OU business ethics final 2019

1. According to Freeman, the central question when thinking about the obligations of firms is for whose benefit and at what expense should the firm be managed?

True

1. According to Freeman, the law already requires firm managers to take into account the claims of stockholders who do not have any ownership stake.

True

1. Which of the following does Freeman NOT specifically mention as a stakeholder group?

a. Suppliers

b. Customers

c. Employees

d. None of the above

None of the above

1. According to Freeman, stakeholders theory requires that we strictly segregate the business roles of the firm from the ethical roles.

false

1. According to Shaw, even open-minded people may operate on implicit assumptions that work to the disadvantage of women and minorities.

true

1. The median wealth of white households today is roughly how many times that of Hispanic or African-American households?

a. 4

b. 6

c. 10

d. none of the above - there is no statistically significant difference between the three groups

10

1. Surveys have indicated that male managers frequently assume that women...

a. Are too emotional to be good managers

b. Lack the necessary drive to succeed in business

c. Place family demands above work consideration

d. All of the above

all of the above

1. According to Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidelines, affirmative action programs involve...

a. Quota systems for hiring to ensure minority representation in a firm

b. Supportive in-house and community programs to combat discrimination

c. Selective job standards for members of historically marginalized groups

d. All of the above

b. Supportive in-house and community programs to combat discrimination

1. According to Bok and Duska, loyalty cannot require you to behave immorally.

True

1. According to Duska, the kinds of relationships that loyalty requires are precisely the kinds of relationships that one finds in business.

a. False - he believes that a firm is not a person, therefore does not require you to be loyal to it

1. An agent is a person who acts in the interest of someone else (known as a principal)

True

1. According to Bok, whistleblowing involves...

a. Dissent: exposing what is hidden against the will of your employer

b. Accusation: the claim that your employer is hurting the public interest

c. Breach of loyalty: a violation of a defeasible obligation to go along with team leaders

d. All of the above

d. All of the above

1. Friedman's argument for shareholder primacy is based on...

a. Teleology

b. Feminism

c. Utilitarianism

d. Libertarianism

d. Libertarianism

1. According to Friedman, managers should focus on stockholder interests because...

a. Doing so maximizes economic output

b. Stockholders are their natural superiors

c. As employees, that is what they have contracted to do

d. None of the above

c. As employees, that is what they have contracted to do

1. In the context of employment-at-will...

a. Employers must hire only employees who exhibit a good will (in Kant's sense)

b. Employers may fire employees only with two weeks notice and severance pay

c. Employees may quit their jobs only with two weeks notice to their employers

d. None of the above

d. None of the above

1. According to Orlando, a manager's fiduciary responsibility to shareholders requires that the manager must always put shareholder interests ahead of employee interests.

a. False - only Friedman thinks that, Orlando thinks that shareholder & employee interests should be treated equally

1. According to Orlando, most shareholders do not have a reasonable expectation of input into the firm's decision-making.

True

1. According to Hochshild, emotional labor is...

a. When a firm's workforce is too emotional to complete its work

b. When an employer requires employees to induce or suppress emotions as a part of the job

c. Both a and b

d. None of the above

b. When an employer requires employees to induce or suppress emotions as a part of the job

1. According to Bok, employees have a defeasible (i.e. non-absolute) obligation to go along with their employer's wishes.

True

1. Which of the following are among considerations Bok says would-be whistleblowers should take into account before blowing the whistle?

a. The truth of the accusation to be made

b. The harms and benefits whistleblowing will bring to the public

c. The harms and benefits whistleblowing will bring to the firm and its employees

d. The harms and benefits whistleblowing will bring to the whistleblower

e. All of the above

e. All of the above

1. According to Duska, an individual cannot be loyal to a group of any kind.

a. False - He believes that we must be loyal to individual people, not to a firm.

