sorry for them. When
he finds out that friends or acquaintances have done
dishonest things, Aidan is shocked.
In short, a desirable attitude or virtue is a quality which

is reflected in someone’s thoughts, perceptions, feelings,
actions and relationships (Annas 2011: 8).

Striving for a Professional Ethical Attitude
The ethical theory which recognises this aspiration dimension of professional morality the most is eudemonic or virtue
ethics (eudaimonia means “happiness”). Although this theory dates back to the Greek philosopher Aristoteles, the virtue
approach experienced a renaissance in the mid-20th century, and later in professional ethics (Solomon 1993; Oakley &
Cocking 2001) and in discussions on professional ethics in public administration (Cooper 1987; De Vries & Kim 2011).
Characteristic of virtue ethics is that it focuses on the attitudes or virtues of a professional (Kole & De Ruyter 2009). We
can also use a concept such as ‘moral competency’ for this, since a professional attitude is more than just knowing what is
good. It includes the ability and willingness to act on this knowledge (Bosch & Wortel, 2009: 39).
While codes, rules and duties are extrinsic, virtues address the intrinsic motivation of civil servants. A civil servant who
develops justice as a virtue, does so because he wants to and is motivated to do so, and not because he has been told
to do so by someone else. Furthermore, virtues do not set a moral minimum, but rather a moral optimum. “Virtue” is the
English translation of the Latin word virtus, which in its turn is the translation of the Greek word arete, which means
“excellence”. A virtuous civil servant is not someone who simply acts in accordance with the code and correctly keeps
within the boundaries set by the rules. No, a virtuous civil servant is someone who excells in his work and gets satisfaction
therefrom (Garndner, Csikszentmihalyi & Damon 2001). A good civil servant does work which is good and does him good.
Teaching Professional Ethics

What can a civil servant’s prior education contribute to the development of an appropriate professional attitude? How can
students learn to be virtuous? In the first place, by means of a separate course in “(Professional) Ethics”. Such a course
is an important building block: students are explicitly introduced to the norms and values of public administration, are
familiarised with ethical concepts and ideally practise moral reflection on cases. However, a separate Ethics course will
not be sufficient to develop a professional ethical attitude. Much is known these days about the development of attitudes
through a school-wide approach called “character education” (Sanderse 2012). In this approach, the specific emphasis is
less on a separate ethics course and more on students’ wider character development during the entire study programme.
What can character education contribute to the instruction of civil servants in professional ethics? The approach is an
old one but is still very much alive. It is philosophically rooted in Aristotelian ethics, enlightened by a realistic moral
psychology, recommending methods which are examined for their pedagogical effectiveness (Berkowitz & Bier, 2006). This
approach partly developed in response to the concept of professional ethical education, which was popular until the seven-
ties, in which students learned to discuss moral dilemmas using a decision-making model. Although this may benefit their
capacity for moral judgement, it does not ensure that they will feel a personal connection with the results or that they will
act accordingly in practice (Lawton, Rayner & Lasthuizen, 2013: 130; Maesschalck 2012). Character education does not go
for this one-sided cognitive focus, but considers the formation of attitudes of the civil servant as a whole person.
The entire curriculum is relevant for study programmes which take instruction in desirable professional attitudes seriously.
Although there are other methods, we will limit ourselves here to four pedagogical pillars which are usually regarded as the
“heart” of character education (Sanderse 2012 & 2015). The advantage of these four pillars is that they can be used by any
lecturer in any lecture. The professional ethicist who gives a separate course can assist colleagues with this. Below, the
following will be dealt with:
1 observing attitudes from role models,
2 hard-wiring attitudes through practice,
3 watching and listening to the arts, such as books and films and
4 conducting critical dialogues.
1 Role Modelling
From an early age, copying and imitating behaviour is an important learning mechanism, which is also used by adults
(Bandura 1963). To a large extent, colleagues, managers and employees also act as role models in organisations, as shown
by Gibson’s (2003) study on bankers and consultants. Likewise, we can expect students to look for examples of “being a
good employee” in universities, whereby they follow the example of their lecturers as well.
Although many lecturers endorse their exemplary moral role, the potential of this strategy is far from being always fully
used. Behaviour is often open to more than one interpretation and it is often necessary to give an explanation so that
students will know what example a lecturer is trying to set. Studies on the use of exemplary roles in medical instruction
show that, for example, non-verbal modelling by itself is not enough to pass on complex information or skills (Benbassat

