ethics chapter 5
education
a significant factor in the ethical decision-making process; the more of this a person has, the better they are at making ethical decisions
obedience to authority
another aspect of the influence significant others can exercise; helps explain why many employees resolve business ethics issues by simply following the directives of a superior
corporate culture
defined as a set of values, norms, and artifacts, including ways of solving problems that members (employees) of an organization share
ethical issue intensity
defined as the relevance or importance of an event or decision in the eyes of the individual, work group, and/or organization
opportunity
describes the conditions in an organization that limit or permit ethical or unethical behavior
external control
going with the flow because that is all you can do; events in your life are due to uncontrollable forces
normative approach
how organizational decision makers *should* approach an issue
gender
in many aspects there are no differences between men and women in ethical decision making
age
individual factor within business ethics; the older the more ethical you are
ethical culture
reflects the integrity of decisions made and is a function of many factors, including corporate policies, top management's leadership on ethical issues, the influence of coworkers, and the opportunity for unethical behavior
locus of control
relates to individual differences in relation to a generalized belief about how you are affected by internal versus external events or reinforcements
moral intensity
relates to individuals' perceptions of social pressure and the harm they believe their decisions will have on others
ethical awareness
the ability to perceive whether a situation or decision has an ethical dimension
nationality
the legal relationship between a person and the country in which he or she is born; impossible to state that this causes ethical decision making to differ significantly
significant other
those who have influence in a work group, including peers, managers, coworkers, and subordinates
immediate job context
where you work, who you work with, and the nature of your work
internal control
you control the events in your life by your own effort and skill; you view yourself as masters of their destinies and trusting in their capacity to influence their environment