Level Of Ethical Reasoning Research Articles

The effect of a Kohlberg’s theory of moral development-based intervention on ethical reasoning in nurse interns at Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences

Background and aims: Nursing students represent one of the most important healthcare professionals in the health system that, along with acquiring knowledge and practical skills, should learn professional values and attitudes and nursing care ethics. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of an intervention based on Kohlberg’s theory of moral development on the ethical reasoning of nurse interns. Methods: The present quasi-experimental study was conducted with participation of 72 nurse interns in the teaching Ayatollah Kashani and Hajar hospitals affiliated to Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences from 2019 to 2021. The nurse interns were first selected based on the inclusion criteria by census and then randomly assigned to two groups of 36 each, namely, intervention and control. In the intervention group, educational content was performed in four sessions of one and a half hours within one month. Data collection tools included a demographic characteristics checklist and Nursing Dilemma Test (NDT) which was administered at baseline and immediately and one month after the intervention to both groups. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 24 using descriptive and analytical tests such as paired t-test, independent t-test and Fisher’s exact test at a significance level of 0.05. Results: The mean (±standard deviation) score of ethical reasoning before the moral intervention were 39.16±5.74 in the control group and 39.22±1.09 in the intervention group, with no statistically significant difference by independent t test (P=0.831). The mean±standard deviation score of this variable immediately after the moral intervention was obtained 39.08±5.26 in the control group and 39.41±6.58 in the intervention group, with no statistically significant difference by independent t test (P=0.370). But the mean±standard deviation score of ethical reasoning one month after the moral intervention was 38.94±5.68 in the control group and 47.77±6.71 in the intervention group, with a statistically significant difference by independent t test (P=0.001). Conclusion: Given that most nursing students have a low level of ethical reasoning, it is necessary for nursing managers to pay more attention to the issue of professional ethics in educating students in this field. The results of the present study indicated the desirable impact of Kohlberg’s moral intervention on the ethical reasoning of nurse interns, so it is recommended to give serious attention to the use of Kohlberg’s theory of moral development -based interventions in the education of nursing students.

Ethical reasoning in tax practice: Law or is there more?

Private sector tax practitioners are often accused of unethical behavior in developing contrived tax avoidance arrangements. Such arrangements usually comply with the letter of the law but contravene its underlying (often unstated) ‘spirit’. Prior research comparing the ethical reasoning of private sector tax practitioners, government revenue tax practitioners and a non-tax (control) group in both social and tax contexts found no significant differences between them in a social context. However, where tax dilemmas were concerned, private sector tax practitioners demonstrated lower levels of ethical reasoning. We seek here to examine whether this difference results from the regard private sector tax practitioners have for the law – in other words, whether they have a law and order orientation when facing ethical issues or whether the professional context offers other motives. Using the Defining Issues Test (DIT) and a tax-specific context version of the DIT, we test whether there is a law and order dominance in the ethical reasoning of private sector tax practitioners in both tax and social contexts, in comparison with government revenue tax practitioners and a non-tax control group.

Nurses' Perceptions of Ethical Climate, Ethical Reasoning, and Moral Courage in the Hospital

Background & Aims: The ethical climate of nurses' work environment makes the nurse achieve higher levels of ethical reasoning by participating in decision making. Although making decisions is essential, responding appropriately to situations and overcoming fear requires moral courage. The study aimed to determine the nurses' understanding of the hospital's moral climate, reasoning, and moral courage. Materials & Methods: The present study is a cross-sectional descriptive performed on 87 nurses working in Meybod and Ardakan hospitals in March 2020. The Hospital Ethical Climate Survey (HECS), Nursing Dilemma Test (NDT), and Professional Moral Courage (PMC) questionnaire were used to collect data. Data were analyzed using SPSS software, v. 16, and descriptive and analytical statistics of Pearson, independent t-test. Results: The age range of participants was 24-50 years, with a Mean±SD of 32.97±7.26. The average score of ethical climate was 83.72±17.42, moral reasoning was obtained at 45.00±6.91, and moral courage was 45.55±6.04. Significant differences were found between gender and perception of the Ethical Climate (P=0.03). But other individual characteristics of nurses were not significantly different from the studied variables (P> 0.05). Conclusion: According to the findings, the average score of the three variables of nurses' perception of the ethical climate in the hospital, Moral Courage and moral reasoning, was higher than the average score that It reflects the appropriateness of the Ethical Climate in the hospital and the desirable ability of nurses to deal with moral tensions and critical situations. According to the results, the average score of the three variables of nurses 'perception of the Ethical Climate in the hospital, Moral Courage, and moral reasoning, was higher than the average score, which does not indicate the appropriateness of the moral atmosphere in the hospital and nurses' ability to cope with moral tensions. However, due to the need for continuous upgrading and improvement of organizations and human resources working in it, it is suggested to improve the Ethical Climate of hospitals by planning and using appropriate interventions and to promote Moral Courage and moral reasoning in nurses.

