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Transcript
Jentz-11e Appendix I: Sample Answers for End-of-Chapter Questions with Sample Answer Chapter 5: Ethics and Business Decision Making 5–2. Question with Sample Answer If a firm engages in “ethical” behavior solely for the purpose of gaining profits from the goodwill it generates, the “ethical” behavior is essentially a means toward a self-serving end (profits and the accumulation of wealth). In this situation, is the firm acting unethically in any way? Should motive or conduct carry greater weight on the ethical scales in this situation? Sample Answer: This question essentially asks whether good behavior can ever be unethical. The answer to this question depends on which approach to ethical reasoning you are using. Under the outcome-based approach of utilitarianism, it is simply not possible for selfish motives to be unethical if they result in good conduct. A good outcome is moral regardless of the nature of the action itself or the reason for the action. Under a duty-based approach, motive would be more relevant in assessing whether a firm’s conduct was ethical. You would need to analyze the firm’s conduct in terms of religious truths or to determine whether human beings were being treated with the inherent dignity that they deserve. Although a good motive would not justify a bad act to a religious ethicist, in this situation the actions were good and the motive was questionable (because the firm was simply seeking to increase its profit). Nevertheless, unless one’s religion prohibited making a profit, the firm’s actions would likely not be considered unethical. Applying Kantian ethics would require you to evaluate the firm’s actions in light of what would happen if everyone in society acted that way (categorical imperative). Here, because the conduct was good, it would be positive for society if every firm acted that way. Hence, the profit-seeking motive would be irrelevant in a Kantian analysis. In a debate between motive and conduct, then, conduct is almost always given greater weight in evaluating ethics.