Ethical Failures Research Articles

Perspectives about artificial moral agents

The pursuit of AMAs is complicated. Disputes about the development, design, moral agency, and future projections for these systems have been reported in the literature. This empirical study explores these controversial matters by surveying (AI) Ethics scholars with the aim of establishing a more coherent and informed debate. Using Q-methodology, we show the wide breadth of viewpoints and approaches to artificial morality. Five main perspectives about AMAs emerged from our data and were subsequently interpreted and discussed: (i) Machine Ethics: The Way Forward; (ii) Ethical Verification: Safe and Sufficient; (iii) Morally Uncertain Machines: Human Values to Avoid Moral Dystopia; (iv) Human Exceptionalism: Machines Cannot Moralize; and (v) Machine Objectivism: Machines as Superior Moral Agents. A potential source of these differing perspectives is the failure of Machine Ethics to be widely observed or explored as an applied ethic and more than a futuristic end. Our study helps improve the foundations for an informed debate about AMAs, where contrasting views and agreements are disclosed and appreciated. Such debate is crucial to realize an interdisciplinary approach to artificial morality, which allows us to gain insights into morality while also engaging practitioners.

Professional competence and business ethics

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to determine if the failure of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to persecute Madoff is, in fact, an ethical failure. The authors turn to the extension of Aristotelian theory of moral values, virtue epistemology, to identify specific failures. The authors generalize this study’s conclusions to an overall responsibility of regulatory agencies to exercise epistemic virtues in their decision-making process. The authors explore how behavioral biases confound the execution of epistemic duty, and how awareness of behavioral biases can alleviate epistemic failures. The authors conclude this study with recommendations to prevent future frauds of Madoff proportions.Design/methodology/approachThe authors rely on recent advances in virtue epistemology and behavioral finance. The authors combine these two theoretical approaches to better understand the duty of competence inherent in being a finance professional, and even more so in being a regulator entrusted with overseeing financial industry, and psychological biases that may prevent finance professionals and regulators from performing this duty.FindingsThe paper concludes that the SEC employees failed to exercise epistemic virtues in their handling of the complaints implicating Madoff’s firm of fraud. This failure reveals a consistent pattern of behavioral biases in decision-making. The authors posit that knowledge of ethical theory, specifically virtue epistemology, as well as awareness of behavioral biases, which inhibit epistemically virtuous cognitive process, can improve the functioning of both finance industry and its overseers. The authors suggest that future finance professionals and regulators need to acquire this knowledge while pursuing their undergraduate education: it is the duty of business schools to facilitate this progress.Originality/valueThis paper combines the theory of virtue epistemology with the current knowledge of behavioral biases, which distort rational decision-making, to explain the failures of regulators to analyze fraud reports. The authors extend this finding to recommend the inclusion of the theory of virtue epistemology in business schools’ ethics curriculum.

The mediator and community teacher (PMEC) and his role as cultural intercessor

This article aims to investigate the contributions of philosophy as a formative element for the performance of the Mediator and Community Teacher (PMEC), emphasizing the value of teaching to act in local cultural. This is a qualitative research in the area of Philosophy of Education, thus the bibliographic discussion, aims to assist the teacher to be an effective mediator agent, being indispensable to offer training to teachers so that they can resignify the teacher-student relationship, taking into account the ethical formations of each social context. For the teacher to be an effective mediator agent, it is necessary that the knowledge acquired by him, serve as a facilitating experience to dispose emotionally in relation to the student and welcome him pedagogically. As a conclusion, it is discussed that the Mediator and Community Professor (PMEC) needs to resignify human formation in the classroom, by reflecting, innating and deconstructing discourses that operate within the scope of a transcendent moral based on common sense. Given this panorama, a critical view on teacher education, it is fundamental in times that the classroom has closed itself to dialogue and recognition of the otherness of the other, which further evidences the failure of ethics in society, including in the classroom.