Relationship Between Ethical Reasoning and Professional Values among Nursing Students

Background and Objective: In nursing, an appropriate level of ethical reasoning leads to the provision of better quality care to patients and an increase in job satisfaction among nurses. Professional values are important parts of this profession, and nurses are obliged to adjust their activities in accordance with these values. This study aimed to investigate the level of ethical reasoning and attitude of professional values in final year nursing students of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran, in 2020. Materials and Methods: The present descriptive cross-sectional study was performed on 125 senior undergraduate nursing students by census method. The data collection tool was a three-part questionnaire consisting of a demographic information form, Nursing Dilemma Test, and Nurses Professional Values Scale-Revised Questionnaire. Questionnaires were distributed in person and electronically. Data analysis was performed in SPSS 26 software. Results: Data analysis showed that there was no significant relationship between ethical reasoning and professional values (r=0.023, P=0.79). The mean score of students' moral reasoning was reported to be above average (46.4±6.84). Moreover, the mean score of students' professional values was obtained at a desirable level (96.84±9.28). Conclusion: Although there was no significant relationship between students' moral reasoning and professional values, to raise the level of moral reasoning and institutionalize professional values in students, it is essential to have an educational plan in college.

Limitations of Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority’s Code of Ethics

According to the Corporations Amendment Act 2017 (Australia) and Corporations Act 2001 (Australia), the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority has issued a final version of Financial Planners and Advisers Code of Ethics (FASEA’s Code of Ethics) that will commence on 1 January 2020. Focused on FASEA’s Code of Ethics, our paper argues that the adoption of this Code of Ethics and accepting the fiduciary responsibility by financial advisers will be challenging as the code lacks integration and preciseness.Research Design/Methodology: This a study based on secondary sources, taken from varied journals, reports and online sources.Findings: FASEA’s Code of Ethics is not aligned with the code of ethics of other professional bodies who are to monitor its implementation. Our paper also raises the question about legislation of standards for ethics based on general values. The new code of ethics fails to build the connection between unethical behavior and its consequences. Our paper discusses the components of FASEA’s Code of Ethics and the new increased educational requirements that are proposed by the FASEA’s Code of Ethics. Also, the problem of ‘informed consent’ conflict is not resolved. Therefore, its acceptance by the professional financial bodies is unlikely to help enhance the clients’ perception about the competence and integrity of the financial adviser, which was one of the main goals of the FASEA’s Code of Ethics.Research Limitations: Financial Planners and Advisers Code of Ethics need an ongoing observation, the data we have is constantly being adjusted by official authorities.Originality/Value: Our suggestions include evaluation of value added by additional layer of the FASEA’s Code of Ethics and indicate clearly the obligations of Code Monitoring Bodies so as to clarify the interaction between the FASEA’s Code of Ethics and other professional codes of ethics. FASEA should also balance the relationships among education requirements, practice experience and ethical reasoning levels so that the adoption of the code is more acceptable to the advisers.

Auditors’ ethical reasoning in developing countries: the case of Egypt

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate Egyptian auditors’ ethical reasoning, to understand whether auditors’ ethical reasoning is influenced by audit firm size and/or auditor’s position.Design/methodology/approachThis paper draws on 178 questionnaires that include six different ethical scenarios. This paper also uses the accounting ethical dilemma instrument that is developed by Thorne (2000) to measure the ethical reasoning of Egyptian auditors.FindingsThe findings are threefold. First, this study finds that the general level of deliberative ethical reasoning of auditors working in the Central Auditing Organization (CAO) and small firms are categorized in the post-conventional level, while auditors working in big and medium firms are categorized in conventional level. Second, the result suggests that there is a negative relationship between ethical reasoning and audit firm size in Egypt. Finally, the results show that ethical reasoning levels decrease when the position of auditors increase except for auditors working in CAO.Originality/valueThis study adds to the scarce literature in developing countries that measure auditors’ ethical reasoning. The findings suggest that auditors’ ethical reasoning depends on auditor’s firm size and the position the auditor holds within the firm. These findings will aid policymakers and regulators, especially in developing countries, to avoid any potential risk regarding professional misconduct and in evaluating the adequacy of the current code of ethics.

