Chapter 5: CSR on an Individual Level (Managerial Discretion) Flashcards
What are ethical theories and why do we need them? Is ethical theory of any practical use to managers?
Morality is concerned with the norms, values and beliefs embedded in social processes which define right and wrong for an individual or a community.
Ethics is concerned with the study of morality and the application of reason to elucidate specific rules and principles that determine right and wrong for a given situation.
->These rules and principles are called ethical theories.
Ethical theories can be applied to certain situations and provide potential solutions to ethical problems.
What are the three moral management types according to Carroll? In how far do they differ?
- Moral Management
- ethical norms that adhere to a high standard of right behavior are employed
- Moral managers not only conform to accepted and high levels of professional conduct, they also commonly exemplify leadership on ethical issues.
- Moral managers want to be profitable, but only within the confines of sound legal and ethical precepts, such as fairness, justice and due process.
- Law is seen as minimal ethical behavior and the preference and goal is to operate well above what the law mandates. - Amoral Management
- are neither immoral nor moral but are not sensitive to the fact that their everyday business decisions may have deleterious effects on others. These managers lack ethical perception or awareness.
- They go through their organizational lives not thinking that their actions have an ethical dimension.
- They may be well intenioned, but do not see that their business decisions and actions may be hurting those whom they transact business or interact. - Immoral Management
- characterized by those managers whose decisions, actions and behavior suggest an active opposition to what is deemed right or ethical.
- care only about their own organization’s profitability and success.
- see legal standards as barriers or impediments management must overcome to accomplish their goals.
- exploit opportunities for personal or corporate gain.
What are the two main families of western modernist ethical theories? Explain the differences between these two approaches to ethical theory.
- Non-consequentialist ethics (deontological)
- Focus on the motivation and principles that lead to certain actions. - Consequentialist ethics (teleological)
- Focus on the outcomes of certain actions. An action is morally right if it results in the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people.
Which ethical theory do you think is most commonly used in business? Provide evidence to support your assertion and give reasons explaining why this theoretical approach is more likely than others to dominate business decisions.
- Consequentialist ethics (teleological), like utilitarianism, is most commonly used.
- According to utilitarianism, an action is morally right if it results in the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people affected by the action.
- Humans should maximize utility and minimize pain.
- This ethical theory is very compatible with the quantitative methodology of economics (e. g. cost-benefit-analysis).
Describe the “trolley problem” and the “transplant problem”. Discuss the problems from the perspectives of non-consequentialist as well as consequentialist ethics.
Trolley-Problem:
Suppose you are the driver of a trolley. The trolley rounds a bend and there comes into view ahead five track workmen who have been repairing the track and which cannot escape the track. The breaks of the trolley don’t work but there is a spur of the track leading off to the right to which you could turn the trolley. On that track there is only one workman. Is it morally permissable to turn the trolley?
-> from a non-consequentialist point of view it might be wrong to decide who is going to live or die. It might be justified not to turn the trolley. Because making such a decision is inherently wrong.
->from a consequentialist point of view the situation is 5 people die vs. 1 people dies. It might be justified to turn the trolley for the greater good.
Transplant Problem:
You are a surgeon. You have 5 patients who need organs. If they do not get a transplant in time they all die. A healthy young man comes in for a check-up. You ask him if he would volunteer to give his organs but he refuses. Would it be morally permissable to operate anyway?
->From a non-consequentialist point of view operating is wrong.
->By regarding the consequences from a consequentialist point of view, we get the same result as in the trolley problem. But this time it feels not right to the most people.
Which problems of utilitarianism do the trolley problem and the transplant problem reveal?
- Subjectivity
- Distribution of utility
- Problems in quantification
What is the difference between ethics of rights and ethics of duties? Which duty does the “golden rule” imply?
Ethics of rights:
Start by assigning a right to one party and then advocating a corresponding duty to another party to protect that right.
Ethics of duties:
Begin with assigning a duty to act in a certain way to an actor.
->Central to many religious perspectives on business ethics.
-> What is right has divine, eternal validity regardless whether the outcomes are in anybody’s self-interest or result in more pleasure/pain.
Golden Rule:
Treat others as you want to be treated
What is the relationship between Kantian deontological ethics and stakeholder theory?
Treat your stakeholders not as means but as consituencies with goals and priorities of their own.
Companies have a duty to allow these stakeholders some degree of influence in the corporation.
What are the problems of deontological ethics as, e.g., Kant’s categorical imperative?
- Complexity
- Can we expect individual decision-makers to engage in these cognitively complex reflections? - Optimism
- is Kant’s very optimistic idea of human beings realistic? - Undervaluing outcomes
- should we really ignore the outcomes of our actions?
Define ethical absolutism, relativism, and pluralism.
Ethical Absolutism:
-Claims that there are eternal, universally applicable moral principles. Right and wrong are objective qualities that can be rationally determined.
Ethical Relativism:
-Claims that morality is context-dependent and subjective. There are no right and wrongs that can be rationally determined. It simply depends on the person who makes the decision and the culture in which they are located.
Ethical Pluralism:
-Accepts different moral convictions and backgrounds while at the same time suggesting that consensus on basic principles and rules in certain social contexts can and should be reached.
To what extent are ethical absolutism, relativism and pluralism useful for studying and practicing business ethics?
- Absolutism might not be very useful because of cultural differences.
- Relativism could also be problematic for business ethics because it suggests different behavior depending on the region, culture etc. This could lead to very inconsistent actions by a company depending on region and be viewed as bad by stakeholders in the home country.
- Pluralism seems to be a reasonable approach for business ethics. Companies should try to find a consensus that can be applied in all regions and cultures they opperate in.
Which three levels of moral reasoning does Kohlberg’s Cognitive Moral Development propose?
Level 1:
The individual exhibits a concern with self-interest and external rewards and punishments
Level 2:
The individual does what is expected of them by others.
Level 3:
The individual is developing more autonomous decision-making based on principles of rights and justice rather than external influences.
Why are self-image concerns important to moral decision-making?
Self-image is an important constraint on dishonesty and cheating.
People strive for a positive self-image.
People don’t cheat if it makes them feel bad about themselves.
What do we mean by moral licensing and moral cleansing?
Moral licensing:
-moral act leads to immoral act (moral capital)
Moral cleansing:
-immoral act leads to moral act (compensation)
- > Own prior (im)moral behavior leads to compensatory rather than consistent moral action as a way of completing the moral self.
- > Even anticipating future moral behaviors can serve as a compensation for current immoral action.
How can moral licensing and cleansing explain firms’ corporate social (ir)responsibility?
Prior CSR leads to subsequent CSI.
->”moral credits” achieved through CSR enable leaders to engage in less ethical behavior.