The Erroneous Foundations of Law and Economics

The fundamental originating principle of law and economics (L&E) is that legal decisions should be (and are) based on maximizing efficiency. But L&E proponents do not define “efficiency” in the way agreed to by most economists, as Pareto Efficiency. A Pareto optimal condition is obtained when no one can be made better off without making someone worse off. Pareto Improvements are win-win changes where no losers exist. In the judicial system, however, there are always winners and losers, because under Article III § 2 of the Constitution a legal case does not exist unless there is a justiciable “case or controversy” in need of resolution. Unable to use Pareto Efficiency, L&E scholars have been forced to adopt alternative definitions of efficiency. Most L&E scholars claim to define “efficiency” based on the work of Kaldor and Hicks, but (perhaps unwittingly) instead use a definition of “efficiency” derived from the 19th century idea of consumer surplus, which encompasses L&E notions such as “wealth maximization,” and “consumer welfare” in antitrust. Neither of these alternative definitions is viable, however. Outside of L&E, the Kaldor-Hicks approach has long been recognized to be riddled with logical inconsistencies and ethical failures, and the surplus approach is even more deficient. Remarkably, virtually none of the numerous L&E textbooks even hint at such problems. Critically, all definitions of efficiency improvements in economics are biased in favor of wealthy individuals or firms, either because they are dependent on the status quo ante distribution of assets, or because they bestow large advantages on parties with political influence or who can afford to bring lawsuits quickly. Many L&E practitioners treat efficiency improvements instead as being objectively good, an error revealing that L&E is primarily motivated by its neoliberal policy agenda.

The Abyss of Right: Hegel’s Philosophy of Right and the Question of Poverty

Hegel’s interpretation of the question of poverty in modern states has been an important topic in Hegelian scholarship. His early engagement with political economy (e.g., John Locke, Adam Smith and James Steuart) and his attentiveness to social phenomena made him especially concerned with the ethical significance of poverty. Poverty is a puzzling issue for Hegel: it appears both as a necessary and unsolvable outcome of the modern rational ethical life and as an ethical failure that undermines the legitimation of this very form of life. In this paper, I articulate and defend Hegel’s understanding of poverty as an ethical failure, by showing that it frustrates fundamental aspects of the actualization of the concept of freedom. Also, I argue that Hegel’s failures in the face of this puzzle, namely that he is not able to map the necessity of this problem onto the rationale of modern ethical life, stem from the fact that he could not understand that there is another operative law in modern markets, i.e. the law of value, which does not correspond to the market’s rational justification as theorized in his account of “civil society”. Finally, I contend that the philosopher’s impasse expresses a rationality deficit in modern civil society itself. By arguing so I shed light on important aspects of Hegel’s conception of modernity and show how this interesting philosopher can be insightful even in his blind spots.

General Education Sucks: So Teach the Great Identities

ABSTRACT Although there are many reasons why one could consider current manifestations of general education a disaster area, this article focuses on its ethical failures. First, I will demonstrate the central importance of moral purposes to justifications for general education. Second, I will describe how the failure to connect the moral aims that originally animated general education to a complex understanding of our fundamental identity, alongside a general marginalization of moral discourse in the academy, has produced an inability to match the content of general education to the moral ends used to justify it. Rather than the incoherent approach to general education used today, I argue that general education should focus on the individual that the university is ultimately meant to serve—the student. Such a shift requires, as John Dewey noted, nothing short of a revolution. Higher education certainly provides students with tools but it provides students no direction as to what is worth building, I propose a general education that instructs students about, and cultivates capacities toward excellence in, the great human identities (e.g., neighbor, friend, citizen, family, steward of nature and culture, race, gender, etc.).

The Dystopian Discourse of “Success but a Failure” Between Science and Ethics in the Korean Science Story “Dr. K's Research”

Abstract Dong-in Kim's short story “Dr. K's Research” provides the first example of Korean science fiction literature. It is also considered as an important scientific story because it gives the first try of exploring what kind of relationship should be constructed between science and ethical concern in Korean literary world. As the story about Dr. K's experiment of inventing artificial food made from feces unfolded, Dr. K's blindness of science in recognition, his deviation of the action in science, and his inability to comprehend the complexity between science and ethics are shown in a flashback step by step. Through describing Dr. K's experimental process from “success to failure” with a strong ironic and dystopian meta-narrative style, the writer emphasizes that scientifically Dr. K's experiment is successful, yet the consequence of the research is an ethical failure in comprehension of the relationship between science and ethical application. The significance of Dong-in Kim's story is to set the example of fathoming the possibilities of the relationship between science and ethics in a contemporary world, and to examine what the impact of science and technology might have on the understanding of ethical discussion.

