The American marketing association code of ethics: Instructions for marketers

This article addresses the two main obstacles — ignorance and conflict — that block the pathway to ethically proper conduct, both generally in business and specifically in marketing. It begins with a brief examination of theories of the moral good which emphasizes the Greco-Roman humanistic tradition and the Judeo-Christian religious tradition. A professional code of ethics, such as the code of the American Marketing Association, is meaningful only if human beings are regarded as making moral judgments that, objectively speaking, are morally wrong, that is only when the code is considered a set of moral absolutes.Following that, the question of ignorance is dealt with utilizing the American Marketing Association code of ethics. The specific items in that code are related to the three central principles of economic justice: equivalence, contributive justice, and distributive justice. In the second section, the question of conflict is encountered in the context of four other ethical principles — double effect, culpability, good end and bad means, self-determination — that are likely to be helpful in dealing with two cases that are especially instructive because they are limiting cases: the dilemma and the hard case. The role of the hero or champion in conflicts is underscored.Edward J. O'Boyle is Research Associate and Associate Professor of Economics at Louisiana Tech University. His current research interests include quality-productivity-ethics, ethics in marketing, and improved pedagogies for teaching ethics. His articles have been published inMonthly Labor Review, Review of Social Economy, Linacre Quarterly, Louisiana Economy, International Journal of Social Economics, Marketing Education Review, andBusiness Insights.Lyndon E. Dawson, Jr., is Professor of Marketing at Louisiana Tech University and Lecturer at the Poznan School of Management in Poland. He received his Ph.D. in 1967. His current research interests focus upon ethical issues in business and the application of current marketing theory and practice in Eastern Europe. His recent co-authored works in ethics appear inJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Business Insights, andMarketing Education Review.     

Bribery and extortion in international business: Ethical perceptions of Greeks compared to Americans

This study investigates the differences in he way bribery and extortion is perceived by two different cultures — American and Greek. Two hundred and forty American business students and two hundred and four Greek business students were presented with three scenarios describing a businessman offering a bribe to a government official and three scenarios describing a businessman being forced to pay a bribe to an official in order to do business. The Reidenbach-Robin instrument was used to measure the ethical reactions of the two samples to these scenarios. Results indicate that ethical reactions to bribery and extortion vary by (a) the nationality of the person offering the bribe, and (b) the country where the bribe is offered. In addition, Greeks perceived some of the scenarios as being less unethical than did Americans.John Tsalikis is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Florida International University. His research interests include marketing ethics, international marketing, and direct marketing. His articles have appeared in theJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Business Ethics, Psychology and Marketing, and theJournal of International Consumer Marketing.Michael S. LaTour is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Auburn University. His research interests include marketing ethics, and emotional responses to advertising. His articles have appeared in theJournal of Business Ethics, Psychology and Marketing, Journal of Health Care Marketing, and theJournal of Advertising.The authors contributed equally to this article.     

RETRACTED ARTICLE: Two decades of the Journal of Marketing Channels: Impacting the present and directing the future of marketing channel research

Abstract

We, the Publisher of Journal of Marketing Channels, have retracted the following article:

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Zemanek Jr., J. E., Taylor, E. C., Tran, T. P., & Loomis, D. C. (2019). Two decades of the Journal of Marketing Channels: Impacting the present and directing the future of marketing channel research. Journal of Marketing Channels. Advance online publication. doi:10.1080/1046669X.2019.1647914

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This article has been retracted as it was published in error by the publisher whilst still in the peer review process. The authors have been notified of the retraction.

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We have been informed in our decision-making by our policy on publishing ethics and integrity and the COPE guidelines on retractions.

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The retracted article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record, but it will be digitally watermarked on each page as “Retracted.”     

