Deck 2: A Historical Perspective on Business Ethics

Question 1

The ________________ in 1773 was a major colonial incident resulting from the East India Company's monopolistic business practices.

A) Boston Tea Party
B) Plymouth settlement
C) Revolutionary war
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The fundamental belief on which the Declaration of Independence was founded,grounded in philosophical notions of basic human rights,was ________________.

A) the right to bear arms
B) the right to own property
C) government should be based on the consent of the governed
D) government should pursue happiness
E) none of the above

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Fundamental notions behind Adam Smith's concept of a fair economic system include which of the following?

A) reason and liberty
B) freedom and religious control
C) selfishness and justice
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Answer 3

A

Question 4

_____________,a Scottish philosopher,provided many of the teachings that underlie capitalist systems.

A) James Madison
B) Adam Smith
C) John Locke
D) King George III
E) none of the above

Question 5

Government intervention in the marketplace,Smith reasoned,is needed under only which of the following conditions:

A) when contracts are violated
B) when merchants abuse their freedom by committing injustices against others
C) when the pursuit of self-interest does not generate highly desired social welfare benefits
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 6

Which of the following were not among the benefits early capitalists associated with a free and competitive market economy?

A) more goods and services
B) lower prices
C) better-quality products
D) greater labor flexibility
E) higher tax revenues

Question 7

Adam Smith argued that when self-regulating moral mechanisms fail,________________ must serve to protect the public from egregious immoral actions.

A) democracy
B) strong justice systems
C) individual sanctions
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 8

Among the reasons Pilgrims settled in Massachusetts were desires for:

A) religious freedoms
B) economic opportunities
C) new trade routes
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 9

Which of the following rights were not included in the Bill of Rights?

A) right to bear arms
B) freedom of the press
C) freedom from unreasonable search and seizure
D) freedom to rule the colonies
E) freedom of religion

Question 10

According to its definition,capitalism as an economic system is characterized by which of the following?

A) mercantilist policies
B) democratic policies
C) freedom and competition
D) religious freedom
E) selfishness at all costs

Question 11

______________ were granted by the British government to allow several people to create organizations by pooling financial resources,which enabled riskier business projects to be undertaken.

A) pacts
B) charters?c) constitutions
D) doctrines
E) none of the above

Question 12

The ________________,chartered by King James,searched for gold and gems and led trading in furs and spices in the Roanoke Islands.

A) Columbus excursions
B) Jamestown settlements
C) Virginia Company of London
D) American Charters
E) none of the above

Question 13

Settlements in Roanoke,Jamestown and Plymouth were early examples of ________________.

A) business ventures
B) participant democracies
C) uplifting indigineous populations
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 14

Adam Smith argued that "wealth of nations" resulted from which of the following?

A) freedom and competition
B) economic self-interest
C) capitalist economic systems
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 15

Smith cautioned that owners who do not rely on moral sentiments when dealing with laborers could result in which of the following problems:

A) an overabundance of labor, which could drive wages below subsistence levels
B) excessive application of piece-rate incentives, which could increase productivity in the short term but damage the worker's health in the long run
C) excessive application of division of labor, which could increase productivity in the short term but damage the worker's intellectual abilities in the long term
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 16

Which of the following early leaders was not among the authors of the Declaration of Independence?

A) Thomas Jefferson
B) James Madison
C) Benjamin Franklin
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 17

The period in the early 1800s marked by significant economic growth in the United States was called:

A) the Revolutionary War
B) the Industrial Revolution
C) the Declaration of Independence
D) the birth of capitalism.
E) none of the above

Question 18

Prior to capitalism,key management positions were often filled based on which of the following?

A) family connections
B) political connections
C) wealth
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 19

The Boston Tea Party was a response to which of the following British policies?

A) monopolistic business practices
B) attempts to limit religious freedoms
C) attempts to limit the rights of indigenous people
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 20

_____________________ were laborers who served their masters for several years in exchange for transportation,food,clothing,lodging,and eventual freedom.

