Question 1

Rafael believes that everyone should uphold honesty, justice, and kindness so that society can function at its best. Which ethical system best fits Rafael's beliefs?

Accepted Answer

Universalism states that all people should uphold certain values, such as honesty, that society needs to function. Universal values are principles so fundamental to human existence that they are important in all societies, such as rules against murder, deceit, torture, and oppression.

Question 2

According to Milton Friedman, what is the social responsibility of business?

Accepted Answer

Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman stated that "the social responsibility of business is to increase profits." Friedman contended that organizations may help improve the quality of life as long as such actions are directed at increasing profits.

Question 3

Which of the following is one of the five higher goals of a transcendent education?

Accepted Answer

A transcendent education has five higher goals that balance self-interest with responsibility to others: empathy, generativity, mutuality, civil aspiration, and intolerance of ineffective humanity.

Question 4

Which of the following has been identified as a factor that contributes to unethical behavior?

Accepted Answer

Many factors create a climate conducive to unethical behavior, including excessive emphasis on short-term revenues over longer-term considerations, failure to establish a written code of ethics, and a desire for simple, quick fix solutions to ethical problems.

Question 5

Who often suffers the most when corporations behave unethically?

Accepted Answer

When corporations behave badly, it's often not the top executives but the rank-and-file employees who suffer most. In many cases, executives are secured through generous pay and bonus packages. In contrast, employees lose their jobs as the company goes into decline after a scandal.

Question 6

Which of the following responsibilities lies at the base of the pyramid of global corporate social responsibility and performance?

Accepted Answer

Social responsibilities of a company can be categorized into economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic responsibilities. The economic responsibility of business lies at the base of the pyramid of global corporate social responsibility and performance.

Question 7

Which of the following statements about compliance-based ethics programs are true?

Accepted Answer

Compliance-based ethics programs should reduce illegal behavior and help a company stay out of court. But they do not create a moral commitment to ethical conduct; they merely ensure moral mediocrity.

Question 8

The creation and distribution of wealth generate by-products that can cause injury, loss, or danger to people and the environment. Because of that, we are said to live in a(n) _____ society.

Accepted Answer

We live in a risk society. That is, the creation and distribution of wealth generate by-products that can cause injury, loss, or danger to people and the environment.

Question 9

How has the view of the business community toward environmental issues changed in the twenty-first century?

Accepted Answer

Business used to look at environmental issues as a no-win situation. Either you help the environment and hurt your business, or you help your business at a cost to the environment. But now a paradigm shift is taking place in corporate environmental management-the deliberate incorporation of environmental values into competitive strategies and into the design and manufacturing of products.

Question 10

What does the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, passed in 2002, require of companies?

Accepted Answer

Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002 to improve and maintain investor confidence. The law requires companies to have more independent board of directors, to adhere strictly to accounting rules, and to have senior managers personally sign off on financial results.

Question 11

Joan is a traveling sales representative. Most of her colleagues fill out inaccurate expense records in order to be eligible for extra reimbursement. Joan can either do the same thing or record real, accurate expenses. Joan's situation is an example of _____.

Accepted Answer

An ethical issue is a situation, problem, or opportunity in which an individual must choose among several actions that must be evaluated as morally right or wrong.

Question 12

_____ is the system of rules that governs the ordering of values.

Accepted Answer

Ethics is the system of rules that governs the ordering of values. The premise is that managers, their organizations, and their communities thrive over the long term when the managers apply ethical standards that direct them to act with integrity.

Question 13

Better Mornings Breakfast Foods Inc. donates large quantities of its products to support a free breakfast program at a school in a disadvantaged neighborhood. This program would be listed on which layer of the pyramid of corporate responsibilities?

Accepted Answer

Philanthropic responsibility consists of additional behaviors and activities that society finds desirable and that are supported by the values of a business. Examples include supporting community projects and making charitable contributions.

Question 14

The ethical climate of an organization refers to

Accepted Answer

The ethical climate of an organization refers to the processes by which decisions are evaluated and made on the basis of right and wrong.

Question 15

A whistleblower is a person who

Accepted Answer

Whistleblowing refers to telling others, inside or outside the organization, of wrongdoing.

Question 16

_____ in business is considered compatible with the natural ecosystems that generate and preserve life.

Accepted Answer

Sustainable growth is economic growth and development that meet the organization's present needs without harming the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Sustainability is fully compatible with the natural ecosystems that generate and preserve life.

Question 17

What is the goal of ecocentric management?

Accepted Answer

Ecocentric management has as its goal the creation of sustainable economic development and improvement of quality of life worldwide for all organizational stakeholders.

Question 18

Moral awareness involves

Accepted Answer

Making ethical decisions takes moral awareness (realizing the issue has ethical implications), moral judgment (knowing what actions are morally defensible), and moral character (the strength and persistence to act in accordance with your ethics despite the challenges).

Question 19

Moral philosophy refers to the _____.

Accepted Answer

Moral philosophy refers to the principles, rules, and values people use in deciding what is right or wrong. This is a simple definition in the abstract but often terribly complex and difficult when facing real choices.

Question 20

Which of the following terms refers to misleading marketing claims about the environmentally friendly nature of a product?

Accepted Answer

Companies can emphasize green attributes in their marketing but need to avoid misleading claims ("greenwashing") and public backlash.

Quiz 5: Ethics, Corporate Responsibility, and Sustainability