Abstract
A model is presented which describes the process decision-makers follow when faced with problems containing ethical dimensions. The model, based upon the empirical literature, is designed to provide guidance to researchers studying ethical behavior in business. The model portrays the decision-maker with a set of personal values which are mediated by elements of the organization's culture. The combination of personal values and organizational influences yields decisions which may be significantly different from those made based upon personal values alone. Inclusion of the personal values of the decision-maker as the dominant individual input and an explicit discussion of the ethical decision process make this model more comprehensive than other recent ethics models.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allport, G. W.: 1981, Pattern and Growth in Personality (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, New York).
Ashforth, B. E.: 1985, ‘Climate Formation: Issues and Extensions’, Academy of Management Review 10 (October), pp. 837–847.
Bartels, R.: 1967, ‘A Model for Ethics in Marketing’, Journal of Marketing 31 (January), pp. 20–26.
Bartels, R.: 1963, Ethics in Business (Columbus, Ohio: Bureau of Business Research, Ohio State University).
Baumhart, R. C.: 1961, ‘How Ethical Are Businessmen?’, Harvard Business Review 39 (July–August), pp. 6–19, 156–176.
Becker, H. and Fritzsche, D. J.: 1988, ‘A Comparison of the Ethical Behavior of American, French and German Managers’, Columbia Journal of World Business 22 (Winter).
Becker, H. and Fritzsche, D. J.: 1987, ‘Business Ethics: A Cross-cultural Comparison of Managers' Attitudes’, Journal of Business Ethics 6, pp. 123–129.
Bettman, J. R.: 1979, An Information Processing Theory of Consumer Choice. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.
Brenner, S. N. and Molander, E. A.: 1977, ‘Is the Ethics of Business Changing?’ Harvard Business Review 55 (January–February), pp. 57–71.
Cavanagh, G. F., Moberg, D. J., and Velasquez, M.: 1981, ‘The Ethics of Organizational Politics’, Academy of Management Review 6 (July), pp. 363–374.
Chonko, L. B. and Burnett, J. J.: 1983, ‘Measuring the Importance of Ethical Situations As a Source of Role Conflict: A Survey of Salespeople, Sales Managers, and Sales Support Personnel’, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management (May), pp. 41–47.
Chonko, L. B. and Hunt, S. D.: 1985, ‘Ethics and Marketing Management: An Empirical Examination’, Journal of Business Research 13, pp. 339–359.
Connor, P. E. and Becker, B. W.: 1979, ‘Values and the Organization: Suggestions for Research’, in M. Rokeach, Ed., Understanding Human Values: Individual and Societal (New York: The Free Press).
England, G. W.: 1967, ‘Organizational Goals and Expected Behavior of American Managers’, Academy of Management Journal 10 (June), pp. 107–117.
England, G. W.: 1967, ‘Personal Value Systems of American Managers,’ Academy of Management Journal 10 (March), pp. 53–68.
Ferrell, O. C. and Gresham, L. G.: 1985, ‘A Contingency Framework for Understanding Ethical Decision Making in Marketing’, Journal of Marketing 49 (Summer), pp. 87–96.
Ferrell, O. C. and Weaver, K. N.: 1978, ‘Ethical Beliefs of Marketing Managers’, Journal of Marketing 42 (July), pp. 69–73.
Fritzsche, D. J.: 1988, ‘An Examination of Marketing Ethics: Role of the Decision Maker, Consequences of the Decision, Management Position and Sex of Respondent’, Journal of Macromarketing 8 (Winter), pp. 29–39.
Fritzsche, D. J.: 1985, ‘Ethical Issues in Multinational Marketing’ in Laczniak, G. R. and P. E. Murphy, Eds., Marketing Ethics: Guidelines for Managers (Lexington, MA: D. C. Heath and Company).
Fritzsche, D. J. and Becker, H.: 1983, ‘Ethical Behavior of Marketing Managers’, Journal of Business Ethics 2 pp. 291–299.
Fritzsche, D. J. and Becker, H.: 1984, ‘Linking Management Behavior to Ethical Philosophy — An Empirical Investigation’, Academy of Management Journal 27 (March), pp. 166–175.
Hegarty, W. H. and Sims, H. P. Jr.: 1978, ‘Some Determinants of Unethical Decision Behavior: An Experiment’, Journal of Applied Psychology 63, pp. 451–457.
Hunt, S. D., Chonko, L. B., and Wilcox, J. B.: 1984, ‘Ethical Problems of Marketing Researchers’, Journal of Marketing Research 21 (August), pp. 309–324.
