The behavioural effects of corporate ethical codes: Empirical findings and discussion

The use of corporate ethical codes has been increasing. It is argued that the use of ethical codes solely as an instrument in a company's image management is morally questionable. Therefore, the introduction and use of ethical codes must have the intention of achieving behavioural change or the maintenance of already superior behaviour. This change or superior behaviour may apply to ethics in general, but also to the different sub‐structures of ethics, namely the areas of reliability ethics, human ethics, capability ethics and future ethics. Previous research has, with some exceptions, failed to demonstrate that the introduction of ethical codes has had any behavioural effect. A survey study of Norwegian professionals ( N =449) in business is reported here. Using the flexibility that a multivariate analysis provides, the existence or non‐existence of ethical codes, and their influence on attitudinal differences across the four ethical sub‐structures is tested. In the following discussion, three lines of argument are used, drawing on logical, social and managerial approaches, to explain why the codes do exist and yet do not seem to influence the members of a business organisation. Finally, the paper suggests some implications for business practice and for future research.     

Sexual Harassment: A Matter of Individual Ethics, Legal Definitions, or Organizational Policy?

Although interest in business ethics has rapidly increased, little attention has been drawn to the relationship between ethics and sexual harassment. While most companies have addressed the problem of sexual harassment at the organizational level with corporate codes of ethics or sexual harassment policies, no research has examined the ethical ideology of individual employees. This study investigates the relationship between the ethical ideology of individual employees and their ability to identify social-sexual behaviors in superior-subordinate interactions. The results indicate that ethical ideology does have an effect on employees' ability to identify verbal sexually harassing behaviors. This effect, however, is not demonstrated on nonverbal sexually harassing behaviors.     

Corporate Ethics: An Exploration of Contemporary Greece

This study aims to discover marketing professionals' perceptions on ethical problems and current level of ethics in Greece, as well as, on the policy instruments used by companies to help employees make decisions in a more ethical fashion, using a qualitative research design. Specifically, it reports the results of a series of in-depth interviews conducted with Greek marketing professional employed by multinationals in Greece. A number of topics examining ethical problems, ethical standards, corporate policy instruments and corporate cultureserved as a basis for discussion. While the occasionally contrasting opinions revealed in part the perplexity of marketing ethics, respondents also arrived at points of convergence. All recognized government as playing the most prominent role in issues of public concern, legislation and overall ethical standards. Moreover, all marketers identified multinational and other foreign firms as a positive influence to the level of ethics, due to the introduction of policy instruments and control mechanisms. Finally, they also accepted the need for better informed customers and a strong organizational culture. Several recommendations are offered for consideration by marketing professionals interested in promoting ethical business conduct.     

The Responsibility and Accountability of CEOs: The Last Interview with Ken Lay

Responsibility and accountability of CEOs has been a major ethical concern over the past 10 years. Major ethical dilemmas at Enron, Worldcom, AIG, as well as other well-known organizations have been at least partially blamed on CEO malfeasance. Interviews with Ken Lay, CEO of Enron, after his 2006 fraud convictions provides an opportunity to document his perceived role in the demise of Enron. Possibly no other CEO has had as much impact on the scrutiny and legalization of business ethics as Ken Lay. This analysis is timely because of many information sources now available and the recent Supreme Court decisions on Enron conviction appeals. Using Ken Lay as the focal point, a review of literature provides the background for research questions to explore the role of the CEO in developing an ethical corporate culture.     

Antecedents and Consequences of Perceived Importance of Ethics in Marketing Situations: A Study of Thai Businesspeople

Building on an existing framework concerning ethical intention, this research explores how Thai business people perceive the importance of ethics in various scenarios. This study investigates the relative influences of personal characteristics and the organizational environment underlying the Thai business people’s ethical perception. Corporate ethical values and idealism are shown to positively influence a Thai manager’s perceptions about the importance of ethics. While their ability to perceive the existence of an ethical problem is negatively influenced by relativism, it is positively impacted by their existing perceptions about the importance of ethics. Results also suggest positive relationships between perceived importance of ethics and perceived ethical problems with ethical intention. These results extend research in understanding the relationship between the antecedents and consequences of perceived importance of ethics within an economically growing non-Western culture.     

