Business Ethics – to Teach Or Not to Teach?

While some studies have explored the effects of taking business ethics classes on business students, several shortcomings in them invite greater scrutiny of this critical issue (cf. Robertson, 1993). In contrast to previous research, this study more directly assesses the impact of taking business et...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Seshadri, Srivatsa (Author) ; Broekemier, Greg M. (Author) ; Nelson, Jon W. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Springer Science + Business Media B. V 1997
In: Teaching business ethics
Year: 1997, Volume: 1, Issue: 3, Pages: 303-313
Further subjects:B Current Result
B Behavioral Intention
B Individual Difference
B Critical Issue
B Business Ethic
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:While some studies have explored the effects of taking business ethics classes on business students, several shortcomings in them invite greater scrutiny of this critical issue (cf. Robertson, 1993). In contrast to previous research, this study more directly assesses the impact of taking business ethics class on ethical decisions made by future business executives. To determine if teaching business ethics modifies behaviors or behavioral intentions, the current study examines decisions made in ethical situations rather than inferring the same by measuring attitudes, values, etc. Furthermore, these were measured in three different business contexts: whistle blowing, recruitment, and industrial espionage, to enhance the generalizability of the findings. Finally, unlike most previous studies, a within-subject's design was chosen to eliminate confounds that may be caused by not controlling for individual differences (Glenn, 1992). The current results indicate that business ethics classes have minimal effect on ethical decision making in any of the three contexts investigated, empirically providing support for Wolfe's (1993) and Wynd and Mager's (1989) position that teaching business ethics may have limited benefits.
ISSN:1573-1944
Contains:Enthalten in: Teaching business ethics
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1023/A:1009739704772