More Than Trolleys

As the act of driving becomes increasingly automated, vehicles will encounter situations where different objectives of safety, mobility, and legality will come into conflict. These situations require a vehicle to compare relative values of different entities and objectives, where the action of the vehicle has a moral component. While discussion of these scenarios often focuses on the “trolley problem” thought experiment, these types of life-or-death moral dilemmas may be rare in practice. This article identifies four far more common examples of routine driving that require decisions with some level of ethical reasoning about how to distribute risk. These scenarios may be useful for automated vehicle developers in assessing vehicle safety and responding to potential future regulations, as well as for regulators in developing performance requirements.

Evaluating and comparing the ability of ethical reasoning for nursing students and nurses working in the teaching hospitals affiliated to Ilam University of Medical Sciences in 2017

Nurses have deep relationships with patients. They encounter a lot of situations in their work environment during the day.These situations require ethical decisionmaking. The ability of ethical reasoningis necessary for moral decision making. This study aimed to compare the ability of ethical reasoning of nursing students and nurses working in the teaching hospitals affiliated to Ilam University of Medical Sciences. This descriptive-analytic study was conducted in 2017 in the teaching hospitals affiliated to Ilam University of Medical Sciences. The sample consisted of 122 third-and fourth year-nursing students at Ilam Nursing and Midwifery Faculty as well as 380 nurses who were selected randomly. Data were collected using nursing dilemma test questionnaire. The descriptive-analytic statistical tests and SPSS (version 24) were used for data analysis. Findings showed that there was no significant difference between mean scores of ethical reasoning of nursing students and nurses (p = 0.803). Moreover, there was no significant relationship between the level of ethical reasoning and individual characteristics of nursing students and nurses such as age, gender, educational level, marital status, work experience and working area of employed nurses (P> 0.05). Educational programs such as workshops and continuous education courses will be useful in developing ethical reasoning for nursing students and nurses. © 2019, Advanced Scientific Research. All rights reserved.

Ethics Cases: Do they Elicit Different Levels of Ethical Reasoning?

Ethics education is widely accepted as a fundamental component of health care professionals’ personal and professional development (Goldie 2000). Universities must be satisfied that students have reached a minimum standard of ethical competence as well as clinical competence before they enter their chosen professions (Wong and Cheung 2003). However, educators have questioned whether bioethics courses adequately prepare graduates to manage the ethical issues they experience in professional practice (Elkin 2004). Student evaluations indicate formal ethics courses are helpful for introducing theoretical concepts but provide limited strategies for responding to practice dilemmas (West and Chur-Hansen 2004). Perceived gaps between ethical philosophies taught in university classrooms and ‘real life’ professional experiences remain a key challenge for educators (Cowley 2005; Kirklin 2007). Such gaps may persist when teaching focusses upon sensational or oversimplified examples that bear little semblance to the ethical issues that typically occur in professional practice (Coope 1996). Outcomes of ethics education may be strongly influenced by what students observe and experience during professional socialization (Saat et al. 2012) and students may experience miss-matches between content of ethics classes and perceptions of academic and clinical staff members’ responses towards professional issues (Hafferty and Franks 1994). Furthermore, an emphasis upon reactive approaches to ethical dilemmas may not prepare students to adopt proactive ethical decision making in diverse professional practice contexts (Verges 2010). J Acad Ethics (2015) 13:259–275 DOI 10.1007/s10805-015-9234-6

Ethics Education and Accounting Students’ Level of Moral Development: Experimental Design in Tunisian Audit Context

This study explores the influence of ethics education on accounting students’ level of ethical reasoning in Tunisia. Based on cognitive developmental theory, we tested the effectiveness of an ethics intervention before and after ethics education with a control group. A triangulated research design was incorporated. Experimental and qualitative methods were used to control for experimental bias. This study revealed that the progress of moral development was not significant between the pre-test and the post-test. Data analysis revealed the primary challenges in teaching ethics in the Tunisian audit context. Through a confirmatory qualitative survey, stating “the consequences of unethical behaviour in the long term” demonstrates that the intervention meets the primary interest of this study, and it may influence auditors’ decisions and their perceptions of the potential consequences of their decisions.