Do the Numbers Add Up to Different Views? Perceptions of Ethical Faculty Behavior Among Faculty in Quantitative Versus Qualitative Disciplines

Faculty across a wide range of academic disciplines at 89 AASCB-accredited U.S. business schools were surveyed regarding their perceptions of the ethical nature of faculty behaviors related to undergraduate course content, student evaluation, educational environment, research issues, financial and material transactions, and social and sexual relationships. We analyzed responses based on whether instruction in the academic discipline focused mainly on quantitative topics or largely on qualitative issues. Faculty who represented quantitative disciplines such as accounting and finance (n = 383) were more likely to view behaviors such as selling complimentary textbooks and grading on a strict curve as more ethical than faculty representing more qualitative disciplines such as management and marketing (n = 447). In contrast, faculty in quantitative disciplines were more likely to view behaviors such as showing controversial media and bringing up sexual or racial charged matters as less ethical than their counterparts. Whereas these differences may be attributed to the respondents’ academic backgrounds, the large level of agreement on ethical behaviors raises questions about the growing influence of business disciplines that operate within more unified research and teaching paradigms. Linda Kidwell (PhD, Louisiana State University) is an associate professor in the Accounting Department at the University of Wyoming where she teaches auditing as well as accounting ethics. Her research interests include academic ethics, auditing ethics, and governmental auditing. Her research has been published in the Journal of Business Ethics, Teaching Business Ethics, CPA Journal, Journal of Accounting and Public Policy and elsewhere. She has taught in the United States, Australia, and Canada. She has also been a frequent faculty mentor in the National Conference on Ethics in America held annually at the United States Military Academy (West Point). Roland Kidwell (PhD, Louisiana State University) is an associate professor in the Management and Marketing Department at the University of Wyoming where he teaches courses in new ventures, human resource management and general management. His current research interests include ethical issues involving family businesses and new ventures, social entrepreneurship, and workplace deviance such as withholding effort (free riding, shirking, social loafing) in organizational contexts. He is co-editor of a book of readings and cases, Managing Organizational Deviance (2005, Sage), and his research has appeared in Academy of Management Review, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Management, Journal of Business and Psychology and elsewhere.     

Ethical Transparency and Economic Medicalization

This article introduces the concept of economic medicalization where non-medical problems are transformed into medical problems in order to achieve the objective of corporate shareholder wealth maximization. Following an overview of the differences in ethical norms applicable to medical ethics and business ethics, the economic medicalization of medical research practice and publication is examined in some detail. This motivates a general discussion of the problems involved in the ethical approval process for medical research that balances the interests of both business and government in the market for medical products and services.     

Redefining Accountability As Relational Responsiveness

The way in which accountability is currently employed in business ethics practice is based on a few central assumptions. It is assumed, for instance, that ethical failures result from the deliberate, rational decision-making of moral agents. A second important assumption is that there is a direct cause and effect relationship between the decisions and actions of individuals and the consequences of those decisions. Furthermore, the current approach towards accountability failures relies on the ability on legal sanctions to deter agents from ethical lapses. This paper will argue that these three assumptions do not survive critical interrogation and that our understanding of accountability therefore has to be reconsidered. It will propose that accountability be reconceived as a relational responsiveness towards stakeholders.     

Innovative ethics officers as drivers of effective ethics programs: An empirical study in the Netherlands

Ethical misconduct and violations seriously harm individuals and organizations and lead to massive fines or the dismissal of employees and CEOs. Many firms have implemented ethics programs to prevent unethical behavior but these are often ineffective and take a traditional approach. Ethics officers are often responsible for running and developing ethics programs, in collaboration with other departments. They can, therefore, play a key role in improving ethics program effectiveness. We postulate that ethics officers need to adopt a more innovative approach in order to achieve ethical behavior among employees and managers, and that such an innovative approach requires certain personality traits. This study investigates how ethics officers’ personality traits and innovative work behaviors relate to the effectiveness of ethics programs and normative ethical behavior through an online questionnaire conducted among 110 ethics officers in large Dutch organizations. Structural equations modeling showed that innovative work behavior mediated the relationship between ethics officers’ openness to experience and ethics program effectiveness which, in turn, is related to more normative ethical behavior. Future research must examine the (partial) mediation effects, including other characteristics of ethics officers in relation to ethics program effectiveness and ethical behaviors at work, and replicate the study multi‐nationally.     

