Individual Factors: Moral Philosophies and Values C H A P T E R 6 Individual Factors: Moral Philosophies and Values

Moral Philosophy Principles or rules that people use to decide what is right or wrong Presents guidelines for determining how to settle conflicts in human interests Guides businesspeople in formulating strategies and resolving ethical issues No single moral philosophy is accepted by everyone

Moral Philosophy Defined Economic value orientation: Associated with values that can be quantified by monetary means Idealism: A moral philosophy that places special value on ideas and ideals as products of the mind Realism: The view that an external world exists independent of our perception of it

Moral Philosophy Perspectives Teleology Egoism Utilitarianism Deontology The Relativist Perspective Virtue Ethics Justice Perspectives Distributive Procedural Interactional © Royalty-Free/Corbis

Goodness Theories Basic concepts: Monists believe that only one thing is intrinsically good Often exemplified by hedonism Pluralists believe that two or more things are intrinsically good Instrumentalists reject the idea that Ends can be separated from the means that produce them Ends, purposes, or outcomes are intrinsically good in and of themselves

Obligation Theories Goodness theories typically focus on the end result of actions and the goodness or happiness created by them Obligation theories emphasize the means and motives by which actions are justified. Teleology and Deontology

Teleology Considers acts as morally right or acceptable if they produce some desired result such as pleasure, knowledge, career growth, the realization of a self interest, or utility Assesses moral worth by looking at the consequences for the individual, called consequentialist Source: Stockbyte

Categories of Teleology Egoism: Right or acceptable behavior defined in terms of consequences to the individual Maximizes personal interests Enlightened egoists take a long-term perspective and allow for the well being of others Utilitarianism: Seeks the greatest good for the greatest number of people Rule utilitarians determine behavior based on principles designed to promote the greatest utility Act utilitarians examine a specific action itself, not rules governing it

Deontology Refers to moral philosophies that focus on the rights of individuals and on the intentions associated with a particular behavior Believe that individuals have certain absolute rights Rule deontologists believe that conformity to general moral principles determines ethicalness Act deontologists hold that actions are the proper basis on which to judge morality or ethicalness

Relativist Perspective From the relativist perspective, individuals and groups derive definitions of ethical behavior subjectively from experience Descriptive relativism relates to observing cultures Metaethical relativists understand that people naturally see situations from their own perspectives No objective way of resolving ethical disputes between cultures Normative relativists assume that one person’s opinion is as good as another’s

Virtue Ethics What is moral in a given situation is what the situation requires and what a person with a “good” moral character would deem appropriate Virtue ethics approach can be summarized as: Good corporate ethics programs encourage individual virtue and integrity These virtues associated with appropriate conduct form a good person The ultimate purpose is to serve the public good The well-being of the community goes together with individual excellence

Justice Involves evaluations of fairness or the disposition to deal with perceived injustices of others Distributive justice: An evaluation of the results of a business relationship Procedural justice: Based on the processes and activities that produce the outcomes or results Interactional justice: Based on an evaluation of the communication processes used in business relationships

Moral Philosophy and Ethical Decision Making Individuals use different moral philosophies depending on whether they are making a personal or making a work-related decision Can explained two ways: In the business arena, some goals and pressures for success differ from the goals and pressures in a person’s life outside of work The corporate culture where individuals work Source: © Jack Hollingsworth/Corbis

Kohlberg’s Model of Cognitive Moral Development Consists of six stages: Punishment and obedience Individual instrumental purpose and exchange Mutual interpersonal expectations, relationships, and conformity Social system and conscience maintenance Prior rights, social contract or utility Universal ethical principles Kohlberg’s model suggests that people continue to change their decision-making priorities after their formative years, and as a result of time, education, and experience, they may change their values and ethical behavior. And an individual’s moral development can be influenced by corporate culture, especially ethics training

Can be divided into three levels of ethical concern: Kohlberg’s Model Can be divided into three levels of ethical concern: Concern with immediate interests and with rewards and punishments Concern with “right” as expected by the larger society or some significant reference group Seeing beyond norms, laws, and the authority of groups or individuals

Importance of Kohlberg’s Theory Shows individuals can change or improve their moral development Supports management’s development of employees’ moral principles The best way to improve employees’ business ethics is to provide training for cognitive moral development Source: Stockbyte

White Collar Crime “Crimes of the suite” do more damage in monetary and emotional loss in one year than the “crimes of the street” over several years combined The presence of technology has aided WCC WCCs are now able to be committed at lower levels Peer influence is a cause of WCC Some businesspeople have personalities that are inherently criminal The focus of the FSGO is that all organizations should develop effective ethics and compliance programs

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Individual Factors Most business managers do not embrace extreme philosophies Most managers cannot communicate the exact moral philosophy that they use A personal moral compass is not sufficient to prevent ethical misconduct in an organizational context The corporate culture and the rewards for meeting performance goals are the most important drivers of ethical decision making Equipping employees with skills that allow them to understand/resolve ethical dilemmas will help them make the right decisions