Ethics is concerned with the study of which concept?

• A. Social norms
• B. Moral duty
• C. Legal compliance
• D. Personal happiness

Answer: (B)

Ethics is the study of what we ought to do—our duties, obligations, and the principles that guide right and wrong behavior. It asks how we should act in principled, consistent ways, not merely what is permissible by law or common practice. The idea of moral duty sits at the heart of this exploration because it captures the sense that there are obligations we owe to others and to ourselves, beyond personal feelings or social expectations. While social norms describe what a group expects and laws describe what the state enforces, ethics challenges whether those norms and laws align with what is morally right. Personal happiness may figure into some ethical theories, but the central concern is duty—what we ought to do.