Ethical attitudes of mental health practitioners: Balancing therapeutic practices and treatments

This paper reports the responses of 251 mental health care practitioners to a mail survey examining their views concerning ethical conflicts and practices within their work environments. Besides identifying the sources and types of conflicts they experience, respondents were asked how ethical standards have changed over the last 10 years as well as the factors influencing these changes. Conclusions and implications are outlined and future research needs are described.Mohammed Y. A. Rawwas is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Northern Iowa. His research has appeared in theJournal of Business Ethics, Journal of Hospital Marketing, Health Marketing Quarterly, Medical Marketing & Media, among other journals and proceedings.David Strutton is the Acadiana Bottling Professor of Marketing at the University of Southwestern Lousiana. His research has appeared in theJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Advertising Research, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Macromarketing andJournal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, among other journals and proceedings.Lou E. Pelton is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of North Texas. His research has appeared in theJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Global Marketing, Journal of Macromarketing, andJournal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, among other journals and proceedings.     

The management of expatriates: messages from Europe?

Much of our knowledge of expatriation and the processes of managing expatriates comes from North American researchers analysing the policies and practices of North American multinational corporations. This article uses that base of understanding, but argues that there has been an increasing stream of research into IHRM in Europe, which remains largely “invisible” to the North American specialists. Given the paucity of research in the area in general and the need for a more international understanding which can arise from examining different contexts, the article suggests that commentators outside Europe may find useful insights in the European analyses.     

Market pioneers, late movers, and the resource-based view (RBV): A conceptual model

Lieberman and Montgomery note that “…we see benefits from linking empirical findings on first-mover advantages with the complementary stream of research on the resource-based view of the firm” (1998, p. 1111); they suggest that such a link will help explain differences in firm performance. Therefore, this study develops a conceptual framework linking FMAs with the resource-based view of the firm (RBV); in doing so, this framework explains the links between entry timing, resource management, and firm performance. Specifically, this study examines FMAs in light of a four-step resource management process [Morgan RM. Relationship marketing and marketing strategy: the evolution of relationship strategy within the organization. In: Sheth JN, Parvatiyar A, editors. Handbook of Relationship Marketing. Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, 2000. p. 481–504.; Morgan RM, Hunt S. Relationship-based competitive advantage: the role of relationship marketing in marketing strategy. J Bus Res 1999; 46 (November): 281–90.] consisting of: 1) efficient acquisition (EA), 2) bundling/combining (BC), 3) positioning (POS), and 4) maintenance/protection (MP). The link between FMAs and the resource management process helps explain why so few first movers retain their advantages.     

Enacting Ecological Sustainability in the MNC: A Test of an Adapted Value-Belief-Norm Framework

Undoubtedly, multinational corporations must play a significant role in the advancement of global ecological ethics. Our research offers a glimpse into the process of how goals of ecological sustainability in one multinational corporation can trickle down through the organization via the sustainability support behaviors of supervisors. We asked the question “How do supervisors in a multinational corporation internalize their corporation’s commitment to ecological sustainability and, in turn, behave in ways that convey this commitment to their subordinates?” In response, we created a theoretical framework for supervisor sustainability support behavior based on Stern et al., Human Ecology Review 6(2), 81-97 (1999) value-belief-norm (VBN) theory. We then tested our framework by performing a survey-based field study of supervisors in a multinational pharmaceutical company that has publicly professed a goal of ecological sustainability.     

The influence of non-anonymity deriving from feedback of research results on marketing professionals' research ethics judgements

The study examines, in the context of Crawford's (1970) study items, the influence of non-anonymity deriving from feedback of research results on marketing professionals' research ethics judgements, particularly that of response patterns (social desirability of responses) and item omissions. The results indicate that such non-anonymity does not significantly influence the social desirability of responses or item omissions — thus suggesting the appropriateness of its use to stimulate research ethics responses. Ishmael P. Akaah is Associate Professor of Marketing at Wayne State University. He received his M.B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. His articles have appeared in the Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Advertising Research, Journal of Health Care Marketing, Journal of Business Research, International Marketing Review, Journal of Global Marketing, Journal of Business Logistics, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Macromarketing, Journal of Direct Marketing, Journal of Business Ethics, Proceedings of the American Marketing Association, and elsewhere. His current research interests include consumer decision processes, marketing ethics, and international marketing strategy.     

