Decision-Making Frameworks & Integrity Standards Flashcards

A compliance officer discovers that a profitable but borderline-legal practice has been tolerated for years. The MOST ethically sound first step is to:

Answer: Assess the practice against current legal standards, company values, and stakeholder impact

Ethical decision-making requires a structured assessment against legal, organizational, and stakeholder criteria before acting.

In Kohlberg's model of moral development, an employee who follows ethical rules only to avoid punishment is operating at which level?

Answer: Pre-conventional

The pre-conventional level is characterized by self-interest and fear of punishment rather than internalized values.

Which integrity standard requires that an employee disclose a personal financial interest in a vendor contract before the contract decision is made?

Answer: Conflict of interest disclosure

Conflict of interest disclosure standards require employees to proactively reveal personal interests that could improperly influence their decisions.

The 'three-legged stool' model of business ethics holds that sustainable ethical behavior requires alignment among:

Answer: Values, systems, and individual behavior

The three-legged stool model identifies values, organizational systems, and individual behavior as the mutually reinforcing pillars of ethical culture.

A manager routinely bends expense-reporting rules for favored employees while enforcing them strictly for others. This behavior MOST directly undermines which integrity standard?

Answer: Consistency and fairness in policy enforcement

Selective enforcement of policies undermines consistency and fairness, which are core integrity standards in ethical management.

Which of the following is an example of 'ethical fading,' a key concept in behavioral ethics?

Answer: A salesperson stops recognizing the ethical dimensions of a decision because financial goals dominate thinking

Ethical fading occurs when the moral dimensions of a decision fade from awareness, often replaced by financial or competitive framing.

According to the Josephson Institute's Six Pillars of Character, which pillar requires honoring commitments even when it is costly or inconvenient?

Answer: Trustworthiness

Trustworthiness includes keeping promises and honoring commitments regardless of personal cost, making it foundational to integrity.