Business Ethics

Teaching of business ethics in educational institutes.

Introduction

Long-term sustainability of business system demands ethical factor. This implication assents the need of learning business ethics in business institutions to reflect the importance of moral values in business (Leavitt, 1989; Palmer, 1986; Porter and McKibben, 1989; Shad, 1987). In addition to it, institution feculty needs to develop efficient pedagogical techniques to motivate about morality in business and   It needs to stimulate candidates for learning about moral values involved in business decision making internally or externally. Institution makes sure to deliver the moral knowledge regarding business dilemmas. It needs to provide information about importance of ethical dimensions in business environment. This paper reflects the description of business ethics and how much it matters in business surroundings. First, it describes the pedagogical approach to teach business ethics which was developed in 1989. It included the bulk of approaches such as films, novels and plays which described the ethics phycology in business. Fundamental vocabulary for ethics have swapped away as today’s business students are not provided the learning about basic vocabulary of business which is base of describing what is ethics, it’s role in business and how does it matter inside and outside of organisation. Moreover, students are incapable to describe the fundamental philosophy of ethics and moral values.

Classroom survey of students reflect the answer of question regarding what is ethics, common answer reveals to follow common law and rules and it is unethical to break them. According to psychological aspect human mostly keeps their interests above and he priorities his self-interests to upper level. He looks out the conditions and prefers his interests in every circumstance. These all concepts reveal an obstacle to moral thinking. Besides, all these concepts there have been several theories related to ethical phycology and these theories explains ethics and its integration to each sector. Virtual ethicists indicate the uniqueness of ethical perceptive which reflects it’s clear viewpoint and understanding in some ethics theories. According to James Rachels there is clear difference between two concepts of ethics which is reason and other is impartial perceptive. He elaborates about decision making that decision should be rationalized and impartial. Decision must be reason based. He further explains that when there is condition of decision making, impartiality should be considered by keeping all the evaluated reasons. Rachel’s theory is reflection upon the impartially testified decisions and it reflects the evaluation of analytical reasoning before decision making.

Morality is basic term related to business ethics. Egoistic concept of student is to believe on self-interest and think about oneself. Altruistic concept of ethics explains to keep self-interests ofother people and their benefits. Besides this theory, impartiality concept negates this theory as it has self-implications and self-interests. Above all, moral concept is complex to determine it’s intensity and it is hard to elaborate the basic vocabulary of ethics but it has positive aspects on daily basis decision making. Students can be testified on less ethical criteria of seven theories, though four of them are actually obstacle to ethics. These theories include physiological egoism, ethical egoism, subjectivism and cultural relativism. Three out of seven are purely based on ethical values which include deontology, utilitarianism, and virtue ethics. These seven theories can elaborate the intensity and need of morality in business. There must an strategy to include these theories in business ethics curriculum. In addition to it student would grasp the fundamental philosophy of ethics and its role in all dimensions of society and it is important component of business.

Ethics course reflects the idea of morality and learning about ethics to students. They can grasp the basic understanding of moral context in their course through course integration with arts and social sciences. Each moral theory has specific justification about ethical dimensions. All the dimensions of theories and their understanding can be accomplished by specific methods. These methods include novels, plays and films. Later on, arts would be used as medium to give understanding about the theories and it would help students to explore the philosophy of ethics and it’s theories which reflects the idea about the superiority of business ethics to general business principles. This paper provides the general understanding about the ethics nature and it describes the course of morality. Obstacles to moral conception in business to develop a basic reasoning related to business ethics can be understood by moral theories. At initial stage of learning student must know about the level of moral theory and it’s intensity of meeting criteria to minimal level. By these barriers and obstacles to ethics theories students can justify the difference between reasons and impartiality. If students are not realized by these barriers to morality at start, it can give vague understanding to their ideas about the minimal criteria of obstacles which cause hindrance to moral values. They would be unable to find appropriateness of ethical values and reasoning in business.