2014; Egnew & Wilson 2011). Moreover, “imitation” can be THE LECTURER AS A ROLE MODEL: MELA
associated with blindly following charismatic leaders, which
is not what we are after. Students need to adopt a critical The MELA model is an instrument which can help
attitude so that they will not follow the wrong example. lecturers to reflect on their position as a moral role
As a lecturer, it is one thing to recognise that students model (Geursen, Korthagen, Koster, Lunenberg &
look up to you, but it is quite another to deliberately and Dengerink 2012). The first step is to think of the
systematically use this exemplary role as a critical method professional attitudes which you would like to Model as
to work on the professional ethics of prospective profes- a lecturer. The second step is to Explain to yourself and
sionals (Kristjánsson 2006; Sanderse 2013c). This makes others how you put these attitudes into practice. How
the exemplary role more demanding, going beyond “simply do others recognise this? The third step is to Legitimise
being yourself”. the chosen attitude by pointing out a concrete objective
which you wish to achieve with it. And the fourth step
is to think about how you can enable students to Apply
2 PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT this professional attitude themselves. Following these
steps will not only help lecturers to present students all
Acquiring a professional attitude can be compared with kinds of implicit images of what being a good employee
acquiring skills; just as you become a footballer by playing is, but will also enable students to determine if these
football or a pianist by playing the piano, you develop an images are worth imitating.
honest attitude by, for example, doing honest things (Annas
2011). It is only through a lot of practice that behaviour
will gradually become a hard-wired attitude or personality trait, which then enables a person to make new choices. By
emphasising practice, professional ethical education not only revolves round the transfer of knowledge, for example about
ethical theories and concepts. As long as this knowledge is not related to students’ desire to do “good work”, which also
gives them satisfaction, theories will at most be interesting and intellectually challenging but quickly “too far from their
world” to touch them.
Recently, René Gude (2012) argued that a university was originally intended as a “gym” where one could practise in order
to stay morally fit, thereby creating a society which is wiser, braver, more just and more moderate. Practising a professional
attitude can take shape in all kinds of different ways. First of all, their time studying offers students in a broad sense all
kinds of opportunities to practise, for example, through jobs on the side and administrative and volunteer work, when
students can show what they are made of. From the point of view of “learning by doing”, work placements and final
projects towards the end of a study programme are important, whereby students, who are not yet burdened with any major
responsibilities, have to deal with real-life moral issues and dilemmas, which ideally they can discuss with work placement
or thesis supervisors. Practice can also be encouraged by giving students assignments for which they have to maintain
contact with civil-society parties. Finally, difficult situations can be simulated by means of role-plays or interactive and
participatory theatre (Banks 2014).
3 Books, Films and Other Arts
Reading, listening to and watching art, such as books, films, theatrical performances, but also music, does not only
have to be an aesthetic experience. Art can also be used as a means to stimulate moral sensibility (Verbeke 1990). When
considering the arts for educational purposes, our thoughts might turn mostly to books or films with a “moral of the story”,
such as the fables of Aesopos or De la Fontaine. However, this quickly results in an exercise in finding out the author’s
intention, so that there is less scope for one’s own interpretation and a discussion on the story’s moral aspects. However,
at the centre of books and films are all kinds of main characters who give us a glimpse of good and bad attitudes and their
possible consequences, without making it immediately clear what is “good” and “bad”.
The usefulness of art for teaching professional ethics to civil servants also lies in something else. You must be able to
empathise with the characters to read a book or watch a film, and for this you need to have a capacity for literary fantasy.
According to Marta Nussbaum (1997), this could be the start of a moral form of imagination with the fate and suffering
of real people: empathy. This strategy is already being used in other programmes. In some medicine courses, novels are
used to increase the capacity of prospective doctors for empathy. This strategy has been empirically proven to be effective
(Maxwell 2016). It would seem that the arts also help civil servants to put themselves in the place of the citizens they
are dealing with. That is important, since empathy with and consideration for citizens helps them to have trust in the
authorities (Röell & Brenninkmeijer 2012). This can also be achieved by means of the works of art adorning the walls in
the department and a studium generale (a programme of lectures, debates, lecture series) for students which organises, for
example, film debates.

4 Critical Dialogue LEARNING FROM HOUSE OF CARDS
Character education does not aim to cultivate obedient, All kinds of appropriate examples of television series can
disciplined civil servants, but educate independent-minded, be found for public administrators. For example, think of
critical professionals. Students should therefore develop the British ‘80s series Yes Minister about the relationship
their own ability to make judgements. This can be done between a recently appointed minister and his civil
in different ways. The above-mentioned strategies already servants and colleagues, or the popular series House
contain critical elements, but a separate strategy can of Cards, in which a sly member of Congress stops at
be used as well. You can also take the time for sessions nothing to gain power. Lecturers can discuss fragments
that provide the opportunity to philosophise in smaller from such films so that students can begin to get an idea
groups. In doing so, “philosophy” will not be a lecture on of the tensions and risks which they may have to deal
the theories of philosophers, but on-the-spot thinking in with in public administration. The trick is not to uncover
a community of inquiry. Not in any haphazard way, but “the” message together, but to compare and assess
systematically, for example by means of the Socratic method students’ interpretations.
(Kessels, 1997; Kessels, Boers & Mostert 2015).
A dialogue in which moral judgements and choices can be systematically exchanged has two different features (Sanderse,
2013a). Firstly, a dialogue helps participants to find out what an attitude means in a specific situation. If honesty forms
part of the professional attitude of civil servants, this raises the question what being honest is in a particular situation.
That is an exercise in one’s capacity for moral judgement. For example, the “Integriteit deugt” (“Integrity is virtuous”)
method, which was developed by order of BIOS, is used to teach civil servants to examine a moral case from four different
attitudes (BIOS, 2011). However, a dialogue is not only about devising a “solution” for a difficult problem. In a dialogue,
a judgement given in the past (“That was unprofessional!”) can prompt a question about the apparent underlying values or
convictions (“You are a professional if you…”). Students can practise putting their choices into words and substantiating
them in sessions.
Although the meaning of a concept such as honesty is broached on in a dialogue, the discussion is of course an exercise of
virtue in itself. Students learn relevant attitudes, such as empathy with the other participants, the courage to stand up for
your convictions and voice opposition and the patience to listen to someone else’s story.
Conclusion
Professional ethics is about what is good and worth pursuing, and what positions and attitudes of civil servants contribute
to work quality and satisfaction. This chapter provided insight into the way university students can start building such a
professional ethical attitude. This requires specific attention to ethics in a separate course, but instruction in professional
ethics is emphatically something which concerns the curriculum and the didactics of an entire programme. All lecturers
contribute to this. That is why this chapter specifies how an exemplary role, practice, art and dialogue can be used to
deliberately and systematically use much of what is already available in the programme as a way to lay the foundation of
professional ethics for prospective civil servants.