Analyzing Reflective Narratives to Assess the Ethical Reasoning of Pediatric Residents

A limiting factor in ethics education in medical training has been difficulty in assessing competence in ethics. This study was conducted to test the concept that content analysis of pediatric residents' personal reflections about ethics experiences can identify changes in ethical sensitivity and reasoning over time. Analysis of written narratives focused on two of our ethics curriculum's goals: 1) To raise sensitivity to ethical issues in everyday clinical practice and 2) to enhance critical reflection on personal and professional values as they affect patient care. Content analysis of written reflections was guided by a tool developed to identify and assess the level of ethical reasoning in eight domains determined to be important aspects of ethical competence. Based on the assessment of narratives written at two times (12 to 16 months/apart) during their training, residents showed significant progress in two specific domains: use of professional values, and use of personal values. Residents did not show decline in ethical reasoning in any domain. This study demonstrates that content analysis of personal narratives may provide a useful method for assessment of developing ethical sensitivity and reasoning.

Comparison of ethical reasoning in nursing students and nurses in

Abstract Background and aim High ethical reasoning ability is one of the main requirements of nursing profession. This ethical reasoning should be improved in nursing student during educational period. It should be further evolved during their independent clinical work as a nurse. Limited evidences are exist about the level of ethical reasoning of nursing students and nurses in Iran. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare the ethical reasoning of nursing students and nurses in Tabriz University of Medical Sciences . Materials and Methods This descriptive-comparative study was performed on 115 nursing students and 269 nurses who were selected by census. Nursing Dilemma Test NDT questionnaire was used for data collection. It consists of 6 scenarios. Ethical reasoning score (Nursing Principled Thinking NP) was the sum of scores of fifth and sixth levels of Kohlberg ethical development questionnaire. The scores varied from 18 to 66. The data were analyzed using SPSS and by descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings Ethical reasoning score of nursing students (48.9±6.5; mean±SD) was significantly higher than the score of nurses (46.6±6.7) (p=0.02). Also it was found that NP scores of nurses working in medical wards are significantly higher than scores of other wards nurses (p=0.02). NP scores were declined by increasing of clinical experience (p= 0.04). Conclusion Lower NP scores of nurses comparing with NP scores of nursing students is an alarm for nursing managers and need a special attention. Keywords : Ethic, Ethical reasoning, Kohlberg, Nurses, Nursing students. * Corresponding author: Azad rahmani. PhD student in nursing education, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran. E-mail: azadrahmanims@yahoo.com REFERENCES -Auvinen J Suominen T Leino-Kilpi H et al (2004). The development of moral judgment during nursing education in Finland. Nurse Education Today. 24 (7) 538-546. -Bandman E Bandman B (1990). Nursing Ethics through the Life Span. Washington: Appleton & Lange Company. -Borhani F Abbaszadeh A Kohan M et al (2010). [Comparison of the moral reasoning ability of nurses and nursing students at Kerman University of Medical Sciences in dealing with ethical problems]. Journal of Medical Ethics and History. 4 (1) 74-76. (Persian) -Burnard P Chapman C (2003). Professional and Ethical Issues in Nursing, Edinburgh, Bailliere Tindall co. -Chinn PL Kramer MK (1999). Theory and Nursing: Integrated Knowledge Development. St. Louis: Mosby. -Fry S (1989). Towards a theory of nursing ethics. ANS Advances in Nursing Sciences. 11 (4) 9-22. -Fry S (2002). Defining nurse's ethical practices in the 21 st century. International Nursing Review. 49 (1) 1-3. -Ham K (2002). A comparison of ethical reasoning abilities of senior baccalaureate nursing students and experienced nurses (doctoral dissertation). The University of Memphis, United States of America. -Krawczyk R (1997). Teaching ethics: Effect on moral development. Nursing Ethics. 4 (1) 56-65. -Kelly B (1998). Preserving moral integrity: A follow up study with new graduate nurses. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 28(5) 113-45. -Ketefian S (1981). Moral reasoning and moral behavior among selected groups of practicing nurses. Nursing Research. 30(3) 171-76. -Kudzma EAC (1980). Moral reasoning of nurses in the work setting (dissertation) Massachusetts, Boston University School of Nursing. -Mayberry M (1986). Ethical decision making: A response of hospital nurses. Nursing Administration Quarterly. 10 (3) 75-81. -Murray N (1995). Moral reasoning in male and female nurses: A care perspective (dissertation). New Jersey: State University of New Jersey. -Negarandeh R Ghobadi S (2001). [Examination of knowledge and attitudes of nurses and midwives in Zanjan hospitals toward ethical issues]. Journal of Zanjan University of Medical Sciences and Health, 36, 55-58. (Persian) -Newfield S Newfield N Sperry J et al (2002). Ethical decision making among family therapists and individual therapist. Family Process. 39 (2) 177-88. -Numminen O Leino Kilpt H (2007). Nursing student's ethical decision making: A review of literature. Nurse Education Today. 27 (7) 796-801. -Pike AW (2010). I don’t know how ethical I am: An investigation into the practices nurses use to maintain their moral integrity (dissertation) Massachusetts: Boston University. -Rodney P Varcoe C Storch J et al (2002) Navigating towards a moral horizon: A multisite qualitative study of ethical practice in nursing. Canadian Journal of Nursing. 34 (3) 75-102. -Schroter K (2002). Ethic in preoperative practice- principles and application. AORN J. 75 (4) 818-24. -Schroeter K (2002). Ethics in preoperative practice- patient advocacy. AORN J. 75 (5) 941-4

