MNGT1001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Corporate Social Responsibility, John Stuart Mill, Cultural Relativism
2 Jul 2018
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MNGT D3: Ethical Behaviour and Social Responsibility
LO1: What is ethical behaviour?
Ethics can be defined as a code of moral principles that sets standards of good or bad, or right or
wrong, in a person’s conduct and thereby guides the behaviour of that person or group. These
principles guide behaviour and help people make moral choices among alternative courses of action.
In principle, ethical behaviour is that which is accepted to be good, right and proper as opposed to
bad or wrong or improper in the context of the governing moral code.
If an act is legal, some will proceed with it confidently, whilst others may believe that the ethical test
goes beyond legality. This is a matter of personal values. Values are broad beliefs about which is not
appropriate behaviour.
There are a number of different interpretations of what constitutes ethical behaviour:
The Utilitarian View considers ethical behaviour as that which delivers the greatest good to
the greatest number of people. This was founded in the work of 19th century philosopher
John Stuart Mill, and is a results-oriented point of view that tries to assess moral implications
of decisions in terms of their consequences.
The Individualism View considers ethical behaviour as that which advances long-term self-
interests.
The Moral-Rights View considers ethical behaviour as that which respects and protects the
fundamental rights of people. In many organisations today, this concept extends to ensuring
that employees are always protected in their rights to privacy, to due process, free speech,
free consent, health and safety, and freedom of conscience.
The Justice View considers ethical behaviour as that which treats people impartially and
fairly according to guiding rules and standards. This approach evaluates the ethical aspects
of any decision on the basis of whether it is ‘equitable’ for everyone affected. One justice
issue in organisations is procedural justice – the degree to which policies and rules are fairly
administered.
oProcedural justice is concerned with policies and rules being fairly administrated.
oDistributive justice is concerned that people are treated the same regardless of
individual characteristics.
oInteractional justice is the degree to which others are treated with dignity and
respect.
The influence of culture on ethical behaviour is increasingly at issue as businesses and individuals
travel the world. Cultural relativism suggests that there is no one right way to behave; ethical
behaviour is determined by its cultural context. Universalism suggests ethical standards apply across
all cultures, and thus contrasts cultural relativism.
LO2: How do ethical dilemmas complicate the workplace?
Most ethical problems in the workplace arise when people are asked to do, or find themselves about
to do, something which violates the dictates of their conscience. An ethical dilemma occurs when an
action must be taken, but there is no clear ‘ethically right’ option, causing stress until they are
resolved. An ethical dilemma is a situation that offers potential benefit or gain but is also unethical.
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Document Summary
Ethics can be defined as a code of moral principles that sets standards of good or bad, or right or wrong, in a person"s conduct and thereby guides the behaviour of that person or group. These principles guide behaviour and help people make moral choices among alternative courses of action. In principle, ethical behaviour is that which is accepted to be good, right and proper as opposed to bad or wrong or improper in the context of the governing moral code. If an act is legal, some will proceed with it confidently, whilst others may believe that the ethical test goes beyond legality. Values are broad beliefs about which is not appropriate behaviour. There are a number of different interpretations of what constitutes ethical behaviour: The utilitarian view considers ethical behaviour as that which delivers the greatest good to the greatest number of people. This was founded in the work of 19 th century philosopher.