1. According to Friedman, shareholders are only ever interested in profits for themselves.

a. False - they are interested in maximizing profit for the company

1. In an agent-principal relationship, the agent is bound to act in the interests of the principal, no matter what the principal wants.

a. False - the agent can go against the principal if they think what they want is morally wrong

1. According to Stone, managers should always seek to maximize profits because this goal serves as a "polestar" - pursuing it leads to benefits for all stakeholders.

a. False - managers should not always seek to maximize profits if they will be doing immoral things

1. According to Freeman, which of the following parties are among the stakeholders in a firm's success?

a. The firm's stockholders

b. The firm's bondholders

c. The firm's employees

d. The local community

e. All of the above

e. All of the above

1. According to Shaw, affirmative action is a form of reverse job discrimination.

a. False - affirmative action is meant to aid those being discriminated against

1. According to Shaw, most proponents of affirmative action policies think that non-discrimination policies are sufficient on their own to rectify race and gender based hiring inequalities.

a. False - he knows that it will take more than a policy to stop discrimination

1. According to the ideology of colorblind racism, racial inequalities are explained by the biological inferiority of racial minorities.

False

1. According to Savan, advertising touches our lives frequently

True

1. According to Savan, advertising usually works by denigrating us (e.g. "you are pathetic and you will stay pathetic unless you use our product").

a. False - it works by threatening perceived status (e.g. "you won't be able to stay 'with it' unless you use our product")

1. According to Savan, advertising leads us to expect that

a. Only status is important in life, not relationships or material objects

b. There will and always should be regular blips of excitement and resolution

c. Others will take care of us, so we will not be required to expend effort to survive

d. None of the above

b. There will and always should be regular blips of excitement and resolution

1. According to Savan, the relationship between a brand and its image is

a. Purely coincidental

b. Deliberately manufactured, but not based on anything substantial; brand images are malleable

c. Determined by the particular qualities of the brand, so that a brand can't help but have the image it does

d. None of the above

b. Deliberately manufactured, but not based on anything substantial; brand images are malleable

1. According to Camerer, modern psychology teaches us that people care only about their own wealth and won't sacrifice to help or hurt others.

False

1. According to Camerer, people over-weight (assign too much importance to) small probabilities

True

1. According to Camerer, people

a. Treat gaining and losing a given amount in a symmetrical way

b. Like gaining a given amount more than they hate losing that amount

c. Hate losing a given amount more than they like gaining that amount

d. None of the above

c. Hate losing a given amount more than they like gaining that amount

1. According to Camerer, people regularly

a. Choose a nearer but lesser good

b. Choose a further but lesser good

c. Choose a further but greater good

d. None of the above

a. Choose a nearer but lesser good

1. According to Modic, we should replace the tort law system of product liability with one that

a. Compensates the victims of product injuries through an insurance system

b. Defers future wrongdoings by firms that create defective products through the criminal justice system

c. Both of the above

d. None of the above

c. Both of the above

1. According to Modic, the tort system of product liability creates a mismatch between deterrence and compensation: mere compensation might not deter; judgements large enough to deter overcompensate & so create bad incentives

True

1. According to Tullberg's narrow responsibility view of product liability, a person that is injured is entitled to compensation that

a. Allows her the ability to get back into the workforce

b. Allows her to live a life she could have reasonably expected had she not been injured

c. Provides her with what she would have achieved had her life plans turned out exactly as she wanted

d. None of the above

a. Allows her the ability to get back into the workforce

1. Tullberg's narrow responsibility view of product liability emphasizes, in particular, the compensationaspect of product liability judgments

True

The integrity goal of this course is a response to the fact that students' personal judgments about morality arelikely incomplete and perhaps even inconsistent .

True

The formation goal of this course is a response to the fact that people often fail to act in accord with their ownpersonal judgments about morality.

False - this is the integrity goal

According to the moral psychology readings (NPR, Fisman & Galinsky, Bazerman & Tenbrunsel, Kahneman),self interest is the only thing that ever motivates anyone.

False - people are motivated by many things

According to the moral psychology readings (NPR, Fisman & Galinsky, Bazerman & Tenbrunsel, Kahneman),people sometimes fail to attend to things they care about and so act against their own considered moral evaluations.

False - people always attend to the things they care about and thus act on their own considered moral evaluations

According to Sandel, the welfare issues raised in contemporary discussions about morality are largely rootedin deontological ethical theory.