Improving sales performance through ethics: The relationship between salesperson moral judgment and job performance

This study examines the relationship between salespeople's moral judgment and their job performance. Results indicate a positive relationship between moral judgment and job performance when certain characteristics are present. Implications for sales managers and sales researchers are provided. Additionally, directions for future research are given. Charles H. Schwepker, Jr. is Associate Professor of Marketing at Central Missouri State University. His research interests are in sales, sales management, marketing ethics and consumer behavior. His articles have appeared in the Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, Journal of Marketing Management, Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice and Industrial Marketing Management, as well as various national and regional proceedings. Thomas N. Ingram is Professor of Marketing and Department Chair, Marketing Department, Colorado State University. His primary research interest is in personal selling and sales management. His articles have appeared in the Journal of Marketing, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, and Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, among others. He is the coauthor of Sales Management: Analysis and Decision-Making, 2nd ed. (The Dryden Press, 1992) and coauthor of Marketing: Principles & Perspectives (IRWIN, 1995).     

The ethics of psychoactive ads

Many of today's ads work by arousing the viewer's emotions. Although emotion-arousing ads are widely used and are commonly thought to be effective, their careless use produces a side-effect: the psychoactive ad. A psychoactive ad is any emotion-arousing ad that can cause a meaningful, well-defined group of viewers to feel extremely anxious, to feel hostile toward others, or to feel a loss of self-esteem. We argue that, because some ill-conceived psychoactive ads can cause harm, ethical issues must arise during their production. Current pretesting methods cannot identify the potentially psychoactive ads; therefore, we offer some tentative guidelines for reducing the number of viewers harmed by psychoactive ads.No professional, be he doctor, lawyer, or manager, can promise that he will indeed do good for his client. All he can do is try. But he can promise that he will not knowingly do harm.... Peter F. Drucker, Management ... [C]oncern for consumer welfare includes an obligation to critically evaluate all marketing techniques that have indeterminant psychological effects. Spence and Moinpour, 1972, p. 43 Dr. Michael R. Hyman is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Houston — Clear Lake. He is a member of the American Marketing Association, Institute for Management Science, Academy of Marketing Science, Southern Marketing Association, and World Future Society. His work has appeared in the Journal of Marketing, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Retailing, Business Horizons, and several AMA national proceedings. His current research interests include foundations research and philosophical analyses in marketing. Dr. Richard Tansey is an Instructor of Marketing at the University of Wisconsin — Green Bay. He has his Ph.D. in history from the University of Texas, at Austin, Texas. He received his B.A. in philosophy from the University of West Florida. He minored in philosophy of history and psycho-history while earning his Ph.D. He received a Woodrow Wilson graduate fellowship in philosophy in 1971–1972. His work has appeared in Business Horizons.     

An experimental assessment of alternative teaching approaches for introducing business ethics to undergraduate business students

This study employs a pretest-posttest experimental design to extend recent research pertaining to the effects of teaching business ethics material. Results on a variety of perceptual and attitudinal measures are compared across three groups of students — one which discussed the ethicality of brief business situations (the business scenario discussion approach), one which was given a more philosophically oriented lecture (the philosophical lecture approach), and a third group which received no specific lecture or discussion pertaining to business ethics. Results showed some significant differences across the three groups and demonstrated that for a single lecture, the method used to teach ethics can differentially impact ethical attitudes and perceptions. Various demographic and background variables did not moderate the relationship between the teaching method and the dependent variables, but the sex of the student was strongly associated with the ethical attitude and perception measures. Scot Burton is Assistant Professor of Marketing at Louisiana State University. His research has appeared in the Journal of Marketing Research, the Journal of Consumer Research, and the Journal of Marketing, among others. Mark. W. Johnston is Assistant Professor of Marketing at Louisianna State University. His research has been published in journals such as the Journal of Marketing Research, the Journal of Applied Psychology, and the Journal of Business Research. Elizabeth J. Wilson is Assistant Professor of Marketing at Louisiana State University. Her research has been published in the Journal of Advertising Research and Industrial Marketing Management.     