Introduction: The Interactive Relations Between Science and Technology and Literary Studies

Introduction: The Interactive Relations Between Science and Technology and Literary Studies

Ethical Leadership: Understanding Ethical Failures and Researching Consequences for Practice: Priority 8 of the National Leadership Education Research Agenda 2020–2025

Ethical Leadership: Understanding Ethical Failures and Researching Consequences for Practice: Priority 8 of the National Leadership Education Research Agenda 2020–2025

Ethical Issues in Accounting in Prosperity and a Financial Crisis

Current and past economic and financial crises have changed the behaviour of busi-ness leaders, managers, and investors, as well as accounting professionals (financial accountants, bookkeepers, management accountants, auditors). The fear of further financial crises has forced accounting reforms, the revision of auditing standards, and a restructuring of corporate governance systems in many countries to provide a relia-ble framework for companies’ activities and performance. The International Federa-tion of Accountants (IFAC) board founded the International Ethics Standard Board for Accountants (IESBA), which issued the Code of Ethics for Professional Account-ants (IFAC Code) as a set of globally accepted guidelines for ethical conduct. The first version was published in 1990, and it was recommended (but not mandatory) for IFAC members to adopt. Establishing a unified code of ethics was one of the major achievements of IFAC that provided solid guidelines for accounting professionals across the world. Prior research indicates that the IFAC Code has been moderately successful in the attempt to harmonise ethics standards for professional accountants worldwide. As globalisation continues to affect business culture and technology, and, consequently, the focus of business, the accounting profession must keep pace and reassess its role in the world economy, but also in society. This is especially important during economic and financial crises, when the classic entrepreneurial model is not sustainable. Not only can a code of ethics can provide a framework for appropriate employee behaviour and establish a better corporate culture, it can also improve lead-ership, help organisations to comply with government guidelines, and enable organisa-tions to be more socially responsible. Many ethical issues could be explored in the con-text of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), not only in times of crisis. The high-profile ethical failures of professional accountants in recent decades taught us the importance of ethics education. A professional accountant’s responsibility is not exclusively to satisfy the needs of an individual client or employing organization. All accountants should act in the public interest by complying with fundamental ethical principles (integrity, objectivity, professional competence and due care, confidentiality, and professional behaviour) since these principles establish the standard of expected behaviour. Therefore, accounting ethics should be promoted much more in education and in practice. Accounting and business educators have a special responsibility to ex-amine and teach ethics in the broader context of globalisation. Regulations and volun-tary standards aim at minimizing fraud and manipulation of business information, but ethical behaviour is the key to achieving an honest business environment and sustaina-ble growth. The articles submitted for the special edition will be aimed at clarifying knowledge about ethics from the perspective of the accounting profession. Suggested topics Taking the above into consideration, it is of great importance to obtain answers to the following questions: 1. What are the cross-cultural influences of accounting-related ethical dilemmas? 2. How can accounting ethics affect capital markets? 3. What are the practical barriers for accountants that make ethical behaviour in times of crisis more difficult? 4. What affects the adoption and implementation of the IFAC Code? 5. What is the role of auditors in promoting a higher level of ethical behaviour? 6. Why is accounting education so important in the development of ethics awareness in business and accounting practice? 7. What are the approaches in accounting ethics education? 8. What can be done to improve the quality of accounting ethics education? 9. What measures should be used to enhance accounting ethics? 10. How do accountants deal with the situations and circumstances that might create threats to their compliance with the fundamental principles and can their behaviour be compromised? 11. Which are the safeguards that accountants apply as a way of addressing the threats? 12. What is the role of the codes of ethics for management accountants developed by IMA and CIMA in resolving ethical dilemmas in the area of management accounting? Articles (ca. 40,000 characters) may present the results of research conducted using different methods, e.g., theoretical approaches or empirical approaches (surveys, case studies). We want to underline that the articles should pertain to the theme of the special issue of ZTR and should not have been published earlier in hard copy nor electronic version, whether in magazines, books, or conference materials. The deadline for submitting papers is 31st March 2021. The deadline for the publication of ZTR is 31st October 2021. Each manuscript should be prepared in accordance with the guidance given in the sec-tion “Instructions for authors” of our website: http://ztr.skwp.pl/resources/html/cms/FORAUTHORS. Articles should be submitted through the online ICI Publishers Panel: http://ztr.skwp.pl/resources/html/cms/DEPOSITSMANUSCRIPT When submitting an article, please enter that your article is for Special Issue 2021 with Guest Editor in the additional comment in the Publishers Panel Index Copernicus system. Coordinator of the Special Issue of ZTR with Guest Editor: dr hab. Halina Waniak- -Michalak (ztr@skwp.pl)