Examining the relationship between pre-service teachers' ethical reasoning levels and their academic dishonesty levels: A structural equation modelling approach

Academic dishonesty has recently been described as an epidemic illness and a phenomenon to be definitely prevented. Accordingly, prospective teachers are expected to have high ethical judgement levels. The section who suffers most from academic dishonesty is also teachers who serve in various ranks. Individuals with high ethical judgement levels are expected to have low dishonesty levels. In this sense, ethical judgement levels are thought to have a predictor effect on academic dishonesty levels. In this study, the data is collected from 1553 prospective teachers in two universities. The results of the study have supported the hypotheses that ethical judgement levels, genders and accommodations of prospective teachers significantly predict their academic dishonesty levels while the hypothesis that universities, departments and class levels of prospective teachers have a significant effect on their academic dishonesty levels is proven wrong. Key words: Academic dishonesty, ethical reasoning, prospective teacher.

Ethical reasoning differences between accountants and managers

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to test whether significant differences in ethical reasoning exist between Chinese accountants and managers when facing an ethical dilemma. Further tests are conducted to identify what professional contextual factors and personal value preferences can be introduced to explain the ethical reasoning differences observed.Design/methodology/approachThree research questions are raised and related hypotheses are developed and tested by the use of a defined issue test (DIT) instrument containing four hypothetical scenarios of different dilemmatic issues, and a Rokeach values survey questionnaire adapted to suit the Chinese business culture.FindingsThe findings and conclusions include: Chinese managers and accountants are not significantly differentiated in terms of ethical reasoning levels measured by the overall DIT instrument, however, the break‐down results of the DIT individual dilemmatic scenarios shows that significant differences exist between the two professional types in three out of four scenarios. Second, gender and frequency of making compromises are two significant contextual determinant of ethical reasoning levels of managers but not those of accountants, and for the accountants, no significant contextual factors are observed in the current study. Third, in determining the impacts of value preferences on ethical reasoning levels, the four‐factor classification approach produces a more contrasting result than the seven‐factor classification approach.Research limitations/implicationsThe selection of the four scenarios in the DIT instrument is subjective according to the designation of the test, and Chinese business profession's ethical ideologies might differ among different regions. However, these research limitations might inspire further ethics research on cross‐regional comparisons in China and other emerging economies.Practical implicationsIn Chinese surging markets, appropriate socio‐economic order can only be maintained by highly ethical reasoning and conduct on the part of business managers and accountants. The current results and findings would help to identify what factors and value preferences weigh more, in order to improve the professional ethicality.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the research literature of business ethics by adding a managers‐accountants comparative study on ethical reasoning differences, especially the ethicality of two different professions in emerging economies; further, it includes contextual factors and value preferences in identifying those determinants of ethical reasoning differences.