The marketing challenge: Towards being profitable and socially responsible

This article reviews the history of marketing thought in relation to social responsibility and business ethics. The main objective of the article is to show that business can be profitable and socially responsible at the same time by practising the societal marketing concept. More specifically, it presents the development of a marketing philosophy, discusses the influence of consumerism on the marketing concept and deals with ethics and social responsibility in marketing. It is argued that organisations who adopt the societal marketing concept will be the ones most likely to make long-run profits as well as be beneficial to society as a whole. Russell Abratt is Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. He has published in the Journal of Business Ethics, European Journal of Marketing, International Journal of Advertising, Industrial Marketing Management and the Quarterly Review of Marketing amongst others. His current research interests are in Social Marketing, Industrial Marketing and Retailing. He has also taught at the Unversity of Melbourne in Australia and the Ohio State University in the U.S.A. Diane Sacks is an LLM student at Harvard University. She holds the BA, LLB, and MBA degrees from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.     

Ethical perceptions of marketers: The interaction effects of machiavellianism and organizational ethical culture

This study examines the interaction effects of Machiavellianism and organizational ethical culture on two components of a marketer's ethical decision — perceptions of an ethical problem and perceptions of remedial alternatives. The results suggest that certain aspects of ethical perceptions are related to the interaction between Machiavellianism and organizational ethical culture.Anusorn Singhapakdi is Assistant Professor of Marketing at Old Dominion University. His papers on various topics in marketing ethics and corporate/consumer social responsibility have been published in theJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Macromarketing, Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, and others. He has presented papers at various professional conferences, including the American Marketing Association and the Academy of Marketing Science.     

Consumer Choices Under Small Probabilities: Overweighting or Underweighting?

This article provides a theoretical account and identifies boundary conditions for the common beliefs about the “overweighting of small probabilities”. Based on four studies, our results suggest that the weighting of probabilities is context-dependent. When the contrast in value is reduced or not presented in a decision problem, small probabilities are less likely to be overweighted. In addition, as the associated payoffs increase, the weights on small probabilities tend to diminish or even to be “underweighted”. However, there is an “interpersonal difference” in the weighting of probabilities which reflects the particular circumstances of individuals, including their wealth status. Some implications of small probabilities for marketing practices are also investigated and discussed.     

Salesperson Perceptions of Ethical Behaviors: Their Influence on Job Satisfaction and Turnover Intentions

In the academic world, research has indicated that “good ethics is good business.” Such research seems to indicate that firms, which emphasize ethical values and social responsibilities, tend to be more profitable than others. Generally, the profitability is credited to the firm’s positive relationships with its customers, reduced costs of attempting to rebuild a tarnished image, ease of attracting capital, etc. The research conducted in this study evaluated salespeople’s perceptions of the ethics of businesses in general, their employer’s ethics, their attitudes as consumers, and the relationships existing between these perceptions and the sale force’s job satisfaction and turnover intentions. The results show a positive relationship existing between salesperson perceptions of business ethics, his/her employer’s ethics, consumer attitudes, and the salesperson’s job satisfaction and reduced turnover intentions. Charles E. Pettijohn (D.B.A., Louisiana Tech University) is a professor of marketing in the College of Business Administration at Missouri State University. He is also co-editor of the Marketing Management Journal. His research has appeared in the Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, the Journal of Businesss Ethics, Marketing Management Journal, Psychology and Marketing, and the Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice. At Missouri State University, his primary teaching focus is in the areas of Personal Selling and Sales Management. Linda S. Pettijohn (D.B.A., Louisiana Tech University) is a Professor of marketing in the College of Business Administration at Missouri State University. Her research has appeared in the Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, Human Resource Development Quarterly, Marketing Management Journal, Psychology and Marketing, and the Journal of Financial Serivices Marketing. At Missouri State University, her primary teaching focus is in the area of Retailing. Albert J. Taylor (D.B.A., Louisiana Tech University) is an associate professor of marketing in the College of Business Administration at Coastal Carolina University. His research has appeared in the Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, Human Resource Development Quartely, the International Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Administration, Psychology and Marketing, and the Journal of Applied Business Research. At Missouri State University, his primary teaching focus is in the areas of Marketing Research and Personal Selling.     

