CEA Global Ethics & Cultural Considerations 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A US-based company discovers its supplier in a developing country uses child labor that is legal locally but violates the company's global ethics code. What is the most ethically appropriate response?
- Ignore the issue since it is legal in that country
- Immediately terminate the supplier contract without notice
- Engage the supplier with a remediation plan and set measurable timelines (Correct answer)
- Report the supplier to local authorities only
Correct answer: Engage the supplier with a remediation plan and set measurable timelines
Engaging the supplier with a remediation plan balances ethical standards with constructive impact rather than abandonment.
Question 2: Which ethical framework is most commonly associated with the idea that moral rules should apply universally regardless of cultural context?
- Cultural relativism
- Kantian deontology (Correct answer)
- Utilitarianism
- Virtue ethics
Correct answer: Kantian deontology
Kantian deontology holds that moral duties are universal and apply to all rational beings regardless of culture.
Question 3: An ethics officer learns that gift-giving to government officials is a common and accepted practice in a partner country. Under most global ethics frameworks, the officer should:
- Allow gifts since local custom permits it
- Apply the stricter of local law or company policy (Correct answer)
- Require only that gifts be disclosed internally
- Defer entirely to local management judgment
Correct answer: Apply the stricter of local law or company policy
Global ethics standards typically require applying whichever standard—local law or company policy—is more stringent.
Question 4: Cultural competence in global ethics primarily requires professionals to:
- Adopt the ethical norms of each country they operate in
- Understand cultural differences while maintaining core ethical principles (Correct answer)
- Avoid doing business in countries with different values
- Replace universal ethics codes with locally tailored ones
Correct answer: Understand cultural differences while maintaining core ethical principles
Cultural competence means understanding differences and adapting communication while upholding foundational ethical standards.
Question 5: The UN Global Compact's principle on human rights requires businesses to:
- Comply only with host country human rights laws
- Support and respect internationally proclaimed human rights (Correct answer)
- Lobby host governments to adopt Western standards
- Limit human rights commitments to employment practices
Correct answer: Support and respect internationally proclaimed human rights
The UN Global Compact Principle 1 requires businesses to support and respect internationally proclaimed human rights within their sphere of influence.
Question 6: Moral imperialism in global business ethics refers to:
- Applying home-country ethical standards rigidly without respecting legitimate cultural differences (Correct answer)
- Refusing to conduct business in countries with poor human rights records
- Developing global ethics codes collaboratively with local stakeholders
- Using economic leverage to promote ethical reforms
Correct answer: Applying home-country ethical standards rigidly without respecting legitimate cultural differences
Moral imperialism is the imposition of one culture's ethical standards on others without acknowledging legitimate cultural variation.
Question 7: Which of the following best describes the 'integrated social contract theory' (ISCT) approach to global business ethics?
- All ethical decisions must be made by local communities alone
- Hypernorms override local norms, but authentic local norms are respected within those boundaries (Correct answer)
- Companies should write separate ethics codes for every country
- Local practices always take precedence over universal principles
Correct answer: Hypernorms override local norms, but authentic local norms are respected within those boundaries
ISCT holds that hypernorms (universal principles) set absolute boundaries within which legitimate local ethical norms can vary.
CEA Global Ethics & Cultural Considerations 2
A US-based company discovers its supplier in a developing country uses child labor that is legal locally but violates the company's global ethics code.
What is the most ethically appropriate response?