Chapter 1 Comprehensive Study Guide: Business Ethics, Critical Thinking, and Decision-Making Frameworks

Vocabulary flashcards covering core concepts, levels of decision-making, reasoning types, and ethical frameworks from the lecture notes.

Business Ethics

The examination of the responsibilities owed to oneself and to others within the business environment, addressing questions of how individuals and businesses should act.

Practical Reasoning

A type of reasoning involved in determining what one ought to do, focusing on how one should act and behave.

Theoretical Reasoning

A type of reasoning aimed at establishing truth and determining what one should believe based on rationality and evidence.

Morality

The underlying value structures and moral systems that define personal integrity and guide individual choices regarding how one should live.

Normative Discipline

A field of study, such as ethics, that seeks an account of how and why people should act in a certain way, rather than describing how they actually act.

Descriptive Discipline

An approach, common in the social sciences, that provides a descriptive account of how and why people actually act without prescribing how they should act.

Norms

Standards of appropriate and proper behavior that establish guidelines for determining what one should do and how one should act.

Values

Those underlying beliefs that incline an individual or institution to choose one course of action or goal over another.

Ethical Values

Properties of life that contribute to human well-being and serve human ends in impartial rather than personal or selfish ways.

Separation Thesis

The belief that ordinary ethical standards should be kept separate from business decisions because business operates under its own distinct standards of good and bad.

Psychological Egoism

The theory implying that all human actions are inherently selfish and motivated exclusively by self-interest.

Stakeholder

Any individual or group who affects or is affected by decisions made within a firm, for better or worse.

Risk Assessment

A process to identify potential events that may affect an entity and to manage risk within its risk appetite to provide reasonable assurance regarding objectives.

Fiduciary

A position or obligation characterized by trust and responsibility owed to another party.

Transactional

A business interaction centered solely on providing a sale or service, where the relationship between parties ends once the transaction is complete.

Levels of Ethical Decision Making

The three tiers where ethical decisions occur: individual level, organizational level, and social/governmental level.

Ethical Decision-Making Process

A step-by-step framework consisting of: 1) Determine the facts, 2) Identify ethical issues, 3) Identify stakeholders, 4) Consider alternatives, 5) Weigh alternatives against stakeholder impacts, and 6) Make a decision.

Chain of Distribution

The network of stakeholders involved in bringing products to market, specifically sub-component manufacturers, manufacturers, suppliers, and retailers.

B Corp Certification

An independent third-party verification audited according to ISO 17021-1 requirements to demonstrate social, environmental, and governance standards.