3 PROFESSIONAL ETHICS IN UNIVERSITY-LEVEL
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION PROGRAMMES
Introduction
How is professional ethics education currently implemented in the university-level programmes in public administration in
the Netherlands? Are students prepared for this during their programmes? Do future civil servants receive any instruction
in civil service ethics and integrity? With these questions in mind, BIOS carried out a preliminary study on the bachelor
and master programmes in public administration in the Netherlands, since these programmes concentrate specifically on
public administration. Many students will eventually have to deal with government issues as a civil servant, administrator
or adviser.
For this study, interviews were held with academic staff members who share responsibility for the course content, such as
programme coordinators, directors of education and university lecturers. Quotes from these interviews have been rendered
anonymous and translated from Dutch. The interviews were about the role of the educational system in offering professional
ethics and how this is implemented in their programmes. A total of thirteen representatives of eight university-level bach-
elor programmes and eight master programmes in public administration in the Netherlands were interviewed. Some of these
representatives only represented the bachelor programme, others represented both the bachelor and master programmes in
public administration.
Reader’s Guide
The key question of the study was: How is professional ethics education currently implemented in the university-level
programmes in public administration in the Netherlands? Four themes kept recurring during the interviews. The results of
the interviews are therefore discussed on the basis of the following themes:
1 Does the educational system play a role in offering professional ethics?
2 How much focus is there on professional ethics in university-level programmes in public administration?
3 What form do professional ethics take in the programmes?
4 When is it best to offer a course in (Professional) Ethics?
WHAT IS MEANT BY “PROFESSIONAL ETHICS”?
Professional ethics focuses on the attitudes and virtues of Civil servants are also bound by specific standards and
a professional (see Chapter 2). It is about what qualifies rules for preventing conflicts of interest, handling
as work which is good and worth pursuing, and about the information and communication and the careful handling
positions and attitudes that contribute to work quality of (human) resources. For instance, civil servants are
and satisfaction. There are generally accepted civil not allowed to commercialise government information
service standards and core values for professional conduct and confidential information must remain confidential.
specifically for the civil servant. These have been included Furthermore, civil servants may not speak in a personal
in the Dutch Code of Conduct for Integrity in the Central capacity whilst in office. All in all, a civil servant should
Public Administration: conduct himself “as befits a good civil servant” (Dutch
General Civil Service Regulations, Rule 50).
– independence and impartiality,
– reliability and conscientiousness and
– personal responsibility.

1 Does the educational system play a role in offering professional ethics?
Interviews with representatives of the public administration programmes show that opinions on the role of the educational
system are divided. Most of the representatives think that offering professional ethics is the responsibility of the educa-
tional system, more specifically, of an university-level programme in public administration. They feel that most of their
students eventually end up in the public sector.
“95% end up in public administration, where they have to deal with dilemmas. It is therefore useful to prepare
them for this.”
These representatives think the educational system has a formative role to play for students and should prepare them for
the workfloor. After their studies students find work in public-sector organisations and positions, work with public funds for
the common good and, according to the representatives, should be prepared for their responsibilities as public professionals
and the ethical dilemmas they will have to deal with.
Doubts about the Role

However, a few representatives doubt whether universities are the right place to focus on professional ethics. They think
ethics education is a form of skills training which fits in better with a university of applied sciences. Some hold the view
that students “automatically” acquire ethical skills during an academic programme.
“Students are academically schooled. They end up in public-sector organisations. However, it is not our aim
to make our students into good civil servants. They must be critically-minded and be able to carry out proper
primary source research. They must know a great deal about public administration. However, whether they end up
working there is up to them.”
Integrity is regarded by several representatives as a part of skills training, such as drawing up and presenting policy
documents. There already appears to be much discussion within study programmes, departments and universities as to
whether universities should focus on these practical skills.
“We will now focus more on skills which students can develop during their education in preparation for their
working lives. However, that has been an obstacle in the programme (“If they just want to acquire skills, they
had better go to a university of applied sciences”). While our students did want to improve their presentation
and writing skills. So we have addressed that. But it’s been a long process.”
Most educational institutions think public administration has a role to play in the moral education of students. The
programme is essentially about training students to become critical and analytical professionals. This goes beyond knowl-
edge transfer.
“Why do we have universities? Why do we impart knowledge to students? Because you want to contribute to
society. Not just because you want to transfer knowledge. This particularly holds true for public administration.
The education we provide is more or less vocationally oriented.”
Lack of Attention
However, the real question is whether there is sufficient focus on this educational task. Representatives are signalling a
shortage of attention for ethics. It emerged from the interviews that this can be partly attributed to the priorities in the
programme. They attach less importance to professional ethics than to other learning objectives, or the subject is simply
not top of mind.
“Like other programmes, we think students will pick this up from the more general courses they are taking.
Compared with other priorities, it is not considered to be important enough.”
Even if the importance of ethics education is recognised, it is difficult to include professional ethics in the existing
curriculum. It is not easy to adapt a curriculum. This has to be coordinated with various parties and approved at several
levels. Moreover, a course in Professional Ethics would then compete with other courses.

