Chapter 9: Ethics, Corporate Social Responsibility, Environmental Sustainability

Which of the following statements are generally true with respect to the impact of corporate social responsibility on company shareholders?

Shareholders have legitimate concerns about the time and monetary investment for corporate socially sustainable practices. Companies with a strong socially responsible business strategy are likely to be seen as good investments. Shareholders tend to view the business case for sustainable business practices as strong, regardless of impact on the company's bottom line.

Which of the following help support the business case for corporate social responsibility?

Socially responsible behavior can decrease the odds of reputation-damaging incidents. Companies with social responsibility initiatives help attract and retain customers. Socially responsible actions can increase earnings for shareholders.

Which of the following describes integrative social contracts theory?

The parts of the company code of ethics that are based on universal ethical norms must be enforced worldwide. It sits between ethical relativism and ethical universalism.

Ethical principles in business

are no different from general ethical principles.

Overzealous pursuit of wealth, pressure to exceed performance standards, and a culture that values profits more than ethical behavior

are the primary causes of the majority of unethical business behaviors.

According to the school of ethical universalism

common ethical standards across cultures, societies, and religion can be used to judge behavior.

Corporate social responsibility is based on the idea that

companies should act after considering both shareholder benefits and any impact on society.

Which of the following best defines environmental sustainability?

conducting business in a fashion that protects and perhaps improves natural resources and the ecological system

Examples of corporate social responsibility include

contributing to charities and supporting community service programs. building a diverse workforce. protecting the environment.

According to the school of ______, when there are national or cultural differences in what is considered ethical or unethical, local moral standards should take precedence in judging the ethics of a business situation.

ethical relativism

According to the school of ______, certain notions of right and wrong are common to almost all cultures and belief systems.

ethical universalism

Business ethics is the application of ______ to a business organization and its employees.

general ethical principles

According to ______, the ethical standards that a company should follow are based in part on universal principles that apply in every situation and in part on local cultures and values that help determine what is considered ethical behavior.

integrative social contracts theory

When a company is caught and reprimanded for engaging in ethical misconduct, the resulting legal fees, ethics training for employees, and funds required to fix the problems are examples of

internal administrative costs.

The idea of "triple bottom line performance" with respect to corporate responsibility strategy

is becoming an increasingly important way for companies to make the results of their CSR strategy apparent to shareholders. is based on the goal of a company succeeding in all three dimensions of people, planet, and profit.

According to the school of ethical relativism

local ethical standards of behavior take precedence, because different societies and cultures create divergent standards of right and wrong.

Which of these is not an example of a visible cost incurred by a company when unethical behavior is discovered and punished?

loss of company's reputation

The specific combination of socially responsible endeavors that a company chooses to pursue defines the corporate social responsibility _______ of the company.

strategy

A company's' commitment to ______ seeks to improve the firm's economic, environment, and social metrics—the triple bottom line.

sustainability

Which of the following are conditions that can lead to unethical behaviors in a company?

the pursuit of self-interest at the expense of others an attitude that any behavior is okay as long as you can get away with it pressure on company managers to meet or beat performance targets

Which of the following are generally true of social responsibility and sustainability strategies?

A social responsibility strategy that provides valuable social benefits and helps meet customer needs can contribute to competitive advantage. Social responsibility strategies linked to the company's customer value proposition can help build competitive advantage.

______ is a company's duty to operate in an honorable manner with respect to how decisions affect employees, local communities, the environment, and society at large.

Corporate social responsibility

True or false: Corporate social responsibility and environmental sustainability strategies are the "right thing to do" and can positively impact a company's reputation, but they do not contribute to competitive advantage.

False