Ethics: Moral Dilemmas and Their Levels

Vocabulary flashcards covering the definitions, types, factors, and levels of moral dilemmas based on the lecture module.

Moral Dilemma (Kvalnes, 2019)

A situation in which a decision-maker must give preference to one moral principle over another when confronted with a challenging situation where two or more moral values disagree.

Self-Inflicted Dilemma

A moral dilemma, as defined by Kvalnes (2019), that arises as a result of a prior personal mistake.

Moral Dilemma (Kurie & Albin, 2007)

A situation in which people assume that they should morally do one thing and morally do another (or a third/fourth thing), but cannot execute any of these mutually contradictory choices together.

Ethical Dilemma (Figar & Dordevic, 2016)

A situation in which a person has to make a decision among competing alternatives regarding which is the right (ethical) alternative and which is the best.

Organizational Ethical Dilemma

As discussed by Lamberto et al. (2013), a situation that causes an organization to respond negatively or positively to an ethical issue affecting staff, shareholders, society, corporate ethics, and customers.

Unethical Leadership

A common organizational issue where a leader engages in abuse of leadership authority, accepts inappropriate gifts, or fails to act with candor and upright moral values.

Toxic Workplace Culture

An organizational issue where a leader fails to foster work-life balance, motivation, and employee happiness, negatively impacting performance and productivity.

Business Travel Ethics

An organizational ethical concern regarding the proper use of organizational funds and meal per diems during official travel.

Individual Moral Dilemma

As defined by Smith (2018), a situation where an individual confronts factors such as peer pressure, personal financial position, and economic and social status that influence ethical standards.

Structural Moral Dilemma

The ongoing universal challenge of selecting a proper system of responsibilities and relationships within an organization.

Differentiation vs. Integration

A structural moral dilemma involving conflict between the distribution of jobs and the organization of activities, where increased complexity requires balancing management techniques and lateral approaches.

Gap vs. Overlap

A structural dilemma where main tasks are not explicitly defined causing critical jobs to slip through, or functions overlap causing conflict, wasted time, and duplicated responsibilities.

Lack of Clarity vs. Lack of Creativity

A structural dilemma where unclear task expectations lead employees to adapt jobs to personal interests, whereas over-defined duties lead to rigid bureaucratic compliance regardless of product or service failure.

Excessive Autonomy vs. Excessive Interdependence

A structural dilemma where isolated individuals/groups stem from excessive independence, while overly connected responsibilities cause distraction and wasted time on excessive coordination.