A) slaves
B) settlers
C) indentured servants
D) Pilgrims
E) none of the above

Question 21

The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 outlawed which of the following?

A) monopolies
B) mercantiles
C) charters
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 22

_________________ is a system in which some individuals are perceived as property,and thereby capable of being owned by other people and subject to the whims of their owners,with no provisions for eventual freedom.

A) slavery
B) indentured servitude
C) low-wage workers
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 23

U.S.-born _______________ unionized immigrant farm workers in California and led a 10-year nationwide boycott against grapes picked by nonunion workers.

A) Che Guevera
B) Cesar Chavez
C) Samuel Gompers
D) Taft Hartley
E) none of the above

Question 24

The Reagan Administration of the 1980s began a process of deregulation,or __________________,which continued under the Clinton and Bush administrations.

A) lifting government restrictions on market activity
B) tightening government restrictions on market activity
C) ensuring equitable stock options
D) ensuring consumer protections
E) none of the above

Question 25

The establishment of __________________ was an early victory for labor unions,resulting from strikes across the nation in 1886.

A) fair wages
B) the eight-hour work day
C) equal pay for all workers
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 26

The Industrial Revolution was characterized by which of the following?

A) religious freedom
B) development of ammunitions
C) technological innovation
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 27

Philosophers including ___________________ and Friedrich Engels disputed Adam Smith's assumptions about the moral sentiments of business people,and inspired some union organizers.

A) Karl Marx
B) Samuel Gompers
C) Milton Friedman
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 28

A(n)_________________ is an association of employees that advances its members interests,including wages,benefits,work rules and other conditions of employment,through collective bargaining with an employer.

A) oligopoly
B) strike
C) labor union
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 29

One method that may assist in more equitable levels of executive pay that limits incentives for stock price manipulation is:

A) extended payout periods for stock options
B) lump-sum stock option payouts
C) elimination of stock options
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 30

First developed in the late 1880s in response to increasing corporate complexity and growth,the concept of __________________ refers to laws protecting individual shareholders from financial liability if businesses are sued or fail.

A) antitrust legislation
B) limited liability
C) antitrust acts
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 31

Education is ______________ correlated with wealth,with a slight decline occurring at the doctoral level.

A) positively
B) negatively
C) equally
D) inversely
E) none of the above

Question 32

The U.S.Constitution was written without addressing the issue of slavery to:

A) recognize that slaves were fundamental to the growth of the new nation
B) appease southern states whose economies depended on slaves
C) protect the rights of paid workers
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 33

Dependency on slave labor ________________ during the Industrial Revolution.

A) increased
B) decreased
C) stayed the same
D) was outlawed
E) was eliminated

Question 34

The minimum wage,the lowest wage an employee can legally pay an employee,an amount higher than what the market would otherwise establish,was federally mandated by which of the following pieces of legislation?

A) the Fair Labor Standards Act
B) the National Labor Relations Act
C) the Great Depression Act
D) the Living Wage Act
E) none of the above

Question 35

In 2009,the federal government tried to determine "fair compensation" for top executives that accepted federal bailout funds by:

A) limiting the total amount of compensation
B) regulating stock options
C) mandating lump sum payments
D) requiring cash bonuses
E) none of the above

Question 36

A B Corporation is distinct from the typical C Corporation designation because the B Corporation certification focuses on:

A) maximizing shareholder wealth
B) limiting worker compensation
C) ethics, sustainability and social responsibility
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 37

The 1935 passage of which law legally obligated employers to negotiate with duly elected unions and codified regulations governing the process for forming a union?

A) the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)
B) the Sherman Antitrust Act (SAA)
C) the Taft Hartley Act (TFA)
D) the National Strike Act (NSA)
E) none of the above

Question 38

_________________'s emphasis on liberty has increased national wealth more than any other economic system.

A) socialism
B) communism
C) capitalism
D) feudalism
E) none of the above

Question 39

The Federal Sentencing Guidelines,issued in 1991,were an attempt by the government to:

A) mandate policies and procedures that reinforce ethical behavior
B) require widespread consumer protections
C) require widespread worker protections
D) encourage managers to implement policies and procedures that reinforce ethical behavior
E) none of the above

Question 40

In the late 1880s,states began to compete against one another in which of the following ways?