The Effects of Environmental Factors on the Behavior of Chinese Managers in the Information Age in China

This paper examines the effects of environmental factors on the ethical behavior of managers using computers at work in Mainland China. In this study, environmental factors refer to senior management, peer groups, company policies, professional practices, and legal considerations. Ethical behaviors include attitudes to disclosure, protection of privacy, conflict of interest, personal conduct, social responsibility, and integrity. A questionnaire survey was used for data collection, and 125 mainland Chinese managers participated in the study. The results show that peer groups, professional practices, and legal considerations do influence the ethical behavior of mainland Chinese managers in the areas of social responsibility, integrity, and accountability. A discussion of the implications of the results is also provided in this paper.     

Gender differences in proclivity for unethical behavior

This paper explores possible connections between gender and the willingness to engage in unethical business behavior. Two approaches to gender and ethics are presented: the structural approach and the socialization approach. Data from a sample of 213 business school students reveal that men are more than two times as likely as women to engage in actions regarded as unethical but it is also important to note that relatively few would engage in any of these actions with the exception of buying stock with inside information. Fifty percent of the males were willing to buy stock with insider information. Overall, the results support the gender socialization approach.Michael Betz is Professor of Sociology at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. He has published articles on income inequality, accountability, gender and work, and job satisfaction. Currently he is working on the effect of gender on ethical decision making and accountability as a mechanism of social control.Lenahan O'Connell is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Carson-Newman College. His research focuses on gender differences in work experience. He is currently studying discrimination law enforcement in addition to continuing research with Michael Betz and Jon Shepard on ethics at work.Jon M. Shepard is currently Chairman of the Department of Management and Professor of Sociology at the University of Kentucky. His research interests include comparative management (particularly Japanese and American), ethics in business, the social responsibility of business, and the accountability of institutions in industrial society.     

An Investigation of the Components of Moral Intensity

While there is considerable interest in the topic of business ethics, much of the research moves towards measuring components with a view to predicting ethical behaviour. To date there has not been a satisfactory definition of business ethics, nor has there been any real attempt to understand the components of a situation that may influence an individual's assessment of that situation as ethical or otherwise. Using Jones's (1991) construct of moral intensity as a basis for investigation, this paper presents some exploratory analysis on the context within which ethical decisions are assessed. The findings reveal that individuals differ in their assessments of the same situation and often use a number of complex reasons to explain whether a situation poses an ethical problem for them. These findings are discussed within a framework of measurement issues and future directions for research.     

Approaches to organisational culture and ethics

This paper assesses the potential of organisational culture as a means for improving ethics in organisations. Organisational culture is recognised as one determinant of how people behave, more or less ethically, in organisations. It is also incresingly understood as an attribute that management can and should influence to improve organisational performance. When things go wrong in organisations, managers look to the culture as both the source of problems and the basis for solutions. Two models of organisational culture and ethical behaviour are evaluated. They rest on different understandings of organisational culture and the processes by which ethics are enhanced. Firstly, the prevailing approach holds that creating a unitary cohesive culture around core moral values is the solution to enhancing ethical behaviour. Both the feasibility and desirability of this approach, in terms of ethical outcomes, is questioned. The second model queries the existence of organisational culture at all, arguing that organisations are nothing more than shifting coalitions of subcultures. In this second model, the very porousness of the subcultures provides a catalyst for the scrutiny and critique of norms and practices. Such diversity and debate is construed as potentially a better safeguard for ethical behaviour than the uniformity promised by the unitary, strong culture model.Dr. Amanda Sinclair is a Senior Lecturer in the Graduate School of Management. As a teacher on the MBA program of courses, including Ethics, she has a particular interest in the development and professionalisation of managers. Her current research focuses on organisational diversity, change and culture and administrative leadership and accountability.     

A Paradigm for Development and Promulgation of a Global Code of Marketing Ethics

This paper provides a paradigm for evaluating the factors that affect the development of a global code of ethics in marketing. Based on a review of the literature pertaining to global codes of ethics, we examined the potential for the development and acceptance of a universal code of ethics in the international marketing arena. Towards that end, we suggest that any global code of ethics in marketing should consider two levels – normative guidelines and specific behaviors. A discussion detailing the factors that can impede the development of such a two-tiered code is included as well. Those factors being moral reasoning, organizational ethical climate, level of economic development and cultural dimensions. Finally, the feasibility and the possible outcomes of a global code of ethics in marketing is examined.     

