Aren’t Adults’ Ethics Fully Formed and Unchangeable?

Another false assumption guiding the view that business ethics can’t be taught is the belief that one’s ethics are fully formed and unchangeable by the time one is old enough to enter college or a job. However, this is definitely not the case. Research has found that through a complex process of social interaction with peers, parents, and other significant persons, children and young adults develop in their ability to make ethical judgments. This development continues at least through young adulthood. In fact, young adults in their twenties and thirties who attend moral development educational programs have been found to advance in moral reasoning even more than younger individuals do.18 Given that most people enter professional education programs and corporations as young adults, the opportunity to influence their moral reasoning clearly exists.

Business school students may need ethics training more than most because research has shown they have ranked lower in moral reasoning than students in philosophy, political science, law, medicine, and dentistry.19 Also, undergraduate business students and those aiming for a business career were found to be more likely to engage in academic cheating (test cheating, plagiarism, etc.) than were students in other majors or those headed toward other careers.20 At a minimum, professional ethics education can direct attention to the ambiguities and ethical gray areas that are easily overlooked without it. Consider this comment from a 27-year-old Harvard student after a required nine-session module in decision making and ethical values at the beginning of the Harvard MBA program.

Before, [when] I looked at a problem in the business world, I never consciously examined the ethical issues in play. It was always subconscious and I hope that I somewhat got it. But that [ethics] was never even a consideration. But now, when I look at a problem, I have to look at the impact. I’m going to put in this new ten-million-dollar project. What’s going to be the impact on the people that live in the area and the environment. . . . It’s opened my mind up on those things. It’s also made me more aware of situations where I might be walking down the wrong path and getting in deeper and deeper, to where I can’t pull back.

In 2004, Harvard’s MBA class of 1979 met for its 25-year reunion. The alumni gave the dean a standing ovation when he said that a new required course on values and leadership was his highest priority and then pledged to ‘‘live my life and lead the school in a way that will earn your trust.’’22

It should be clear from the above arguments that ethics can indeed be taught.

Ethical behavior relies on more than good character. Although good upbringing may provide a kind of moral compass that can help the individual determine the right direction and then follow through on a decision to do the right thing, it’s certainly not the only factor determining ethical conduct. In today’s highly complex organizations, individuals need additional guidance. They can be trained to recognize the ethical dilemmas that are likely to arise in their jobs; the rules, laws, and norms that apply in that context; reasoning strategies that can be used to arrive at the best ethical decision; and the complexities of organizational life that can conflict with one’s desire to do the right thing. For example, businesses that do defense-related work are expected to comply with a multitude of laws and regulations that go far beyond what the average person can be expected to know.

The question of whether ethics should be taught remains. Many still believe that ethics is a personal issue best left to individuals. They believe that much like proselytizing about religion, teaching ethics involves inappropriate efforts to impose certain values and control behavior. But we believe that employers have a real responsibility to teach employees what they need to know to recognize and deal with ethical issues they are likely to face at work. Failing to help employees recognize the risks in their jobs is like failing to teach a machinist how to operate a machine safely. Both situations can result in harm, and that’s just poor management. Similarly, we believe that, as business educators, we have a responsibility to prepare you for the complex ethical issues you’re going to face and to help you think about what you can do to lead others in an ethical direction.