2 How much focus is there on professional ethics in university-level public administration programmes?
The interviews with the representatives examined how professional ethics is being implemented in public administration
programmes. Surprisingly enough, not all the representatives are fully aware of the way ethics is incorporated into their
curriculum. Moreover, lecturers are scarcely (if at all) consulted about professional ethics. The representatives do not have
much insight into the extent to which lecturers are aware of professional ethical aspects in their courses.
Despite these objections, the representatives were able to give a general picture of the focus on professional ethics in their
programmes. It appears that professional ethics in public administration can be dealt with in four different ways:
• implicitly in the programme,
• as part of other activities,
• in a dedicated course or
• by means of a comprehensive curriculum.
In two instances, ethics is not part of the programme at all. Half the programmes opt for an approach whereby ethics forms
both an implicit and explicit part of the curriculum. Ethics is then identified as a topic in exercises, cases and theory. This
is done in several ways. Some programmes have opted for a separate, dedicated course in Ethics or Professional Ethics.
Other programmes include ethics in other courses or activities. A few programmes have combined these elements into a
comprehensive approach.
Implicit Approach
Ethics is only dealt with implicitly in six of the sixteen programmes. Topics such as justice, responsibility, independence,
decision-making and weighing up arguments, political control and the role of the civil servant are dealt with in courses and
lectures.
“It has been incorporated into our programme, but not explicitly. I don’t know if they recognise it. If you were to
ask students afterwards if your talk was about ethics, you would get different answers.”
However, the focus on topics relating to ethics and being a good civil servant remains implicit. Lecturers do not explicitly
relate the topics being dealt with to professional ethics. It is up to the students to make the connection to integrity.
“If it is dealt with during the programme, it is done implicitly. For example, there is a simulation exercise where
students assume various roles and discuss conflicts of interest. However, it is not explicitly boxed as ethical dilem-
mas, so that students do not reflect on the ethics. To make explicit what is now implicit would have added value.”
Incorporated into Other Activities

Some programmes integrate professional ethics into other courses or activities, including learning objectives related
to integrity, ethics or professional ethics. For example, one programme organises an introductory week for second-year
bachelor students during which a simulation exercise and a guest speaker (an integrity consultant) are used to deal with
professional integrity. Although these programmes do not include a course in Ethics, this is explicitly dealt with.
“Some programmes include Ethics as a course, which is useful. However, that seems to imply that it comes down
to this course alone. Frequent repetition is important for your development on this subject . And they should
know that integrity is something which comes up in all kinds of fields. It therefore works best when you let it
come back in various parts and as part of the whole.
In order to integrate professional ethics into other existing courses, it is important to get other lecturers on board and that
they realise that this does not demand very much of them.
“So many demands are already being made on lecturers. They feel that this only adds to their workload. However,
you do not need a great deal of theoretical knowledge for this. They can already make a difference by making
minor adjustments. I refer them to social developments and scandals in the media. It’s about establishing a link
to practice.”
Professional Ethics Course

Three of the eight bachelor programmes and four of the eight master programmes include a separate, dedicated course on
ethics in a general sense. Most of the representatives indicated that they use this wide approach because they do not regard
their programmes as preparing students for the civil service. Only two of these courses, one in the bachelor programme and
one in the master programme, focus specifically on civil service or administrative ethics. These courses focus explicitly on
specific integrity issues which civil servants have to deal with, such as billing practices and their role as a civil servant.

“I think it should definitely be a separate course. Taught by a dedicated lecturer. I don’t think it’ll work when you
say that it should come back in every other course. Then everyone is responsible, so no one is responsible. Such a
lecturer could also assist other lecturers by giving them suggestions on how they can incorporate ethics into their
course. He can inspire lecturers. If it is a separate course, it will have a different status.”
Two bachelor programmes and one master programme initially included the course (Professional) Ethics, but removed them
from the curriculum. The courses did not come into its own and were dropped in favour of other courses.
Comprehensive Approach
During the interviews, several representatives expressed their doubts about offering a separate course if there is no focus
on ethics in other parts of the curriculum. They indicated that ethics should play a role in the entire programme, both
implicitly and explicitly, as part of other courses and as a dedicated course. A few programmes have opted for this compre-
hensive approach (see inset for a practical example).
“Professional Ethics forms an integral part of the programme, but also receives specific attention in courses.
Issues related to integrity and good governance should be dealt with throughout the programme. Normative
questions should also be asked, i.e. throughout the programme. However, there are also a few dedicated courses
where ethics is the main focus. Such a course is included in every programme.”
3 What form do professional ethics take in the programmes?
Not only are there different views on the way professional ethics education should be organised, there is also debate on
the content of this instruction. Two different points emerged from the interviews: Firstly, is ethics education about skills or
theory? Secondly, should ethics education be normative?
Skills vs. Theory