The Relationship Between Paternalistic Leadership and Organizational Commitment: Investigating the Role of Climate Regarding Ethics

One of the important factors influencing perceptions of the existence of an ethical climate is leader behaviors. It is argued that paternalistic leadership behaviors are developed to humanize and remoralize the workplace. In various studies, leadership behaviors and climate regarding ethics were evaluated as antecedents of organizational commitment. In this sense, the purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between paternalistic leadership behaviors, climate regarding ethics and organizational commitment. Data were obtained from 142 individuals. Results indicated that benevolent paternalistic leadership had a moderate effect on affective commitment and strong effect on continuance commitment. Moreover, it was found that paternalistic leadership had an effect on the perception of an ethical climate. Strong relationship was found between climate regarding ethics and affective commitment; moderate relationship was found between climate regarding ethics and continuance commitment. Finally, results indicated that climate regarding ethics had a mediating effect between benevolent paternalistic leadership and affective commitment. Gül Selin Erben holds MA degree on Human Resources Management. She is a Phd candidate on Organizational Behavior field. She works as a research assistant at the Maltepe University. Ayşe Begüm Güneşer holds MA degree on Human Resources Management and she holds Phd degree on Organizational Behavior.     

Do Cultural and Generational Cohorts Matter to Ideologies and Consumer Ethics? A Comparative Study of Australians,Indonesians, and Indonesian Migrants in Australia

We explore the notion that culture influences people’s values, and their subsequent ideologies and ethical behaviors. We present the idea that culture itself changes with time, and explore the influence of culture and generational markers on consumer ethics by examining differences in these ethical dimensions between Australians, Indonesians, and Indonesian Migrants in Australia, as well as differences between Generation X versus Generations Y and Z. The present study addresses the need to investigate the role that culture plays in consumer ethics, and the interaction between culture and generational attitudes in determining consumer ethics. Results established a distinct multiculturality in our three cultural samples, including a generational cohort differences. This suggests that culture and generational markers influence ethical beliefs, ideologies, and consumer ethics. It further indicates that Indonesian Migrants have acculturated to Australian society both in terms of their values and consumer behaviors, illustrating a crossvergence effect; scores indicate that these Migrants have the highest cultural intelligence among our samples. Implications of the findings for consumer ethics theory and practice are considered and future directions identified.     

Factors influencing student perceptions of unethical behavior by personal salespeople: An experimental investigation

Historically, students have held negative perceptions about the ethics of salespeople. Using an experiment, this study explores which factors affect students' perceptions of how frequently salespeople behave unethically. Additionally, the study investigates whether the same factors influence the degree to which certain behaviors are considered serious ethical violations.John R. Sparks is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Dayton.Mark Johlke is a doctoral candidate in marketing at Texas Tech University. Dr. Sparks' research interests are in the areas of marketing ethics and marketing communication. Mr. Johlke's research interests are in sales management.     

Does Religion Affect the Materialism of Consumers? An Empirical Investigation of Buddhist Ethics and the Resistance of the Self

This paper investigates the effects of Buddhist ethics on consumers’ materialism, that is, the propensity to attach a fundamental role to possessions. The literature shows that religion and religiosity influence various attitudes and behaviors of consumers, including their ethical beliefs and ethical decisions. However, most studies focus on general religiosity rather than on the specific doctrinal ethical tenets of religions. The current research focuses on Buddhism and argues that it can tame materialism directly, similar to other religions, and through the specific Buddhist ethical doctrines of the Four Immeasurables: compassion, loving kindness, empathetic joy, and equanimity. The empirical results show the following: (1) Buddhism reduces materialism directly and through some of the Four Immeasurables, and (2) despite the doctrine of non-existence of the self, positive emotions toward the self are still present, and the self absorbs the effects of Buddhist ethics on materialism. The latter finding suggests a “resistance of the self” that is coherent with the idea of a consumer who leverages the self to go beyond it.     

Marketing ethics and education: Some empirical findings

This study explores possible links between educational background and ethics among marketing professionals. Data from two surveys of members of the American Marketing Association suggest that marketing professionals with master's degrees and higher are similar to their less educated counterparts in both their ethical standards and their intended ethical behaviors. Marketers with business degrees, however, have lower ethical standards than do graduates of non-business programs, though they report behavior as ethical as that of their non-business educated peers. Business schools may be producing cynics likely to accept marginal behaviors of colleagues though not likely to engage in such behaviors themselves.Sharyne Merritt is Professor of Marketing at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and a consultant in the areas of marketing and survey research. She has a Ph. D. in Political Science and was a Visiting Scholar at UCLA's Graduate School of Management. She has lectured and published widely in the fields of marketing and social issues.