Business Ethics : samenvatting
BUSINESS ETHICS
What is ethics ?
The study of moral principles which determine what is good or bad, wrong or right and the
principles that guides decisions and actions.
What is business ethics ?
Applying the ethical principles to the business environment, the standards for morally right
or wrong. Law partially defines this but ‘legal’ and ‘ethical’ aren’t the same.
Values :
Traits or qualities that are considered valuable : ex. honesty, fairness and integrity.
Norms :
Ways of behaviour, it can differ in cultures.
Norm : politeness
Behaviour : greeting your collegues in the morning
Beliefs :
An idea that a person holds as being true, based on a person’s experiences, the acceptance
of cultural/societal norms, what other people say.
religious beliefs, political ideologies
Virtues :
Behaviour showing high moral values.
excellence, good character
Cross-cultural perspective :
Understanding cultural differences in norms, values and behaviour (ethics).
What is morality ?
A set of rules to guide behaviour.
Moral principles :
Presciptive : principles must be grammatically formulated as imperatives to
emphasize the obligation which is associated with act.
Universalizable : principle must apply to all relevant agents equally.
Overriding/compelling : principles should be the primary motivational factor for
actions of morality.
Public : principles presuppose some social interractions.
Practicable : principles must be achievable by an ordinary moral agent.
Why is business ethics important ?
It’s crucial for maintaining trust, reputation, relationships and long-term succes.
, What is an ehtical crisis ? How to avoid it ?
An ethical crisis is when an organization is judged to have done something wrong due to
unethical behaviour/ to poor ethics.
environmental violations, discrimination scandals, financial fraude
You can avoid it by : promoting your values, providing ethical training, implement a system
for reporting unethical behaviour, responding and finding the root cause.
ETHICAL THEORIES
What are ethical theories ?
Philosophical theories to provide a clear and unified account of what our ethical obligations
are.
Utalitarianism :
Do what is best = what does the most good and produces the best outcomes.
Consequentalism :
Look at the consequences, if they are good the action is good as well.
Kanteanism/deontology :
There are absolute rules that must be followed. Don’t do to others what you wouldn’t want,
goodwill is important. (Immanuel Kant)
Social Contract Theory :
People live in society in accordance with an agreement that establishes moral and political
behaviour.
Socrates has tried to find the ideal social contract
Socrates, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Jean-Jaqcues Rousseau, John Rawles
A Theory of Social Justice
Virtual theory :
Emphasizes the role of character rather than duties and consequences.
Aristotle : a virtues person is someone with an ideal character
Feminist ethics on ethics of care :
Revise, rethink and reformulate. It emphasizes relationships, empathy and caring.
Important thinker Carol Gilligan
Ethical reasoning :
Using 1 of the theories for business examples :
decisions on various stakeholders
discrimination
unethical accounting
…
BUSINESS ETHICS
What is ethics ?
The study of moral principles which determine what is good or bad, wrong or right and the
principles that guides decisions and actions.
What is business ethics ?
Applying the ethical principles to the business environment, the standards for morally right
or wrong. Law partially defines this but ‘legal’ and ‘ethical’ aren’t the same.
Values :
Traits or qualities that are considered valuable : ex. honesty, fairness and integrity.
Norms :
Ways of behaviour, it can differ in cultures.
Norm : politeness
Behaviour : greeting your collegues in the morning
Beliefs :
An idea that a person holds as being true, based on a person’s experiences, the acceptance
of cultural/societal norms, what other people say.
religious beliefs, political ideologies
Virtues :
Behaviour showing high moral values.
excellence, good character
Cross-cultural perspective :
Understanding cultural differences in norms, values and behaviour (ethics).
What is morality ?
A set of rules to guide behaviour.
Moral principles :
Presciptive : principles must be grammatically formulated as imperatives to
emphasize the obligation which is associated with act.
Universalizable : principle must apply to all relevant agents equally.
Overriding/compelling : principles should be the primary motivational factor for
actions of morality.
Public : principles presuppose some social interractions.
Practicable : principles must be achievable by an ordinary moral agent.
Why is business ethics important ?
It’s crucial for maintaining trust, reputation, relationships and long-term succes.
, What is an ehtical crisis ? How to avoid it ?
An ethical crisis is when an organization is judged to have done something wrong due to
unethical behaviour/ to poor ethics.
environmental violations, discrimination scandals, financial fraude
You can avoid it by : promoting your values, providing ethical training, implement a system
for reporting unethical behaviour, responding and finding the root cause.
ETHICAL THEORIES
What are ethical theories ?
Philosophical theories to provide a clear and unified account of what our ethical obligations
are.
Utalitarianism :
Do what is best = what does the most good and produces the best outcomes.
Consequentalism :
Look at the consequences, if they are good the action is good as well.
Kanteanism/deontology :
There are absolute rules that must be followed. Don’t do to others what you wouldn’t want,
goodwill is important. (Immanuel Kant)
Social Contract Theory :
People live in society in accordance with an agreement that establishes moral and political
behaviour.
Socrates has tried to find the ideal social contract
Socrates, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Jean-Jaqcues Rousseau, John Rawles
A Theory of Social Justice
Virtual theory :
Emphasizes the role of character rather than duties and consequences.
Aristotle : a virtues person is someone with an ideal character
Feminist ethics on ethics of care :
Revise, rethink and reformulate. It emphasizes relationships, empathy and caring.
Important thinker Carol Gilligan
Ethical reasoning :
Using 1 of the theories for business examples :
decisions on various stakeholders
discrimination
unethical accounting
…
