Chapter 1 Assignment Manager's Hot Seat: Let's Make a Fourth Quarter Deal

Ethical choices that offer the greatest good for the greatest number of people refer to the ethical approach, proposed by David Hume, known as ________.

Utilitarianism

________ refers to a set of personal principles formalized into a code of behavior.

Value system

________ is a concept of living one's life according to a commitment to the achievement of a clear ideal.

Virtue ethics

________ refers to a study of how people try to live their lives according to a standard of "right" or "wrong" behavior.

Ethics

________ is the study of how ethical theories are put into practice.

Applied ethics

Manager's Hot Seat: Let's Make a Fourth Quarter Deal The field of ethics is the study of how we try to live our lives according to a standard of "right" or "wrong" behavior—in both how we think and behave toward others and how we would like them to think and behave toward us. Moral standards are principles based on religious, cultural, or philosophical beliefs by which judgements are made about good or bad behavior. These beliefs can come from many sources, including friends, family, ethnic background, the media, and personal role models and mentors.

As the following video describes, making ethical decisions can be challenging, especially in a business environment where sales have been slow, layoffs may be imminent, and colleagues are feeling pressure to do something that may not seem appropriate—even if the action will help the sales department make its fourth-quarter sales numbers. Gina comes up with a plan; however, her manager, Jason, is not too sure the plan is above board. What would you do in this situation?

________ is a particular set of attitudes, beliefs, and practices that characterize a group of individuals.

Culture

A society is a closed, confined unit in which people have to follow a distinct religion.

False

An intrinsic value means that the pursuit of one value is a good way to reach another value.

False

Arthur Dobrin identified 15 questions that one should consider when resolving an ethical dilemma.

False

Due to aggressive competition, Amanda feels pressured to copy an assignment from a friend and the Internet to get good grades. She feels the professor would not be able to figure out what she did. With this ethical dilemma, the first thing Amanda must do is analyze her actions without thinking about consequences.

False

Ethical dilemmas are the study of how ethical theories are put into practice.

False

Every religion in the world shares the Golden Rule.

False

Jason is a high-school senior whose peers are into drugs. He also has a family history of substance abuse. This will have no impact on his moral standards.

False

Morality is a set of morals dictated by society.

False

The problem with universal ethics is the idea that the ends justify the means.

False

The problem with utilitarianism is the focus on doing the most good for a select few, such as Adolf Hitler and his idea of launching a national genocide against Jews on the ethical grounds of restoring the Aryan race.

False

According to the text, which of the following scenarios would describe the use of the Golden Rule?

Gina agreeing with Jason and rejecting the BestTel investment.

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" is the ________ of ethics.

Golden rule

A(n) ________ is the quality by which the pursuit of one good value is a good way to reach another value.

Instrumental Value

Ethical relativism is where the traditions of one's society, one's personal opinions, and the circumstances of the present moment define one's ethical principles.

True

Kohlberg stated that it would be impossible for a person to comprehend the moral issues and dilemmas at a level far beyond his or her life experience and education.

True

Simple truth is one of the four basic categories of ethics and can be expressed simply as doing the right thing.

True

The field of ethics is the study of how people try to live their lives according to a standard of "right" or "wrong" behavior.

True

The highest level of ethical reasoning is the postconventional level.

True

The problem with ethics for the greater good is the idea that the ends justify the means.

True

The problem with virtue ethics is that societies can place different emphasis on different virtues.

True

________ refers to actions that are taken out of duty and obligation to a purely moral ideal, rather than based on the needs of the situation, since the universal principles are seen to apply to everyone, everywhere, all the time.

Universal ethics

With a sales shortfall looming, which means no bonuses for the department, Gina is looking to ignore procedures while accepting BestTel's investment because she needs the money to pay for her new house. Jason, on the other hand, is insisting on following the rules due to possible legal and financial fallout, which causes a strong disagreement between them. This situation is an example of Jason ________.

doing the right thing

An ________ is a situation in which there is no obvious right or wrong decision, but rather a right or right answer.

ethical dilemma

Gina is all in on skipping procedures to get BestTel's investment booked for the fourth quarter despite its "shady" appearance. This scenario describes the BestTel investment as an ________ value.

instrumental

An ________, such as happiness is a good thing in itself and is pursued for its own sake.

intrinsic value

A ________ refers to a structured community of people bound together by similar traditions and customs.

society

Gina tells Jason BestTel is ready to make a $4 million investment that must be approved by its shareholders 2 weeks after the fourth quarter closes. Jason hesitates to accept the investment as a result of his ________.

value system