Part One

THEORIES UNDERLYING THE ISSUES AND PROBLEMS OF BUSINESS ETHICS

Business ethics is applied ethics that studies moral standards and shows how these apply to the systems and organizations involved in businesses. Business ethics studies moral norms and values, and aims to apply the conclusions gleaned from them to business which is carried out through a motley group of institutions, technologies, transactions, pursuits and activities. Such a study of business ethics is best served through a discussion of the basic framework of theories and principles that motivate and govern business behaviour. Once the underlying principles are learnt, we can proceed to discuss their implications for business.

Chapter 1 provides an overview of the subject matter; Chapter 2 discusses concepts and theories of business ethics; and Chapter 3 focuses on ethical dilemmas, their causes and possible resolutions. Chapters 4 and 5 discuss respectively the sources and consequences of ethical dilemmas and how they are resolved, and ethical decision making in business. A globalized business world throws up newer ethical challenges, issues and problems that are discussed in Chapter 5. Chapter 6 provides a framework of creating an ethical organization.

Cases attached to all these chapters illustrate how all these principles when put into practice are shown to impact business, sometimes positively, sometimes otherwise.