False - welfare issues are rooted in utilitarian ethical theory, deontology is the Kantian theory about duty

According to Sandel, one prominent approach to justice in our culture focuses not on what gets decided inmoral situations but rather on who decides.

True

According to Bentham, we should just maximize pleasure - moral concepts like rights , liberty , etc. are alleither unnecessary or mistaken.

True

Mill disagrees with Bentham's claim that natural rights are "nonsense on stilts."

True

A good will, according to Kant, is one that wants all people to flourish as human beings.

False - a good will is doing something for the motive of duty aka doing the right thing for the right reason

A good will, according to Kant, is one that wants to do what is good because it is good.

True

One form of Kant's Categorical Imperative says to act only on that maxim whereby you can at the same timewill that it should become universal law .

True

According to the Aristotelian approach to ethics, we do not need to know about human nature in order to figureout human flourishing.

False - we do need to know about human nature in order to figure out human flourishing

According to the Aristotelian approach to ethics, every social institution has a moral purpose - to promotehuman flourishing in some way.

True

The argument that markets are good because they are necessary for liberty and the argument that marketsare good because they produce good outcomes are incompatible - they cannot both be (completely) right.

True

The fact that market mechanisms supply us with most of the things we need to survive means that marketsmust be morally good.

False

According to Hausman & McPherson, giving someone cash rather than something you buy for them with thatcash maximizes that person's preference satisfaction.

True

According to Hausman & McPherson, paternalism is never bad.

False - it can sometimes be bad, if it takes away an individual's freedom

According to Sandel, cannibalism between consenting adults poses the ultimate test for the libertarian principleof self-ownership and the idea of justice that follows from it.

True

According to the Libertarian view we have been considering, a government violates individual freedom when itmakes laws against employment discrimination: if employers want to discriminate on the basis of race, religion,or any other factor, the state has no right to prevent them from doing so.

True

According to Freeman, stockholders are the owners of a corporation and so corporations should be run solelyin their interests.

False - corporations should be run in the interests of all stakeholders

The formation goal of this course is advanced by investigating

(a) ethical theory.

(b) moral psychology.

(c) the metaphysical foundations of first philosophy.

(d) none of the above

(a) ethical theory.

The integrity goal of this course is advanced by investigating

(a) ethical theory.

(b) moral psychology.

(c) the metaphysical foundations of first philosophy.

(d) none of the above

(b) moral psychology.

According to Kahneman, System 2 thinking

(a) is always wrong.

(b) is automatic, quick, and 'involuntary'.

(c) has a limited domain - you can't move from System 1 thinking into System 2 thinking.

(d) none of the above - system 2 thinking requires effort and thought; we move from our quick system 1 thinking into our slower system 2 thinking

(d) none of the above - system 2 thinking requires effort and thought; we move from our quick system 1 thinking into our slower system 2 thinking

According to Thaler,

(a) 'moral fading' is false.

(b) 'choice engineering' the environment helps people improve their reasoning.

(c) it is impossible to improve reasoning performance at a personal (non-environmental) level.

(d) all of the above

(b) 'choice engineering' the environment helps people improve their reasoning.

According to Sandel, one justification offered for so-called "price gouging" in the aftermath of a natural disasteris that

(a) higher prices lead businesses to transfer needed resources to the disaster area more quickly.

(b) businesses are free to do what they want with stuff they own, including charging high prices.

(c) both of the above

(d) none of the above

(c) both of the above

According to Sandel, contemporary concerns about freedom and liberty have their source in

(a) Virtue Ethics.

(b) Deontological thought.

(c) Utilitarian/Consequentialist thought.

(d) the Sacred Scripture of the Judeo-Christian tradition.

(b) Deontological thought.

According to Sandel, Mill

(a) agrees with Bentham that all pleasures are the same.

(b) holds that some pleasures are better/higher than others.

(c) agrees with Bentham that rights are "nonsense on stilts."

(d) none of the above

(b) holds that some pleasures are better/higher than others.

Utilitarians of all stripes agree that we should

(a) respect the Categorical Imperative.

(b) maximize the good (whatever that is precisely).