Causal and Corrective Organisational Culture: A Systematic Review of Case Studies of Institutional Failure

Organisational culture is assumed to be a key factor in large-scale and avoidable institutional failures (e.g. accidents, corruption). Whilst models such as “ethical culture” and “safety culture” have been used to explain such failures, minimal research has investigated their ability to do so, and a single and unified model of the role of culture in institutional failures is lacking. To address this, we systematically identified case study articles investigating the relationship between culture and institutional failures relating to ethics and risk management (n = 74). A content analysis of the cultural factors leading to failures found 23 common factors and a common sequential pattern. First, culture is described as causing practices that develop into institutional failure (e.g. poor prioritisation, ineffective management, inadequate training). Second, and usually sequentially related to causal culture, culture is also used to describe the problems of correction: how people, in most cases, had the opportunity to correct a problem and avert failure, but did not take appropriate action (e.g. listening and responding to employee concerns). It was established that most of the cultural factors identified in the case studies were consistent with survey-based models of safety culture and ethical culture. Failures of safety and ethics also largely involve the same causal and corrective factors of culture, although some aspects of culture more frequently precede certain outcome types (e.g. management not listening to warnings more commonly precedes a loss of human life). We propose that the distinction between causal and corrective culture can form the basis of a unified (combining both ethical and safety culture literatures) and generalisable model of organisational failure.

The moderating effects of prior trust on consumer responses to firm failures

Our paper examines how prior trust moderates consumer and firm responses to a firm's failures. We document that relatively high prior trust in a firm can help firms better recover from the negative effects of denying versus accepting failures, but that trust offers greater protection against competence as compared to ethical failures. We also consider the effects of two responses to ethical failures - external attribution and monetary compensation - and demonstrate that these responses may be viable alternatives that yield consumer perceptions that are as favorable as denying ethical failures. Finally, we show that reticence - neither confirming nor disconfirming a failure -elicits the least favorable post-recovery consumer responses. Our findings suggest that it may be possible for a firm to recover from an ethical failure even after accepting the failure, which is an important contribution since little prior research supports a successful recovery from ethical failures.

Spoiled milk: A Chinese mother’s struggle and the rebuilding of trust in state dairy enterprises

AbstractRecent research has highlighted the importance of cultivating the ethical climate of a firm with implications for ethical decision making and consumer confidence. However, there are important lessons still to be gleaned from firms responsible for generating ethical failures. Based on a case study of the Sanlu melamine milk powder scandal in China, this article analyzes the key factors that have affected consumer confidence in Sanlu and highlights main reasons for Chinese consumers’ continued distrust of state dairy enterprises. We explore the causes of business distrust in the Sanlu case from the perspective of Chinese product consumers. We further recommend solutions to repair a crisis of consumer confidence and trust in the domestic dairy industry by considering these stakeholders’ perspectives.

Why Financial Executives Do Bad Things: The Effects of the Slippery Slope and Tone at the Top on Misreporting Behavior

This paper employs theory of normal organizational wrongdoing and investigates the joint effects of management tone and the slippery slope on financial reporting misbehavior. In Study 1, we investigate assumptions about the effects of sliding down the slippery slope and tone at the top on financial executives’ decisions to misreport earnings. Results of Study 1 indicate that executives are willing to engage in misreporting behavior when there is a positive tone set by the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) (kind attitude toward employees and non-aggressive attitude about earnings), regardless of the presence or absence of a slippery slope. A negative tone set by the CFO does not facilitate the transition from minor indiscretions to financial misreporting. In Study 2, we find that auditors evaluating executives’ decisions under the same conditions as those in Study 1 do not react to the slippery slope condition, but auditors assess higher risks of fraud when the CFO sets a negative tone. Overall, our results indicate that many assumptions about the slippery slope and tone at the top should be questioned. We provide evidence that pro-organizational behaviors and incrementalism yield new insights into the causes of ethical failures, financial misreporting behavior, and failures of corporate governance mechanisms.