Ethics And Executives: A Cross-Cultural Comparison Of Japan, Taiwan, And The United States

Globalization has facilitated the interaction of people from diverse cultures. As more firms now operate internationally, ethical issues tend to increase, and thus managers nowadays face more complicated situations that challenge their ability to reason morally. In the previous studies, cultural difference is often used to explain the ethical conflicts between home and host country. This research investigates the moral reasoning abilities of top-level business managers of three cultural groupsthe U.S. and Japanese expatriate managers in Taiwan, and local Taiwanese managers. Kohlbergs (1969, 1976, 1984b) theory of cognitive moral development (CMD) and Rests Defining Issues Test Version Two (DIT-2) were used to access the level of ethical reasoning of these business practitioners. Hofstedes (2001) theory of cultural dimensions was used to describe differences among these managers. A DIT-2 survey packet was sent to 750 managerial and executive level employees at a variety of organizations in Taiwan. Results indicate that personal characteristics (gender, age, education level) and organizational factors (ethics code, ethical training) may not significantly affect ones ethical perception. Conversely, cultural difference may be diminished and possible ethical convergence may appear through acculturation to local business environment.

Are Female Accountants More Ethical Than Male Accountants: A Comparative Study Between The U.S. And Taiwan

The purpose of this study is to determine and compare the ethical reasoning levels of accounting students in the U.S. and Taiwan based on gender. This research found that female accounting students possess higher levels of ethical reasoning than male students. The means of the DIT P and N2 scores for females are higher than males by 20% and 18.5% respectively. The results show that there is no significant difference of the ethical reasoning abilities of male accounting students between the U.S. and Taiwan. The results also show that there is no significant difference between the ethical reasoning levels of female accounting students in Taiwan and the ethical reasoning levels of female accounting students in the U.S.

Accountants’ cognitive styles and ethical reasoning: A comparison across 15years

Recent attention to accountants’ ethics in the news, in professional practice, and by academia leads to questions about the ethical and cognitive characterization of students selecting accounting careers. We employ the Myers/Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) for assessing cognitive styles, and the Defining Issues Test (DIT) for assessing ethical reasoning to study differences between two groups of accounting graduates and new hires entering the accounting profession across a period of 15 years. We show that the dominant cognitive make-up of accountants has not changed significantly over the study period, which is consistent with prior research. Also, we hypothesize and provide evidence that this dominant style is associated with lower levels of ethical reasoning (as measured by the DIT) than other cognitive styles. The ethical reasoning scores are lower for the 2005 sample than for the 1990 sample. This result may be attributable to age, gender, grade point average, or political orientation; however, incomplete data in our sample does not allow us to make definitive conclusions regarding these control variables. We discuss the implications of these findings for curriculum development and professional practice.

An Exploratory Study of Chinese Accounting Students’ and Auditors’ Audit-specific Ethical Reasoning

This study uses three audit-specific ethical dilemmas to assess the level of ethical reasoning between Chinese accounting students (as proxies for new entrants to the auditing profession) and experienced auditors. A sample of U.S. accounting students is used as a base for comparison. Consistent with expectations based on particularly salient aspects of Chinese national culture, we find the Chinese students’ levels of ethical reasoning to be significantly lower than those of their U.S. counterparts in the two cases that invoked these cultural attributes. In contrast, the Chinese students’ level of ethical reasoning is slightly higher than that of the U.S. students in the third, control case. We further find that the Chinese auditors’ levels of ethical reasoning are even lower than those of the Chinese students in two cases, while not being significantly different in the third. Together, these findings suggest that cross-national differences in auditors’ ethical reasoning depend on the nature of the ethical dilemma and caution against wholesale inferences about ethical reasoning levels in China.

Does Class Matter? The Effect of Social Class on Journalists' Ethical Decision Making

This study investigated experimentally whether social class of people who appear in news stories influences Chilean journalists' ethical reasoning. Based on schema, social identity, and moral development theories, it found that journalists applied lower levels of ethical reasoning when faced with an ethical dilemma associated with the poor, an effect moderated by participants' involvement in the story. Psychological mechanisms—such as involvement, mental elaboration about stories' subjects, and identification with them—influenced participants' ethical thinking.

Does Selection-Socialization Help to Explain Accountants' Weak Ethical Reasoning?

Recent business headlines, particularly those related to the collapsed energy-trading giant, Enron and its auditor, Arthur Andersen raise concerns about accountants' ethical reasoning. We propose, and provide evidence from 90 new auditors from Big-Five accounting firms, that a selection-socialization effect exists in the accounting profession that results in hiring accountants with disproportionately higher levels of the Sensing/Thinking (ST) cognitive style. This finding is important and relevant because we also find that the ST cognitive style is associated with relatively low levels of ethical reasoning, regardless of gender. This finding implies a need for emphasis on the ethical training of accountants. The results also suggest that accounting firms should consider recruiting accountants with cognitive styles associated with relatively higher levels of ethical reasoning.