Exam 8: Ethics and Social Responsibility of Business

Businesses organized in the United States are subject to the laws of other countries in which they operate.

Susie Designer has come out with a great line of fashions for teen-age girls.Knowing that many of her potential customers are looking for low-cost items,Susie would like to produce her clothing line as cheaply as possible.Also,Susie is aware that the less she spends on production,the more she will realize in profits.Susie thinks about having her clothes made in Mexico because labor costs would be much less there.She is also aware,however,that unemployment is high in her community and that jobs are needed there.Discuss how the moral theories of duty ethics,utilitarianism,and ethical relativism would apply to her decision.

The False Claims Act is also known as the Whistleblower Act.

Peter runs an auto air conditioning repair shop.Because of the phase-out of the ozone-depleting refrigerants used in older auto air conditioners,auto air conditioning repairers have become subject to numerous new laws and regulations,some of which are costly and burdensome to comply with.Although it costs him more,Peter decides to follow all the statutes and regulations so long as everyone else does the same.Peter has reached his decision in accordance with:

Utilitarianism has been criticized because it treats morality as if it were an impersonal mathematical calculation.

Which theory of business social responsibility holds that a business owes duties to its various constituencies such as customers and employees in addition to its shareholders?

It could be argued that the most ethical companies that do the best for society follow parts of which of the following theories?

________ holds that individuals must decide what is ethical based on their own feelings about what is right and wrong.

The law establishes a maximum degree of conduct expected by persons and businesses in society.

________,who won the Nobel Prize in economics when he taught at the University of Chicago,advocated the theory of maximizing profits for shareholders.

Mary finds a wallet in the library that is filled with cash.She would like to keep the money but decides to turn it in to the lost-and-found office because if it were her wallet,she would like the person who found it to do the same.Mary reached her decision in accordance with:

Jeremy Bentham is the best-known proponent of duty ethics.

Critics argue that ethical fundamentalism does not permit people to determine right and wrong for themselves.

The universal duties under Kantian ethics were agreed upon,with some modification,shortly after being proposed by Kant.

A company is planning to promote its services heavily via telemarketing.The company has learned that the majority of those to be called are strongly opposed to receiving telemarketing calls.In addition,many of the persons who will be called are elderly who might decide to purchase the product even though they do not really need it or cannot afford it.Discuss the appropriateness of proceeding with this plan under the different theories of the social responsibility of business.

Which of the following is not a recognized theory of the social responsibility of business?

According to Kantian ethics,if you rationalized that it is acceptable for you to engage in deceptive practices,it is acceptable for competitors to do so also.

The four theories of social responsibility of business discussed in the text can best be described as:

Mary owns her own business and has just attended a cash flow management seminar where it was suggested the businesses should delay paying their suppliers as long as absolutely possible even if doing so violates the stated payment terms.Mary decides to continue paying her suppliers on time in accordance with their payment terms because Mary would like her customers to pay her on time.Mary has reached her decision in accordance with:

Social audits have recently become mandatory for publicly-traded corporations.