As previously stated, some programmes are reluctant to integrate professional ethics into the programme since professional
ethics is regarded as skills training.
“We deal with public administration, not with individual civil servants and all that that involves. The aspect of
professional practice is hardly ever dealt with, while our programme has a strong focus on the profession.”
None of the courses on (professional) ethics focus on developing skills. All courses offer a theoretical approach to profes-
sional ethics. Instruction is given in the different schools of philosophical ethics, such as utilitarianism, deontology and
virtue ethics and their applications to policy, administration and organisation. The aim is usually to instruct students in
moral reasoning.
“Students are very naïve about ethics when they start on the course. This is made more apparent by the fact
that they don’t have any practical experience. Ethics is therefore often associated with major scandals. And their
thinking on the subject is simplistic. What you see in my course is that students become more aware of how
ethics is dealt with in various parts of their field. Think of the impartiality of a judge. As the course progresses,
they come to realise that ethics are important for the very fibres of the work. And they learn the terminology to
talk about ethical issues and add nuances.”
Very much lacking is the link between (professional) ethics and the actions of the students themselves. The students do not
learn to reflect on their own performance and attitude. One of the representatives thinks this theoretical approach is risky
since it is more difficult for lecturers without a background in ethics to integrate it into their own course.
“I think it’s useful to have a philosopher for professional ethics, but I would like to make it much more practical.
And not scare off lecturers too much when it gets too philosophical. This will make them feel that they can’t
teach the course.”
Normativity
An issue which has often been raised is how normatively professional ethics should be discussed with students. Should you
teach students what the norms and values of public administration are? Most of the representatives are wary of this. They
think students should first learn to form an opinion so that they can weigh up all the facts in a grey area.

PRACTICAL EXAMPLE: ETHICS EDUCATION IN A LEARNING CONTINUITY PATHWAY
Radboud University offers public administration

students a learning continuity pathway in ethics NARROW AND WIDE
education in the bachelor and master programmes. The programme approaches integrity and ethics from both
The programme approaches ethics education at three a narrow and a wide perspective. Issues relating to justice
different levels: as an integral part of the programme and the value of laws and regulations are examined from
and as a dedicated course, implicit and explicit, narrow a wide perspective. From a narrower perspective, students
and wide. learn what professional integrity is about. Both aspects of
professional ethics are explicitly dealt with in the course
ETHICS THROUGHOUT THE PROGRAMME Administrative Ethics. For example, students work on
Professional ethics forms an integral part of the bachelor questions such as:
and master programmes. It has been agreed with lecturers • What are the concepts of ethics, morals, norms and
that ethics should play a role in every course. Issues values about?
related to integrity and good governance have been • What is a good administrator?
integrated into the entire programme. Lecturers let ethical • How does a “broad” interpretation of integrity differ
issues and integrity dilemmas come back explicitly and from a “narrow” one?
implicitly in their courses. Moreover, lecturers are expected • What does “being responsible for something” mean?
to be morally upright professionals, setting the example • What was the moral problem of the financial crisis?
for their students. There are also a few specific courses • How do bureaucratic, market-oriented and professional
where ethics is the main focus. For example, the course ways of thinking differ from each other?
Philosophy of the Management Sciences in the bachelor • What is a fair remuneration in the public sector? Where
programme and the course Administrative Ethics in the do you draw the line in billing practices?
master programme.
MORE INFORMATION
MASTER COURSE ADMINISTRATIVE ETHICS • Dr Marcel Becker, University Lecturer in Practical
The course Administrative Ethics (6 ECTS credits) is Philosophy (ethics), Radboud University (Nijmegen, the
compulsory for master students following the master Netherlands), m.becker@ftr.ru.nl
programme Public Administration at Radboud University. • Dr Berry Tholen, University Lecturer in Normative Public
The course is intended to enable students to make an Administration, Radboud University (Nijmegen, the
ethical analysis of the policy, administration or organisa- Netherlands) b.tholen@fm.ru.nl
tion of the government. Students learn about the different
ethical theories and how they can be applied. The course
was deliberately included in the master programme so that
students will be in a better position to understand how
the theories are linked to daily practice.
“There are many grey areas. That’s what it’s all about - conflicting values. These appear to conflict very strongly
in practice. We want students to make their own choices. We don’t really explain what is good and bad. We
explain which tensions are always there. However, we want to teach them to form their own opinions.”
Educational institutions are reluctant to transfer prevailing norms and values. Only a few institutions indicated that the
world of learning also has a social role to play and that there is no avoiding the discussion of standards such as those set
in practice.
“I refer to the code of conduct on good governance and the principles set out therein in my lectures. It’s nice
when students later remember all kinds of things and put them into practice.”
4 When is it best to offer the course (Professional) Ethics?
It turns out that this question was a difficult one to answer for the representatives. There is more room to include compul-
sory courses during the first two years of the bachelor programme. The third year of the bachelor programme is mostly taken
up by optional courses and the bachelor thesis, and there is also little scope in the master year due to the master thesis.
“I find it very difficult to position. If you give the course too early in the bachelor programme, students will not
yet be ripe for the dilemmas at play. They will fail to recognise this. Too late, it will simply become a “sideshow”.

