From Knowledge to Real-World Practice and Application—
The Case of Ethics
One of the most interesting aspects of reading articles online, for me, is reading the comments that come with them. Such was the case recently when I reread a Chronicle of Higher Education article reporting on new research by Anne Colby and William Sullivan, from the Carnegie Foundation’s BELL (Business, Entrepreneurship, and Liberal Learning) project. The project examines models that integrate business and liberal arts education. Integration is particularly critical, Colby and Sullivan stress, in order to strengthen business students’ understanding and navigation of the moral and ethical consequences of business practices.
The Chronicle article focuses on the gulf these researchers have found on many campuses. Business programs frequently employ active, hands-on pedagogies where students become responsible for their own learning, work within groups, and apply principles and methods to new phenomena, either in real-world situations or in simulation. The liberal arts, on the other hand, offer rich ethical and moral frameworks from a host of perspectives, but the pedagogies can often be less active and engaging as a matter of standard practice.
Many of the comments on this article sidestepped the notion that liberal arts and business programs could benefit from greater integration, the central argument Colby and Sullivan were making. Business students already take a liberal arts core, so what’s the problem? (“Business majors take a significant number of liberal arts courses at practically every college.” “Business students at most universities take a large number of liberal arts courses.”) On the other hand, a curriculum can’t expect to do it all (“No undergraduate program can accomplish everything.” “Good luck fitting all of that into 4 years.”) Both of these frameworks still treat courses as discrete entities taken side by side and—when new topics arise (e.g., ethics)—added on to the heap that students are already taking.
We know, however, that stand-alone ethics courses, taught in the classical tradition (the so-called “sage on the stage”) are not very effective in helping students become more ethically responsible people (business leaders, citizens, part-time cashiers, or roommates).
Some comments went even more directly to issues of morality and ethics. One person takes issue with the idea that the liberal arts will necessarily help with this (“I… take issue with the notion that study of the liberal arts [at least in this day and age in most institutions] will improve people’s ‘moral engagement’…do we have data suggesting even a correlation between liberal arts study and morality?”) Another takes issue with the idea that business programs, by implication, aren’t doing ethics (“…accredited business programs often integrate ethical decision making in a variety of courses to ensure students have exposure to these topics.”)
This too, is revealing. Both of these comments touch on what I’ll call the “exposure model.” The first is skeptical that just because the liberal arts expose students to authors like Confucius or Plato, students will become morally upright. The second is rightly noting that ethics have made it in to business, but victory is claimed by arguing that “students have exposure to these topics.”
I would look back to Colby and Sullivan, and urge us to think beyond exposure. Practically speaking, exposure without practice and reinforcement may be as handy as all the cramming that goes on the night before a multiple-choice test. To paraphrase educator Marcia Mentkowski, where is the learning that lasts?
Colby and Sullivan argue that most students won’t become equipped to act knowledgably and responsibly in the world simply by osmosis—even truckloads of Confucius and Plato won’t do it. Luckily, they offer some guidance to those of us who have been relying on the exposure model for far too long. Based on decades of research and work with campuses, they recommend intentionally cultivating in students what they term “practical reasoning,” or “learning to put knowledge to responsible use.” (This is also a recommendation of AAC&U’s LEAP initiative. One of its principles of excellence for 21st century undergraduate education is to “connect knowledge with choices and action.”)
Students must work through the formation, and re-formation, of moral principles and then practice the application of these principles amidst the messiness and ambiguity that constitutes “real life.” (A colleague of Colby and Sullivan, Tom Ehrlich, calls this practice “moral rehearsals,” after John Dewey.) College is a critical time in which rehearsing ethical responsibilities to self and others, through both curricular and cocurricular experiences, can be done with perhaps less serious consequences than would occur in the work world or in the unscripted moments of college life, when people’s dignity and well-being are at stake.
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Note: Colby and Sullivan explore these ideas more fully in a recent article in Liberal Education. Colby is a member of the national advisory board for the AAC&U initiative, Core Commitments: Educating Students for Personal and Social Responsibility.
Many business schools emphasize the philosophical, rather than the practical aspect of ethics. This must change if students are to have a thorough understanding of what ethics is about. What we need is an approach which considers the philosophical and the practical aspects of ethics.
