Business Ethics Chapter 1 and 2

Morality in the narrow sense

Concerns the principles that do or should regulate people's conduct and relations with others.

Conscience

Evolved as we internalized the moral instructions of the parents of other authority figures who raised us as children.

Cultural Ethical Relativism

Moral/right if a society says its right. Deontological- not based on consequences. Strengths- future is strong and has lots of pride. Very black and white. Weakness: Minority has no voice or opinion. Majority rules. Theory doesn't hold up. Albert Carr- business is like poker, it has its own moral standards.

Morality in the broad sense

Not just the principles of conduct that we embrace but also the values, ideals, and aspirations that shape our lives.

Human Rights

Particular roles, special relationships, or specific circumstances. Human rights are universal, human rights are equal rights, human rights are not transferable nor can be relinquished, human rights are natural rights.

Psychological Egoism

People are constructed that they must behave selfishly. All actions are selfishly motivated and that truly unselfish actions are therefore impossible.

Paradox of Hedonism

People who're exclusively concerned with their own interests tend to have less happy and less satisfying lives. Individuals who only care about themselves.

Invalid argument

Premises do not entail its conclusion.

Valid argument

Premises logically entail its conclusion

Groupthink

Pressure for unanimity within a highly cohesive group overwhelms its members' desire or ability to appraise the situation realistically and condor alternative courses of action.

Compliance Contribution Consequences

The need for compliance with the rules. The contributions business can make to society. The consequences of business activity.

Business people

Those who participate in planning, organizing, or directing the work of business.

Act utilitarianism

We must ask ourselves what the consequences of a particular act in a particular situation will be for all those affected. Do what is expected in that situation to have the best consequences for the greatest number of people.

Metaphysic Epistemology

explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world that encompasses it. The theory of knowledge, especially with regard to its methods, validity, and scope.

Positive rights

human beings have in receiving certain benefits. Have others provide us with certain goods, services, or opportunities.

maxim

the subjective principle of an action, the principle that people in effect formulate in determining their conduct.

Sound arguments

true premises and valid reasoning

Six Points About Utilitarianism

1. We must consider unhappiness or pain as well as happiness 2. Actions affect people to different degrees 3. Anything might be morally right in some particular situation 4. Maximize happiness in the long run 5. Acknowledge that we often do not know with certainty what the future consequences of our actions will be 6. Does not require us to disregard our on pleasure.

Counterexample

An example that is consistent with the premises but is inconsistent with the conclusion.

Categorical imperative

Action done to someone can be done back to me, universal norm. We should always act in such a way that we can will the maxim of our action to become a universal law. Universal laws are set, can't lie or cheat. Have to follow the law. universalization of an action. No grey area.

Deontological theories

Action is good if it follows the rules/ standards of cultural duties/ laws. right and wrong are determined by more than the likely consequence of an action. Other factors are also relevant to the moral assessment of an action.

Proceduralism

Action is right if a group makes a consensus view fairly. ex. Jury

Rights Theory

Action is right if it follows the basic human rights.

Egoism Theory

Advocates individual self interest as its guiding principle, teleological. Strengths: efficient Weakness: not really a theory. Just promoting self interest, no guidelines. Allows actions that are immoral.

Business

Any organization whose objective is to provide goods and services for profit.

Rule utilitarianism

Applying the principles of utility to justify rules. The past, from experience already know what establishes the most units of happiness. Use it as a guide. What is the most loving thing to do. the utilitarian standard hold be applied not to individual action but to moral codes as a whole.

Moral Standards

Behavior that seriously affects human well-being.Takes priority over other standards. The soundness of moral standards depends on the adequacy of the reasons that support them.

Administrative Regulation

Boards or agencies whose functions include issuing detailed regulations covering certain kinds of conduct.

Constitutional Law

Court rulings on the requirements of the Constitution and the constitutionality of legislation.

Ethics

Deals with individual character and the moral rules that govern and limit our conduct. It investigates questions of right and wrong, duty and obligation, and moral responsibility.

Kantz Theory

Deontological. Something is morally right if it is performed out of good will. Strengths: Produces better people because it takes a stronger person to act on good will. Think about your actions to better society. Weakness: Not a good guidance. Hard to know when to make exceptions. Can't resolve conflicting situations. No perfect society. 1. action must be performed out of good will 2. action must be consistently universalized 3. have to treat other human beings as ends and never as means only. Only when we act from duty does our action have moral worth. Good will is the only thing that is good in itself.

Self-interest

Doing what's best for you even if it's wrong.

Professional Codes of Ethics

Govern the conduct of members of a given profession

Argument

Group of statements

Organizational Norms

Holds its members together, committed to the group. Performance, loyal, no breaking laws, and not over-invested in ethical behavior.

Divine Command Theory

If something is wrong, then the only reason it is wrong is that God commands us not to do it.

Bystander apathy

In emergencies, we seem naturally to let the behavior of those around us dictate our response.

Diffusion of responsibility

Inside an organization leads individuals to have a diluted or diminished sense of their own personal moral responsibilities.

W.D. Ross

Kantian. Deontological. Rejects utilitarianism because you can't reduce moral code down to maximum happiness. Different relationships in different contexts have different standards. Prima facie- an obligation that can be overridden by a more important obligation. Be able to choose and prioritized.

Statutes

Laws enacted by legislative bodies. Make up a large part of the law and are what we speak of "laws."

Negative rights

Somebody has an obligation to refrain from acting in a specified way. the vital interests that human beings have in being free from outside interference. Bill of Rights and rights to freedom from injury and to privacy.

Social Contract Theory

Something is morally right if it secures basic common goods, basic needs in life.

Utilitarianism Theory

Teleological. Something is morally right if it has the best consequences for the most amount of people. Most units of happiness. Strengths: Good in organizational context like business. Brings happiness. Very flexible, most amount of good the action can be anything. Weakness: Everyone has different definitions of happiness, grey area. Some actions can still be morally wrong. Jeremy Bentham-Father of utilitarianism. Quantitative, total amount of pleasure, most amount of happiness. John Stuart Mill- wants quality of pleasure.

Common Law

The body of judge-made law that first developed in the English-speaking world centuries ago when there were few statutes.

Etiquette

The norms of correct conduct in polite society or to any special code of social behavior or courtesy.

Business ethics

The study of what constitutes right and wrong, or good and bad, human conduct in a business context.

Hypothetical imperatives

What we must do on the assumption that we have some particular goal.

Supererogatory actions

actions that it would be good to do but not immoral not to do.

Moral arguments

arguments whose conclusion are moral judgments.

Ideal

morally significant goal, virtue, or notion of excellence worth striving for.

Normative Theories

principles for distinguishing right actions from wrong actions.

Consequentialist theories (Teleological)

the moral rightness of an action is determined solely by its results. If the consequences are good, then the act is right.

Optimal moral code

what rules can reasonably be taught and obeyed.