ABSTRACT
Ethics is considered both an inherent feature of symmetry and a stand-alone principle of excellence. The ethics within the Excellence Theory was built upon by Bowen, who constructed Kantian ethical models supporting the Excellence Theory for both normative and positive use, examined the degree to which ethics is an essential part of each principle of excellence, studied the contributions of public relations ethics in the dominant coalition, and examined the moral nature of public relations in society. In this chapter, we discuss the role of trust and corporate social responsibility (CSR) in creating excellence, introducing additional consequentialist paradigms (act utilitarianism and rule utilitarianism) of ethics combined with deontology in a model we call reflective ethical symmetry. For the future implications of the theory, we examine the application of ethics among Millennial-generation practitioners as studied by Curtin, Gallicano, and Matthews.