Despite the practical objections, most of the representatives think the third year of the bachelor programme and the master
year are the best times. Students will understand the practical cases better and have more personal experience.
“And a certain level of maturity will be necessary. When you have just completed secondary school, you are still
shy, searching and have no or little work experience. You need a background to build on.”
Several representatives think it’s important to focus on integrity and ethics during the first two years of the bachelor
programme so that there is a gradual increase in subject-related courses and the level of difficulty.
“Frequent repetition is important for your development (…) on this subject. Integrity can already be introduced
at an early stage in the programme. Commitment to the programme. Attendance, complying with agreements.
You can make this explicit. When they are rude in emails, we let them know they are. A proper attitude and
commitment are useful and necessary.”
In one of the programmes, part-time and full-time students take the course (Professional) Ethics together. The part-time
students often have a job on the side and can therefore share practical experience and examples. In this way, it will become
more real for the other students.
Conclusion
This study on professional ethics in public administration programmes gives a first impression of the current state of affairs.
We should like to emphasise that an in-depth follow-up study is required to obtain a more detailed picture of the moral
education of future civil servants. Nevertheless thanks to this survey we have a better picture of ethics in academic education.
Most of the representatives think their programme has a role to play in offering professional ethics. They focus on this in
different ways: implicitly, explicitly in courses or activities or even as an integral part of the curriculum. The focus here is
largely on ethical theories and individual moral judgement. Educators believe that a dedicated course would be best placed in
the third year of the bachelor programme and the master year. In the next chapter we draw conclusions from these results.

4 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Introduction
The key question in this report is whether university-level programmes in public administration in the Netherlands make
an adequate contribution to civil service ethics education If not, how can this be improved? The previous chapters lead
us to conclude that public administration programmes are not making a strong enough case for civil service ethics. Ethics
education in public administration programmes remains implicit, limited, fragmented, intellectual and optional. Adequate
normative, practical and developing efforts are lacking, as a result of which students are insufficiently prepared to begin
a career in public service with a basic qualification in ethics. There is still much room for improvement. There is actually a
great willingness, and there are many initiatives, to make improvements. We are therefore submitting seven recommenda-
tions to educational institutions, policy-makers and government employers.
1 Take responsibility
Does a university-level programme in public administration have a role to play in professional ethics education? A few
representatives doubt whether they have a responsibility in this. They hide behind the argument that a university-level
programme does not have to contribute anything to the development of professional ethical competency. This argument is
not realistic. Most students will not become an academic, but will end up in another profession, probably working directly
or indirectly for the government. The programme should therefore teach students what morally upright behaviour means for
civil servants and administrators and let them reflect on their own performance and attitude.
“As far as I’m concerned, the “university” in “university education” does not so much refer to its isolation from
society, but in critically addressing the role and responsibility which students will assume for this society at a later
stage. Because university graduates will end up in important positions, even more so than students at a university
of applied sciences, it is extremely important that they are prepared for this, also by means of a course on ethics.”
(Wouter Sanderse)
As Willeke Slingerland showed in Chapter 1, the educational system forms part of our national integrity system. There
are no good administrators or civil servants without a good moral education. Fortunately, most educational institutions
recognise this responsibility and indicate that they want to concentrate more on professional ethical development.
2 Don’t be afraid to be normative

Public administration programmes focus on the public sector. Many students will end up working in or around public
administration after their studies. However, public administration programmes hardly give students a normative moral
education. Ethics education is in a certain sense optional. They underline the importance of critical personal reflection
on dilemmas and moral issues, but are cautious with regard to the transfer of normative content and the current views on
being a good or bad civil servant. We wish to emphasise that students should be trained in civil service morals. Which rules
apply, which virtues are expected, which values are important? An understanding of civil service morals is indispensable to
professional ethics.
We also recommend that attention is paid to the general moral attitude of students (e.g. commitment and being responsible
for the programme, complying with agreements, cooperation, providing feedback) since a general moral attitude supports
any professional ethics. This can be done from the first year of the bachelor programme.

3 Develop practical skills
The instruction in ethics we came across is very intellectual. LOOK BEYOND THE CLASSROOM
Students learn ethical theories and moral reasoning.
However, a professional ethical attitude is developed by Professional ethical development can also take place
learning by doing. As Willeke Slingerland stated: “You need outside the classroom. Professional ethics can also
to have sufficient knowledge, skills and competencies in receive attention outside the classic educational settings
order to be able to identify integrity issues and dilemmas in a variety of ways:
and do something about them.” Wouter Sanderse elaborates • Provide forms of dilemma training, Socratic dialogue
on this in Chapter 2: a proper professional attitude or virtue or moral consultations
is reflected in “someone’s thoughts, perceptions, feelings, • Use books, films, theatrical performances and music
actions and relationships.” (see Chapter 2)
• Organise working visits, possibly with the students’
However, such an exercise in practical skills and personal association.
reflection is currently lacking in public administration . Give • Discuss news items and current events with students
students the opportunity to practise and reflect on moral • Encourage students to attend a municipal council
issues and dilemmas by means of work placements, practical meeting
assignments, role-plays and simulation exercises. Lecturers • Invite guest speakers who can share practical
can integrate these kinds of components into the existing experience.
courses, teaching material and assignments (see Chapter 2).
4 Provide an Ethics Course

A separate course on civil service or administrative ethics is necessary to impart relevant knowledge and ethics terminology
to students. In this way they will learn to talk and think explicitly in terms of rules, values, duties and virtues. Students
will not be able to develop a proper attitude if they are not familiar with a moral vocabulary. Incidentally, the relevant
basic knowledge can also be offered through alternative teaching methods, such as online videos and ethics lectures.
Meetings and working groups then provide the opportunity for practice, discussion and application.
The third year of the bachelor programme and the master year are most suited for an Ethics course. Students will then have
sufficiently developed to understand the subject-matter, and will usually have more practical experience to which they can
apply their knowledge. Despite the limited scope in the curriculum, we emphasise the importance of a separate course in
both years. Repetition and teaching at a deeper level is not only advisable, it is also necessary because of the intake and
outflow of students between the bachelor and master programmes.
5 Take a comprehensive approach