A) relaxing religious freedoms
B) introducing the right to bear arms
C) simplifying rules for obtaining corporate charters and eliminating tax restrictions
D) monopolizing business operations
E) none of the above

Question 41

Which of the following best practices are consistent with the Optimal Ethics Systems Model:

A) hiring ethical people
B) codes of ethics and codes of conduct
C) environmental management
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 42

Mercantilist policies discouraged monopolies,avoided quotas on imports,and promoted freedom for tradesmen.

Question 43

Victory in the Revolutionary War meant abandoning England's government-controlled mercantilist system in favor of commercial laws that encouraged and protected liberty in the business sector.

Question 44

Adam Smith asserted that laborers must be tightly controlled to preserve economic growth.

Question 45

Peaceful relations between indigenous tribes and the Pilgrims ended when the indigenous tribes violated fur trading pacts and land agreements.

Question 46

Christopher Columbus's voyage from Europe was motivated by a desire to discover resources in other areas of the world.

Question 47

Adam Smith's notions of selfishness and self-interest are identical.

Question 48

All groups at Plymouth were required to observe the Pilgrims' strict religious lifestyle.

Question 49

Capitalism was chosen as the economic system for the newly formed United States because it was the easiest way to become competitive with Britain.

Question 50

On July 4,1776,colonial leaders declared political independence from Britain,an act of treason punishable by death.

Question 51

Many indigenous populations were harmed by early European exploration.

Question 52

Early charters hindered groups of people from creating organizations by pooling financial resources,which enabled riskier business projects to be undertaken.

Question 53

Early settlements by English colonists were often marked by warfare with indigenous peoples.

Question 54

The Pilgrim settlement at modern-day Plymouth,Massachusetts,was a business venture established as a trading colony.

Question 55

Adam Smith's writings did not address the moral elements of capitalism.

Question 56

The Bill of Rights outlined rights including freedom of speech,freedom of the press,and freedom from unreasonable search and seizure.

Question 57

Adam Smith and early proponents of capitalism believed a strong system of justice is essential to punish those who do not appropriately self-regulate their behaviors,and to reinforce contracts.

Question 58

Capitalism was touted by Adam Smith and his followers as ethically superior to government-controlled mercantilism due to its emphasis on individual freedom and competition.

Question 59

It is important to consider the historical perspective to appreciate the evolution of the current economic and regulatory systems.

Question 60

The Bill of Rights was the original introduction to the Declaration of Independence.

Question 61

U.S.capitalism,by definition,avoids ethical dilemmas arising from exploitation of laborers.

Question 62

Labor unions were originally intended to reduce power imbalances between owners and laborers.

Question 63

The U.S.founders renounced slavery and refused to own slaves.

Question 64

Income inequality is unique to capitalist societies.

Question 65

Discuss the key components of Adam Smith's conception of capitalism,including his justification of the ethics of capitalism.

Question 66

Adam Smith argued that free people naturally disregard the interests of others.

Question 67

Living in an expanding economy hinders jobs and disposable income.

Question 68

The founders of the United States addressed the obvious contradiction between slavery and liberty in the Constitution.

Question 69

Smith argued that laborers benefit from capitalism because economic growth generates jobs and more choice among occupations.

Question 70

Define and provide an overview of the Optimal Ethics Systems Model.

Question 71

Though many union organizers have lived sacrificial lives for the well-being of others and emphasized non-violence,some union activity has been hampered by the stigmas of violence and corruption.

Question 72

Huge population growth through illegal immigration,primarily from Europe,characterized the Industrial Revolution.

Question 73

Adam Smith promoted self-interest as the primary motivation for individual behavior.

Question 74

Identify and define at least four major issues surrounding labor rights in the U.S.capitalist economy,from the founding of the United States through recent history including the 2009 federal bailout.