Relational Dependence in a Culture of Self-Creation: A Theological Query into the Health of the Medical World.

Half of the medical professionals in the United States are experiencing symptoms of burnout. From the perspective of theological anthropology, this dehumanizing aspect of the field is not reducible to ethical failures, for it is rooted in the radically new worldview known as self-creation. As an implicit denial of Christian understanding of creation, self-creation entails a rejection of relationality and dependence-both proper to the Revelation of Jesus Christ. This article proposes that this lost Christian patrimony is intimately connected to the increasingly unhealthy dependence we place upon modern medicine. Relying on theologian Joseph Ratzinger, we will come to see that a recovery of relational dependence is not only necessary for the salvation of man-but the very health of the medical world at large.

Call for papers for the special issue of Zeszyty Teoretyczne Rachunkowości in 2021 entitled Ethical Issues in Accounting in Prosperity and a Financial Crisis

Current and past economic and financial crises have changed the behaviour of busi-ness leaders, managers, and investors, as well as accounting professionals (financial accountants, bookkeepers, management accountants, auditors). The fear of further financial crises has forced accounting reforms, the revision of auditing standards, and a restructuring of corporate governance systems in many countries to provide a relia-ble framework for companies’ activities and performance. The International Federa-tion of Accountants (IFAC) board founded the International Ethics Standard Board for Accountants (IESBA), which issued the Code of Ethics for Professional Account-ants (IFAC Code) as a set of globally accepted guidelines for ethical conduct. The first version was published in 1990, and it was recommended (but not mandatory) for IFAC members to adopt. Establishing a unified code of ethics was one of the major achievements of IFAC that provided solid guidelines for accounting professionals across the world. Prior research indicates that the IFAC Code has been moderately successful in the attempt to harmonise ethics standards for professional accountants worldwide. As globalisation continues to affect business culture and technology, and, consequently, the focus of business, the accounting profession must keep pace and reassess its role in the world economy, but also in society. This is especially important during economic and financial crises, when the classic entrepreneurial model is not sustainable. Not only can a code of ethics can provide a framework for appropriate employee behaviour and establish a better corporate culture, it can also improve lead-ership, help organisations to comply with government guidelines, and enable organisa-tions to be more socially responsible. Many ethical issues could be explored in the con-text of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), not only in times of crisis. The high-profile ethical failures of professional accountants in recent decades taught us the importance of ethics education. A professional accountant’s responsibility is not exclusively to satisfy the needs of an individual client or employing organization. All accountants should act in the public interest by complying with fundamental ethical principles (integrity, objectivity, professional competence and due care, confidentiality, and professional behaviour) since these principles establish the standard of expected behaviour. Therefore, accounting ethics should be promoted much more in education and in practice. Accounting and business educators have a special responsibility to ex-amine and teach ethics in the broader context of globalisation. Regulations and volun-tary standards aim at minimizing fraud and manipulation of business information, but ethical behaviour is the key to achieving an honest business environment and sustaina-ble growth.

Ethical leadership, work engagement, employees’ well-being, and performance: a cross-cultural comparison

Unethical behaviours, such as blaming subordinates for their shortcomings, taking credit of others’ work, favouritism, and excessive publicising of ethical leadership failures are prominent among the leaders of the organisation. Although research has been conducted on ethical culture, particularly on the causes and effects of ethical-decision, few studies emphasised on the topics outside the business ethics research, such as employee well-being. Therefore, this study focused on the mediating effects of organisational ethical culture on the relationship between ethical leadership, work engagement, employees’ well-being, and performance. The data collection process involved the distribution of highly structured questionnaires to 697 employees working in Italian and Pakistani hospitality industry. This was followed by the analysis of cultural differences through measurement invariance tests and mediation techniques. As a result, it was found that ethical leadership and ethical culture have positive impact on employee wellbeing, work engagement and financial performance where ethical culture has relatively stronger influence on financial performance. The results also revealed that ethical leadership had a relatively stronger impact on the well-being of the Italian employees compared to Pakistani employees. However, the association between ethical leadership and work engagement was stronger among Pakistani employees. The study implications, limitations, and future research directions were presented hereunder.