Hunt, S. D. and Vitell, S.: 1986, ‘A General Theory of Marketing Ethics.’, Journal of Macromarketing 6 (Spring), pp. 5–16.
Jones, D. G. (ed.): 1978, Private and Public Ethics. New York: The Edwin Mellen Press.
Kohlberg, L.: 1978, ‘The Cognitive-Developmental Approach to Moral Education’, in P. Scharf, Ed., Readings in Moral Education. Minneapolis: Winston Press.
Kahle, L. R. (ed.): 1983, Social Values and Social Change: Adaptation to Life in America. New York: Prager Publishers.
Krugman, D. M. and Ferrell, O. C.: 1981, ‘The Organizational Ethics of Advertising: Corporate and Agency Views’, Journal of Advertising 10, pp. 21–30, 48.
Merton, R. K.: 1957, ‘The Role-Set’, British Journal of Sociology 8, pp. 106–120.
Murphy, P. E. and Laczniak, G. R.: 1981, ‘Marketing Ethics: A Review with Implications for Managers, Educators and Researchers’, in B. M. Enis and K. J. Roering, Eds., Review of Marketing (Chicago: American Marketing Association).
Niebuhr, R.: 1932, Moral Man and Immoral Society (New York: Scribner & Sons).
Posner, B. Z. and Schmidt, W. H.: 1978, ’Ethics in American Companies: A Managerial Perspective’, Journal of Business Ethics 6, pp. 383–391.
Posner, B. Z. and Schmidt, W. H.: 1984, ‘Values and the American Manager: An Update’, California Management Review 26 (Spring), pp. 202–216.
Rokeach, M.: 1979, ‘From Individual to Institutional Values: With Special Reference to the Values of Science’, in M. Rokeach, Ed., Understanding Human Values: Individual and Societal (New York: The Free Press).
Rokeach, M.: 1973, The Nature of Human Values (New York: The Free Press).
Rosenberg, R. D.: 1987, ‘Managerial Morality and Behavior: The Questionable Payments Issue’, Journal of Business Ethics 6, pp. 23–35.
Schein, E. H.: 1984, ‘Coming to a New Awareness of Organizational Culture’, Sloan Management Review 25 (Winter), pp. 3–16.
Schmidt, W. H. and Posner, B. Z.: 1982, ‘Managerial Values and Expectations: The Silent Power in Personal and Organizational Life. An AMA Survey Report’, New York: American Management Association.
Schmidt, W. H. and Posner, B. Z.: 1983, ‘Managerial Values in Perspective’, An AMA Survey Report. New York: American Management Association.
Smircich, L.: 1983, ‘Concepts of Culture and Organizational Analysis’, Administrative Science Quarterly 28 (September), pp. 339–358.
Sutherland, E. and Cressey, D. R.: 1970, Principles of Criminology, 8th ed. Chicago: Lippincott.
Trevino, L. K.: 1986, Ethical Decision Making in Organizations: A Person-situation Interactionist Model’, Academy of Management Review 11 (July), pp. 601–617.
Weaver, K. M. and Ferrell, O. C.: 1977, ‘The Impact of Corporate Policy on Reported Ethical Beliefs and Behavior of Marketing Practitioners’, In Greenburg, B. A. and Bellenger, D. N., Eds., Contemporary Marketing Thought '77 Educators' Proceedings, #41 Chicago: American Marketing Association, pp. 477–481.
Velasquez, M. G.: 1982, Business Ethics: Cases and Concepts. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.
Vitel, S. J. and Festervand, T. A.: 1987, ‘Business Ethics: Conflicts, Practices and Beliefs of Industrial Executives’, Journal of Business Ethics 6, pp. 111–122.
Zey-Ferrell, M., Weaver, K. M. and Ferrell, O. C.: 1979, ‘Predicting Unethical Behavior Among Marketing Practitioners’, Human Relations 32, pp. 557–569.
Zey-Ferrell, M. and Ferrell, O. C.: 1982, ‘Role-Set Configuration and Opportunity as Predictors of Unethical Behavior in Organizations’, Human Relations 35, pp. 587–604.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
David J. Fritzsche is Visiting Professor in the Department of Managing and Organization at the University of Washington. His articles have appeared in numerous journals and books. He is also a co-author of the Business Policy Game, a strategic management simulation.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fritzsche, D.J. A model of decision-making incorporating ethical values. J Bus Ethics 10, 841–852 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00383700
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00383700