Ch 2 Flashcards
Property reflects moral values concerning the…
Allocation of resources among people
4 sources of ethical values?
1 Legal regulation
2 professional codes of ethics
3 codes of ethics from business organizations
4 individual values
Ethics and the business cycle
When times are tough ethics improve
When businesses thrive and regulatory intervention remains
At status quo, ethics erode
Ethics and government
Business leaders promote business ethics to prevent the
Likelihood of additional government regulation
Internet and media: ethics
Exposé ethics more visibly than in any other time period
Economic interdependence
People are no longer self sufficient they depend on the market
Place
Public education and family values
Have declined as public school funding has declined and
Parents have less time to spend with children b/c work
Morality
Collection of values that guides human behavior
Shared moral values lead to…
Trust, cooperation and social harmony
Ethics
Systematic statement of right and wrong
Also a Philosophical system that justifies and necessitates
rules of conduct
Difference btw law and ethics
Legal system is an institution of the state, which enforces Legal rules (civil + criminal sanctions, monetary damages etc.)
Ethical values aren’t always enforced by the state
Formalism
Approach to ethics that affirms an absolute morality
A particular act is in itself right or wrong in every situation
Have duty or moral obligation not to lie
Categorical imperative
You have moral duty to act in way you believe everyone
Should act
Social contract theory, what does it concern itself with?
Concerns itself with how to construct a just society given
The many inequalities of wealth, knowledge and social status
Social contract theory, how is it implemented and why?
We should assume that we don’t know our age, gender,
Wealth, race, intelligence, strength or social status
Vital b/c it keeps us from being self interested in values
We consider
Rawl’s “veil of ignorance” means to…
To Think ethically you must lose the assumption that what
You personally need or want it necessarily morally correct
Social contract: rawls 1st ethical principle
Everyone is entitled to basic equal rights including liberty,
Freedom of association and personal security
Social contract Rawls 2nd ethical principle: although there might be social and economic inequalities…
These inequalities must be based on what a person does,
Not on who a person is, everyone must have an equal
opportunity for achievement (equal starting place)
Consequentialism,define, example
Concerns itself with moral consequences of actions rather
Than with morality of actions themselves
Lying itself is not unethical, it’s the end result that should be
Evaluated, harm or loss of trust done by lying is unethical
Dominant form of consequentialism: Utalitarianism
Judges actions by usefulness, by whether they serve to
Increase the common good
Research shows that the best performing companies are led by…
Those who can promote moral principles throughout their organization
Protestant ethic
Human desire and indulgence should be bent to god’s will
Through self denial, rational planning and productivity
A formalist approach: honesty and keeping promises were
Intrinsically good
Protestant ethic vs. capitalism
Protestant ethic eroded under capitalism with rising wealth
Supports bureaucratic managerial system
The part of Protestant ethic that supported hard work,
Success and rational planning continued without
Original absolute moral values
5 major ethical rules drawn form law
1 respect for liberty and rights of others 2 importance of acting in good faith 3 importance of exercising due care 4 importance of honoring confidentiality 5 avoidance of conflicts of interest
Law: liberty and rights
Legislation protects privacy, equal opportunity employment,
Guaranteed freedom of expression and due process of law
Law: good faith
Good faith is demonstrate in economic transactions
All sales must be made with honesty and intent
Due care AKA Due diligence
Derives from society’s expectations about how fair and reasonable actions are
Promotes common good
Negligence cases, balancing test
Balancing test- likelihood that defendants conduct causes
Harmful consequences
Negligence cases use the balancing test
Confidentiality
It is malpractice for a professional agent to tell others
What a client told them in confidence
Conflict of interest
Occurs when person secretly serves 2 masters
Ex 2 When a judge owns stock in a company he makes a
decision on in a court case
Self regulation
Ethical codes that exist within industries And corporations
Aren’t enforced by the state, but by the professional
Organization in the industry
Individual values: self assessment 5 questions?
1 have I thought whether the action I will take is right or wrong?
2 will I be proud to tell my family, employer, media about
This action?
3 am I willing for everyone to act as I’m thinking of acting?
4 will my decision cause harm to others or the environment?
5 will my actions violate the law?
Major obstacle for corporations ethics
Emphasis on profits
Top management and ethics
Top management must follow the code Of ethics as they
Are role models for employees throughout corporation
Openness in communication
Promotes trust
Important to have a willingness to openly talk about Issues
for employees throughout corporation to make ethical decision
Stakeholders
Interests of many different groups in society
They have something at risk when the company acts and
Thus have a stake in it
Stakeholder theory
Holds that ethical corporate behavior requires that directors
And managers take into account everyone whose interests
The corporation impacts called stakeholders
Capitalists
Owners who control large productive resources and
Employ others
