Why we do what we do

1
Why we do what we do

• Understanding individual ethical behaviour

2
Our Journey

• FramingThe elusive nature of an important
  behaviour.
• Theory of the self
• Ethical behaviour as a part of a decision making
  process
• Individual vs. situational variables
• Putting it all together

3
Moral behaviour a mind map

• Context / situation
• Weak vs. Strong
• Script
• Stanford prison experiments

• Perspectives
• Business as a jungle
• Business as a game
• Business as war

• Individual variables
• Moral identity
• Locus of control
• Competitiveness

Values beliefs
Decision making process Awareness / Judgement
/Intent / Behaviour

• Self-regulatory processes
• Emotions
• Rationalization

• Moral reasoning
• Duties
• Consequences
• Justice
• Virtue

• Culture
• Nationality
• Organisational
• Department

4
What influences peoples behaviour?
Personal variables
)Moral) Behaviour
Situational variables
5
Decision Making process
An issue-contingent model of ethical decision
making in organizations / Adapted from Jones 1991
6
Self-regulation and rationalization
(Moral) Behavior
Mood Positive/Negative
Later behaviour
Bandura 1999
7
Rationalizations (Bandura 1999)

• Moral justification (It would have hurt her more
  if I told the truth)
• Euphemistic labelling (I am flexible with the
  truth)
• Advantageous comparison (This little lie is
  better than people who steal from their boss)
• Displacement of responsibility (He pushed me into
  a corner I had to lie)
• Diffusion of responsibility (We all decided
  together that this was the right thing to do)
• Disregard or distortion of consequences (A little
  lie never hurt anybody)
• Dehumanization (Hes a worm he doesnt deserve
  the truth)
• Attribution of blame (He left me no choice, I had
  to lie)

8
Putting it all together an example
Moral Disengagement
Moral Identity
Competitiveness
Affect Positive/Negative
Moral Behavior
Support for negative behaviour
9
Ethics It is the domain of obedience to the
unenforceable. That obedience is the obedience of
a man to that which he cannot be forced to obey.
He is the forcer of the law upon himself

• Lord Moulton 1924 (in Kidder 2003)

10

• Questions, anyone?