Ethics education is not a matter of “either/or” but of “and/and”. Educational institutions have indicated that “Ethics”
as a course on its own will not suffice, that ethics should be made explicit and included in other courses. The chapters
by Willeke Slingerland and Wouter Sanderse support this idea. As Sanderse pointed out in Chapter 2, “professional ethics
education is expressly something which concerns the curriculum and the didactics of an entire programme. Every lecturer
contributes to this.” Professional ethical development requires a comprehensive approach.
Chapter 2 gives concrete suggestions on how an entire programme can contribute to the development of civil service ethics.
However, this is still very rare in practice (and mostly implicit where it does occur). Practical objections were mostly raised
in the study. Lecturers (may) see it as an additional task, have the idea that ethics is an abstract subject or think it is too
philosophical. The lecturer in professional ethics can remove these concerns by discussing how they can put the focus on
professional ethics in their courses. For example, if you are thinking about the financial implications of a policy decision,
you should also consider the moral implications: What do citizens expect? What should the authorities do in their exemplary
role? Will there be unwanted integrity risks? How should you deal with the tensions between different values of good
governance?
Where to start? We see a role here for programme coordinators and lecturers in ethics to emphasise the importance of
professional ethics and take the initiative. Because a large number of parties are involved, someone will have to keep an
overview of all the efforts made towards integrity and civil service ethics. Moreover, good initiatives are often already being
taken in all programmes. As a practical example of such an inventory, we would like to refer to the approach which Utrecht
University has taken (see inset).

PRACTICAL EXAMPLE: INVENTORY OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS IN THE BACHELOR PROGRAMME
In 2015 the Public Administration and Organization came up with the “dilemma database” with specific cases
Science Department of Utrecht University asked itself which students and lecturers can use. The working group
whether it wanted to focus more on professional also held interviews with lecturers so that they would
and academic integrity in the bachelor programme include integrity/ethics in their courses.
Public Administration and Organization Science. And
whether that is possible. University lecturer Dr Kim RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE WORKING GROUP
Loyens set to work with these questions in a working In 2015 the working group submitted a report on the
group. The working group made an inventory and a few first phase with recommendations for its own programme.
recommendations. These recommendations are also useful for other public
administration programmes.
INVENTORY IN THE PROGRAMME
In 2015 Loyens carried out a survey in the Public • Ensure that professional integrity is systematically
Administration and Organization Science programme. She incorporated into the bachelor and master programmes.
conducted interviews with lecturers and carried out a • Make clear that theoretical course material and practical
literature study for this purpose. It turned out that many cases are about professional ethics.
lecturers were already focusing attention on ethics, albeit • Ensure that students reflect on what they learn about
implicit and fragmented. They are currently working on a ethics and professional integrity.
second phase and are carrying out a survey in the Faculty • Introduce professional ethics in various courses. Talk to
of Law, Economics and Governance. The second phase lecturers about the best way to go about this.
includes interviews with lecturers and experts, a literature • Include professional ethics in the learning objectives
study and focus groups consisting of students and and outcomes of the programme (e.g. that students can
lecturers. The objective is to take stock of what is already reflect on professional ethics in the field).
being done in the area of integrity and to consider ways of • Include professional ethics in an exam question or make
incorporating integrity more effectively into the faculty’s it one of the topics of a paper.
programmes. Also, good practices in promoting integrity • Give lecturers an overall view of the integrity aspects
in academic education are revisited. of the programme so that they can continue to build
on what has already been done in other programme
INTEGRATION INTO THE PROGRAMME components in this area.
According to the working group, professional ethics can be
integrated into courses in various ways, whereby profes- MORE INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED FROM:
sional ethics can form an integral part of the programme. • Dr Kim Loyens, Utrecht University, k.m.loyens@uu.nl
All lecturers play a role in this. To assist them here, they
6 Policy-makers: carry out a follow-up study

This report is a preliminary study on the way attention is paid to civil service ethics in university-level programmes in
public administration in the Netherlands. The results call for a thorough and extensive follow-up study on the set-up,
content and effects of ethics education at the various levels of education. How can schools and institutions contribute
to the moral education of students and professionals? What learning objectives do we want to set here, and what moral
competencies do we expect of entrants to the labour market? We therefore call on policy-makers to organise a follow-up
study which can give more input and direction and add nuance to the current public debate on this subject.
7 Authorities: strengthen the introductory course

Government organisations should realise that instruction in integrity is currently still limited. They cannot expect recent
graduates to be ethically qualified the moment they enter their service. It will therefore require extra effort to raise their
new colleagues’ moral level to a sufficient standard. Extra attention will therefore have to be paid to an introductory course
in the short term. We hereby recommend that specific attention is also paid to the rules, norms, virtues and values of being
a good civil servant. A learning continuity pathway from programme to employer, whereby students and young professionals
develop in a coherent manner into good civil servants, is advisable in the long term.