Ethics is concerned with “doing the right thing” but…
Moral standards differ between individuals depending upon their upbringing, traditions, religion, social and economic situations, and so on. Hence, the existence of gray areas. Therefore, state the “moral” problem in a simple manner and review feedback so that an acceptable decision can be made with minimal overall harm/loss—i.e., we are concerned with “Pareto optimality,” which is related to the net balance of benefits over harm for society as a whole.
Economic theory is concerned with the efficient utilization of resources to satisfy consumer wants and to maximize profit and satisfaction. Pareto optimality exists at the point where it is impossible to make any given individual better off without harming another given individual. Although most businessmen believe that profits and cash flow are very important, there has been a move toward the recognition of social responsibility.
The blind pursuit of profit has resulted in bribes, environmental problems, injured workers, unsafe products, closed plants, and so on—this is unethical. Many business schools emphasize the philosophical, rather than the practical aspect of ethics. We need a practical approach to the solution of ethical problems.
Ethical leadership calls for morals, fairness, caring, sharing, no false promises or unreasonable demands on others, etc. Is “ethical leadership” an oxymoron?
I believe that “ethics” should be a part of all management courses. Yes, there are gray areas depending on different perspectives, but there are also areas of “black” and “white”. There is more to ethics than drafting and implementing codes of ethics for others to observe. Leaders should lead by example and refrain from adopting an approach which conflicts with ethical interests. Therefore, leaders should respect and care for all stakeholders, rather than only stockholders e.g. show that you care for your employees, customers, suppliers, the community, etc.
Making false promises and unreasonable demands on employees and others, preventing participative management, talking about the “green” approach as a public relations exercise, rather than adopting a “green” approach, is unacceptable. Ethics is conscience-based, knowledge-based and attitude-based, and not suited to some individuals, who, by their very nature, have consistently demonstrated selfishness and greed.
Can any ethics training program prevent Bernie Madoff, Vincent Lacroix, Conrad Black, etc. from being themselves ?
No, but a well-designed & implemented program can
(a) help good people to do the right thing consistently
(b) make it more difficult for wrong-doers to succeed &
(c) raise people’s ethical IQS*.
Business ethics is concerned with dealing with dilemmas that sometimes do not have a clear indication as to what is right or wrong e.g. potential conflicts of interest, wrongful use of resources, mismanagement of contracts, false promises and exaggerated demands on resources which include personnel.
Right and wrong are black and white – pure and simple. Our ethical system and behaviour are a function of several factors, including our cultural background, upbringing, education, ego, environment, circumstances and the related stress. Hence, the development of gray areas i.e. areas where explicit rulings or guidance is not available Looked at in another way, there are shades of black and shades of white, just like when you go to a paint shop to buy black paint or white paint or when you go to a clothing store to buy a black suit or a white suit. If you find that your ethical standards are higher than those of most people, you should follow your own standards.
It is possible to improve, from an ethical point of view.
As we mature into adulthood, we develop an ego and try to use our communication skills to justify our behaviour, while focusing on our own goals. With our ego-based approach, our innate selfishness, and the influences of friend and environment come many gray areas. One’s image will depend on one’s operation within the black, white and/or gray areas. This should always be borne in mind.
Alas, many business schools provide courses in business ethics which which are philosophical, rather than practical, in approach. This needs to be rectified in the light of experience in the real world. Research confirms that the focus on ethics deters people from straying, although it is difficult to alter the basic nature of some people e.g. Bernie Madoff and Vincent Lacroix.
Constant communication and open discussions on ethics foster a bond between individuals who are keen on being ethical and help promote teamwork built on good spirit. Emotionally intelligent people are often more ethical than others.
* confirmed by Research from the Assocn. of Certified Fraud Examiners, the Ethics Resource Center, and other firms.
I have a policy of distributing free abridged versions of my books on leadership, ethics, teamwork, motivation, women, bullying and sexual harassment, trade unions, business law, etc., to anyone who sends a request to crespin79@hotmail.com.
Maxwell Pinto, Business Author
http://www.strategicbookpublishing.com/Management-TidbitsForTheNewMillenium.html