Executive attitudes,organizational size and ethical issues: Perspectives on a service industry

Responding to Randall and Gibson's (1990) call for more rigorous methodologies in empirically-based ethics research, this paper develops propositions — based on both previous ethics research as well as the larger organizational behavior literature — examining the impact of attitudes, leadership, presence/absence of ethical codes and organizational size on corporate ethical behavior. The results, which come from a mail survey of 149 companies in a major U.S. service industry, indicate that attitudes and organizational size are the best predictors of ethical behavior. Leadership and ethical codes contribute little to predicting ethical behavior. The paper concludes with an assessment of the relevant propositions, as well as a delineation of future research needs.Dr. Paul R. Murphy is currently Associate Professor of Business Logistics at John Carroll University. His previous publications have appeared in journals such as theTransportation Journal, Transportation Research, Journal of Business Logistics, Journal of Global Marketing, andIndustrial Marketing Management.Dr. Jonathan E. Smith is Associate Professor of Management and Marketing at John Carroll University. He teaches courses in organizational behavior and human resource management. His current research interests are in business ethics, leadership and organizational uses of information. Dr. Smith consults with organizations regarding management development, ethics and business/organizational communications.Dr. James M. Daley is Associate Dean at John Carroll University and is a consultant to business, government, and academia; his publications include one book and over 40 articles.     

The rapid internationalization of high technology firms created through the commercialization of academic research

This article uses the international entrepreneurship framework developed by Jones, M. V., & Coviello, N. E. (2005). Internationalization: Conceptualizing an entrepreneurial process of behavior in time. Journal of International Business Studies, 36(3): 284–303, to explore the internationalization of high technology firms created through the commercialization of academic research. In particular, the effect of networks and entrepreneurial orientation is explored. Theoretical sampling resulted in four cases being studied. The data suggests that the “fundamental” networks of the academics involved in the firms assisted in the identification and exploitation of initial opportunities to internationalize. The research also suggests that only certain dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation impacted the internationalization of firms. Specifically, risk taking, technological innovativeness, and autonomy in certain parts of the organization assist in the entrepreneurial stages, while proactiveness and product–market innovativeness assist the success of firms internationally.     

Linking multi-channel customer behavior with shopping motives: An empirical investigation of a German retailer

Operating multiple channels, in store as well as non-store, allows a retailer to cater to the different shopping motives of its customers. This research into the buying behavior of 525 customers of a multi-channel retailer that operates five channels in Germany shows that most customers use only one channel within a buying process, selecting the channel that best satisfies their shopping motives in each situation. Based on exploratory qualitative and quantitative research, this study identifies five shopping motives: “recreational orientation”, “convenience orientation”, “independence orientation”, “delivery-related risk aversion” and “product- and payment-related risk aversion”. In the majority of the store channels examined in this study (chain stores and bakeries), single-channel users primarily look to satisfy emotional and social needs. Single-channel users of non-store channels (catalogue and online-shop) look for convenience and strive for independence. Multi-channel users, who obtain their information from the online-shop and then make their purchase in the chain store, are combining the independence of online-shop information with the reduction of risks associated with buying products in the chain store. These findings can be used to develop recommendations for managing the individual channels.     

A comparison of Nigerian to American views of bribery and extortion in international commerce

This study investigates the differences in the way bribery and extortion is perceived by two different cultures — American and Nigerian. Two hundred and forty American business students and one hundred and eighty Nigerian business students were presented with three scenarios describing a businessman offering a bribe to a government official and three scenarios describing a businessman being forced to pay a bribe to an official in order to do business. The Reidenbach-Robin instrument was used to measure the ethical reactions of the two samples to these scenarios. Results indicate that ethical reactions to bribery and extortion vary by (a) the nationality of the person offering the bribe, and (b) the country where the bribe is offered. In addition, Nigerians perceived some of the scenarios as being less unethical than did Americans. John Tsalikis is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at Florida International University. His research interests include marketing ethics, international marketing, and direct marketing. His articles have appeared in the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Business Ethics, Psychology and Marketing, and the Journal of International Consumer Marketing. Osita Nwachukwu is an Assistant Professor of Management at Western Illinois University. His research interests include marketing ethics, and business policy. His articles have appeared in the Journal of Business Ethics, and the Journal of International Consumer Marketing.