(c) determine what leads to human flourishing in order to determine what is good.

(d) all of the above

(b) maximize the good (whatever that is precisely).

Mill argues that

(a) it is possible to distinguish higher pleasures from lower ones.

(b) we should act to provide the greatest good for the greatest number.

(c) people should be free to do whatever they want, provided they do no harm to others.

(d) all of the above

(d) all of the above

According to all Utilitarians

(a) rights are just nonsense on stilts.

(b) certain rights are granted by Nature and Nature's God.

(c) systems of rights can be justified by the good consequences of respecting those rights.

(d) none of the above

(d) none of the above

According to Kant, which of the following is good in itself

(a) beauty.

(b) pleasure.

(c) a good will.

(d) human flourishing.

(c) a good will.

According to the Aristotelian approach to ethics,

(a) a person's current inclinations determine what is good for her.

(b) people must use reason to identify and balance important human interests.

(c) it is important not to overthink ethical situations - people need to go with the flow.

(d) people must step completely outside of their own inclinations in order to think ethically.

(b) people must use reason to identify and balance important human interests.

According to the Aristotelian approach to ethics, government regulation of social institutions is

(a) not a moral issue at all because regulations concern outcomes and morality is about principles.

(b) justified to the extent that such regulations safeguard human flourishing.

(c) never justified because such regulations harm human flourishing.

(d) none of the above

(b) justified to the extent that such regulations safeguard human flourishing.

The welfare/outcome argument for markets holds that

(a) Pareto improvements (i.e., mutually agreeable deals) are beneficial.

(b) market competition creates Pareto improvements (i.e., mutually agreeable deals).

(c) providing benefits to individuals is morally good, other things being equal.

(d) all of the above

(d) all of the above

Which of the following is not a criticism of the welfare/outcome argument for free markets?

(a) Markets satisfy preferences, but some preferences shouldn't be satisfied (e.g., segregationists).

(b) Markets can distribute benefits in a way that leaves some people without much.

(c) Freedom is not an absolute value - outcomes matter.

(d) none of the foregoing are criticisms of the welfare/outcome argument free markets

(c) Freedom is not an absolute value - outcomes matter.

Which of the following statements would not fit as a critique of the welfare/outcome justification of the market?

(a) The good should be defined as preference satisfaction.

(b) The good should not be defined as preference satisfaction.

(c) There are more important moral goals than maximizing good consequences.

(d) The harm that some people experience due to the free market system cannot be justified by the good themarket produces for others.

(a) The good should be defined as preference satisfaction.

With which statement is someone who supports the free market for Libertarian reasons most likely to agree?

(a) The free market is neither good nor bad in a moral sense--it is just a neutral fact of life.

(b) The best things that can happen to a person is that they have their preferences satisfied.

(c) What really matters in ethics is the kind of person you are.

(d) Overall, liberty is more valuable than anything else.

(d) Overall, liberty is more valuable than anything else.

According to the Libertarian doctrine of personal responsibility

(a) war is politics by other means.

(b) those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.

(c) Americans can be counted on to do the right thing - after they have tried everything else.

(d) none of the above - All of the foregoing are familiar phrases that have nothing in particular to do withLibertarianism

(d) none of the above - All of the foregoing are familiar phrases that have nothing in particular to do with Libertarianism

Non-Libertarians - i.e., people who think outcomes are important to the evaluation of markets -

(a) can allow that Liberty (self-governance, autonomy) is one value among many.

(b) cannot see Liberty (self-governance, autonomy) as a value at all.

(c) must be in favor of paternalistic coercion.

(d) must be Benthamite consequentialists.

(a) can allow that Liberty (self-governance, autonomy) is one value among many.

According to Friedman, managers should focus on stockholder interests because

(a) doing so maximizes economic output.

(b) stockholders are their natural superiors.

(c) as employees, that is what they have contracted to do.

(d) none of the above

(c) as employees, that is what they have contracted to do.

According to Freeman, which of the following parties are among the stakeholders in a firm's success?

(a) the local community

(b) the firm's bondholders

(c) the firm's stockholders

(d) all of the above

(d) all of the above