How leader gender influences external audience response to organizational failures.

Across 3 studies, we examine how leader gender affects external audiences' reactions to organizational failures, and under what conditions such effects are likely to occur. We find that leader gender and failure type (ethical, competence) interact to affect individuals' perceptions of, and propensity to support, an organization after a failure. People respond more negatively to ethical failures when an organization has a female versus a male leader. In contrast, competence failures generally elicit a less negative response for female-led versus male-led organizations. These effects are mediated by trust in the organization. We also show that these relationships are moderated by factors that influence evaluators' communal perceptions of leaders (e.g., leader descriptions) or their expectations regarding organizational competence (e.g., gender congruence). Our findings contribute to the literatures on female leaders, organizational failures, and the influence of norms on evaluator judgments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Beyond petroleum or bottom line profits only? An ethical analysis of BP and the Gulf oil spill

AbstractOn April 20th, 2010, an incident was to take place 49 miles off the Louisiana coast at the Macondo Prospect location in the Gulf of Mexico that would potentially change the future of offshore oil drilling. On that day, 11 men would lose their lives when the 33,000 ton Deepwater Horizon rig, owned by Transocean but leased by BP PLC, exploded. As a result of the explosion, millions of barrels of oil would be released into the Gulf of Mexico, leading to widespread environmental harm and devastation to the shoreline communities. To better examine the underlying reasons for how such an event could take place in 2010, this paper will unfold as follows. First, we provide context to the oil spill by discussing the history of BP, including its transformation into an “environmental” firm in 1995. Second, we explore and analyze the catastrophe through the lens of ethics. Finally, we analyze the disaster through a comparison with the U.S. 2008 financial crisis with a view to identify the root causes of the disaster and the string of ethical failures that have scarred the market economy over the past three or four decades.

Tools and Incentives for Implementing Codes of Ethics to Help Prevent the Reemergence of Chemical Weapons

Since 1997, when the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) entered into force and the Organisation for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) was established, >97% of the world’s declared stockpile, comprising 70,372 t of chemical warfare agents, has been destroyed. Despite this notable progress, advances in chemical synthesis bring new challenges to preventing chemical weapons production. The development of ethical codes or guidelines such as The Hague Ethical Guidelines and the Global Chemists’ Code of Ethics (GCCE) and their voluntary adoption by chemical practitioners worldwide are important steps in strengthening international nonproliferation efforts through their potential to impact the intent of the individual by normalizing ethical behavior. However, the simple act of adopting a code or implementing Responsible Care initiatives does not guarantee ethical behavior. Individuals’ decisions often contribute to the seriousness of chemical incidents and accidents, even if the root causes are shortfalls in safety and/or security. History is replete with accounts of chemical incidents that were made worse due to ethics failures at the individual and/or corporate level. The cost associated with response and root cause investigations for such incidents can be massive, but knee-jerk reactions to push for more regulation or to establish more oversight mechanisms following the immediate impact and initial cleanup may require significantly more resources to execute. At their core, ethics failures often arise, at least partially, due to a lack of shared investment in the company’s mission. When people are guided by a shared mission, they are more likely to bring a sense of professionalism to their work and to hold each other accountable for ethical behavior. Scenario-based training can provide new employees opportunities to practice acting ethically, but it takes time and money to organize in-person training events. Careful implementation of scenario-based e-learning to teach behavioral expectations that compel trainees to practice and discuss ethics, however, can provide a meaningful way to ensure employees are provided the necessary opportunities to rehearse ethical behavior, regardless of where they are physically located. As individuals become comfortable identifying and standing up for what is right, they strengthen their resolve to act when issues arise in the future. Company managers and university professors alike have a duty to educate others on the importance of ethical behavior, capitalize on teachable moments to help others understand the principles behind the desired behaviors, encourage others to speak up and act when they see something wrong, and model the behaviors they seek. In so doing, they may actively participate in making the world a better place and minimize the potential for the reemergence of chemical weapons.