Supervisor conducts a research based methodology related to psychological egoism. A group activity by dividing candidates into different groups, this activity leads to create a social culture. Students are given task to employ their specific characteristics related to human nature inside the formatted social culture, developed by students in task. They are prohibited to discuss these characteristics to oneself, this activity exercised up-to ten years to find out the degree of selfishness and each group is unable to find selfishness related to basic characteristics of people. Students reflect the research by conclusion that man is selfish and considers all the interests to himself. Self-interest is fundamental characteristic of human nature. Human molds all decisions to satisfy his self-interests in most of the circumstances. According to implication of genetic structure related to psychology egoism which explains that human nature causes hindrance to altruism and ethics because biological characteristic of human nature peruses about the fundamental interests related to benefits of human. If there would be barrier to morality and indication of impartial decision making, it is just a general consequence if hidden interests of human nature (Hobbes, 1981/1651; Slote, 1964).

Related to concept of psychological egoism, if it defines the human nature is unable to develop rational decision making after going through reasons he does not move forward to his exclusive benefits then this characteristic would be emerge as cynicism. This reflects that there would be lack of impartiality. Reason based decision would lack behind due to personal interests. However this theory does not claim that it is only related to self-interest characteristic but it is also stuck between two concepts: self-interest and impartiality. This theory relates the real justification of human satisfaction towards their interests while developing business strategy or decision making. However, this is the most complex barrier to ethics vocabulary as it is related to human behavior which is undeniable. Therefore students must realize multi-dimensional reasons of business and work and overcome their nature to behave according to such barriers. They should take decisions altruism manner. They must go through the provided reasons, evaluate them and make decisions on reasons. This is greater challenge for students to face while taking decisions and it exposes the real egoism related to self-interests, students must behave on moral bases and effective grounds. Besides that if there are some valid facts related to decision and human implement it according altruistic manner then psychological egoism is not valid at that point. Above studies claim that human nature is nit rational while stuck between reasons and impartial decisions so students must behave on three components like evidence is not satisfactory to make decision upon.

Some studies claim that psychological egoism has false concepts and it does not explain actual human nature. According to Morton Hunt's The Compassionate Beast (1990) that psychological egoism is greater challenge for students in business ethics because it is fundamental human trait to prefer self-interests. According to this theory human nature excludes the concept of ethical reasoning. It causes hindrance in moral reasoning. Besides barrier moral theory, ethical egoism have some moral concepts that most of the time human act selflessly but they pursue their benefits when there is not any specific indulgence of interests of others. Ethical egoism is however describes self-interests and human nature that, it is sole obligation of human to keep their self-interests high before everything else (MacIntyre, 1985; Olson, 1967). It is not sole duty to protect other’s interests at once as it impossible to behave according to interests  of others. In addition to it, presence of solid evidences with accurate facts based on actual reasons can help one to decide by evaluation of these evidences to make decision impartial. As it is normative theory which explains the business ethics and decision making related to evidences and it explains the impartial account of any decision should be based on reasons. Besides this theory, ethical relativism describes that morality has deep integration with cultural norms. Moral code of one group requires satisfaction in adherence of specific standards of community (Benedict, 1946; Sumner, 1906; Ladd, 1973).

World business is lacking the fundamental vocabulary of ethics related to business because it has become complex conception to see ethics in all directions. Business course related to ethics have become short and précis which does not give clear reflection about business ethics. Current morality concepts have given enough understanding from few dimensions of ethics to business. Students are able to evaluate their concept by using these theories and they testify them between two components: reasons and impartiality. By using these theories and minimum concept regarding ethics, students are provided with opportunity to explore their ideas by two methods. One they can employ their understanding by contradiction of theory with culture and norms. They can get clear image that how a specific theory can match to environment of business. They can differentiate between two psychological behaviors of nature by comparing the nature of human and nature of morality. They also employ their concepts regarding barriers of morality like psychological egoism which relates the human nature to self-interests whereas ethical egoism relates interests of others but on few conditions. These conditions include presence of valid evidences, accurate facts and efficient reasons then it can help out to make decisions to satisfy interests of others.

When students are understood about these concepts which can broad their thinking related to ethics. They would able to describe the limitations regarding nature of ethics. Use of literature and different methods can help out to give clear learning about business ethics in course. All theories related to ethics however some of them are barriers and other are based on morality. Students can get clear idea about ethics and how does it matters in internal and external components of business. This idea helps them to develop an ethical perspective which has essential implications on business. It explains about how to behave ethically and unethically. All these concepts related to human behavior and organizations can help out to understand the importance of ethics in business. Rational decisions in organization have positive consequences in organization as they enhance performance of organization in every business system though it can be production and marketing. It helps to develop organizational image in consumer behavior.