Conclusion
Public administration programmes still do not include sufficient instruction in civil service ethics. Although most represent-
atives recognise the social responsibility of their programme, instruction in ethics remains implicit, limited, fragmented,
intellectual and optional. Students receive very little assistance with their moral development into becoming good civil
servants. Practical objections and other priorities play a role here. However, the main obstacle is the resistance to a more
normative, practical and developing content of ethics education. There is still much that can be improved in this area.
At the same time, there are promising initiatives and signs. Many educational institutions, to a greater or lesser extent, are
already taking professional ethics more seriously, and sense the urgency to improve their instruction in ethics. Not only the
universities, but also the authorities, the corporate sector and society, professionals and even the students are increasingly
calling for Bildung.
During the interviews, several representatives indicated that they would like to integrate ethics more effectively into
their programmes. Moreover, several initiatives, good examples and links can already be found in public administration
programmes. Therefore, programme directors and (ethics) lecturers do not have to reinvent the wheel. We hope this report
and their colleagues will give them inspiration and new ideas to assist their students, our prospective public professionals,
in developing a professional ethical attitude.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS
• Alain Hoekstra works as a Coordinating Policy Advisor for the Dutch National Integrity Office (BIOS). Before that he
worked for the (Dutch) Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations. He studied public administration at Erasmus
University Rotterdam and is writing a dissertation on integrity management.
• Marjolein van Dijk works as a (Research) Consultant at CAOP. Before that she worked for the European Foundation for
the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) in Dublin. Marjolein and Alain Hoekstra have published
on the subject of integrity and the use of social media. She also set up the European Network of Integrity Practitioners
with Alain Hoekstra in 2015.
• Jitse Talsma is an adviser with the Dutch National Integrity Office (BIOS). He studied philosophy at Radboud University
(Nijmegen, the Netherlands), where he worked as a Project Researcher. He is currently collaborating on several BIOS
projects and studies on integrity management.
• Wouter Sanderse works for Fontys University of Applied Sciences as a lecturer in “The professional ethics of the lecturer”.
He first studied business communication studies and then philosophy at Radboud University, where he obtained his
doctorate on the relevance of Aristotelian ethics for moral education in the educational system in 2012.
• Willeke Slingerland works for Saxion University of Applied Sciences as a lecturer/researcher. She teaches International &
European Law and Ethics & Integrity (Degree Programme: Laws). She is also involved in (inter)national research projects
as a researcher in the field of governance. Willeke is the first author of the National Integrity System Netherlands report,
which she wrote under the authority of Transparency International, and is writing her dissertation on network corruption.

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The Dutch National Integrity Office (BIOS) advises
and supports public sector organisations in the
development and implementation of ethics and
integrity policy, both on a strategical as on a
organisational level. With a small team of experts
we fulfil five tasks, developing instruments, sharing
knowledge, hosting network platforms, researching
new trends and developments, and advising local
governments on breaches of integrity by political
office holders. BIOS offers the public sector
instruments, manuals and training:
www.integriteitoverheid.nl/international
Further information
and contact
Bureau Integriteitsbevordering
Openbare Sector
P.O. Box 556

2501 CN The Hague
+31 70 376 59 37
www.integriteitoverheid.nl/international
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TEACHING PROFESSIONAL

BUREAU INTEGRITEITS B E VORDE RING OPE N BARE S E CTO R

Alain Hoekstra, Marjolein van Dijk, Jitse Talsma

With contributions from Wouter Sanderse and Willeke Slingerland

1 The Role of Higher Education in the N

2 Teaching Professional Ethics to Future Civil Servants_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11

3 Professional Ethics in University-level Public Administration Programmes_ _ 15

4 Conclusions and Recommendations _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 21

About the Authors_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 25

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 2

Prof. Zeger van der Wal

Endowed Professor, Ien Dales Chair

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 3

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 4

Integrity of Civil Servants

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 5

OPENBAAR BESTUUR (PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION) LITERATURE STUDY

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 6

Chapter 2: What defines proper professional ethics education?

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 7

NIS and Professional Ethics

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 8

GIVING VOICE TO VALUES

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 9

SUMMER SCHOOL FOR DEMOCRACY

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 10

Professional Ethics: Code and Character

We cannot do without rules in the professional ethics of

In short, a desirable attitude or virtue is a quality which

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 11

Teaching Professional Ethics

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 12

3 Books, Films and Other Arts

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 13

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 14

1 Does the educational system play a role in offering professional ethics?

3 What form do professional ethics take in the programmes?

4 When is it best to offer a course in (Professional) Ethics?

WHAT IS MEANT BY “PROFESSIONAL ETHICS”?

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 15

Doubts about the Role

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 16

Incorporated into Other Activities

Professional Ethics Course

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 17

3 What form do professional ethics take in the programmes?

Skills vs. Theory

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 18

Radboud University offers public administration

4 When is it best to offer the course (Professional) Ethics?

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 19

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 20

2 Don’t be afraid to be normative

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 21

4 Provide an Ethics Course

5 Take a comprehensive approach

BIOS | Teaching Professional Ethics: Shaping Civil Servants 22

6 Policy-makers: carry out a follow-up study

7 Authorities: strengthen the introductory course

1 The Role of Higher Education in the N

2 Teaching Professional Ethics to Future Civil Servants_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11

3 Professional Ethics in University-level Public Administration Programmes_ _ 15

1 Does the educational system play a role in offering professional ethics?

3 What form do professional ethics take in the programmes?

4 When is it best to offer a course in (Professional) Ethics?

– Annas, J. (2011). Intelligent virtue. Oxford: Oxford University Press.