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Ethics Case Study Matthew Gourlie ETH/557 November 17, 2013 We have all heard the term ethical code; however do people actually know what ethics mean. To some ethics is moral principle to do what is right and Just without thinking about the consequences. However, ethical code is more than Just morals it is principle rules set in place to ensure people and businesses to set out to cheat someone. According to Dictionary. om ” Ethics have three true meanings; a system of moral principles, any rules in place that are recognized in respect to a particular class of uman actions or culture, or the branch of philosophy dealing with values relating to human conduct, with respect to the rightness and wrongness of certain actions”(pg 1). Ethics is a large part in businesses across the world because their actions will determine if they will lose credibility with the people.
Therefore; each business will set a law of ethical codes for all members to follow to prevent any wrongdoing and keeping a clean name in the eyes of the consumers. In order to understand the term ethics fully we will look at three countries; China, Jamaica, and United States and discuss how ethics plays a role in the decision making for financial, environmental, and cultural issues. However before discussing this we need talk about a few points from each country.
CHINA China is truly one of the super powers because of the development of the nation exceeding others. China has seen a 25% reduction in poverty since 1978, which is the most progress of any nation over the same time period. China is even competing with the United States as the largest global entrepreneur, which is why it is important to a reduced factor of future problem in development. China has developed a system of ethics in the schooling system to teach future entrepreneur about the corruption factors in a business environment.
They believe if the student are given the proper teaching then they can continue to create business the right way. According to Schulman, “Many students at the Beijing University of International Business & Economics, are pursuing an MBA because they are frustrated by the corruption they witness”. The Chinese believe ethical rules will have a huge impact on the whole world. Jamaica According to Clayton 2010, the atmosphere in corporate Jamaica is ltraconservative when you compare them to United States.
However Jamaica is also known for expanding options when entertaining guests (Clayton 2010). Jamaicans have a great work ethic but most of the ethical standards and social reform come from religion. According to Fok, Hartman, & Kwong (2010) given Jamaica’s religious past, and the fact that in Jamaica, adoption of ‘capitalist’ ethical systems should be far less challenging than is the case with China, in that Jamaica’s heritage is capitalist and it has enjoyed a close relationship with the United States.
However, on the other and, according to these authors, Jamaica is emerging from a colonial heritage, and is confronted with bringing together the diverse heritages of the many peoples who have contributed to its culture; and given Jamaica’s struggles to emerge from its colonial past and to build an appropriate infrastructure for business, “its openness and capitalist Western, orientation may be less controlling than it may appear,” in terms of ethical government.
United States In the United States the code of ethics has become extremely important over the last decade because of corruption and fraud in several businesses. Enron, Anderson Accounting, World com have been prime example of what not having ethical code could cause. Therefore, the business environment and accounting has implemented ethical standard to prevent these occurrences from happening in the future. How are the concepts of positive and normative economics reflected in this context? Positive economics focus on “what is,” whereas normative economics focus on “what ought to be. It could also be said that positive economics are based on facts, whereas normative economics are based on opinions. Positive economics are scientific economics. They are used to predict and determine the impact of changes in prices, supply, demand, and other variables on the economy. Normative economics are judgmental economics because they are based on the preferences and philosophical views of the individual. Normative economics are simply used to express an individual’s view of what an economic situation should be.
Positive and normative economics are both used in economic logic and decision making. Used together, they are very useful concepts. However, they are different in that positive economics are derived from facts, whereas normative economics are derived from opinions. Although positive and normative economics are quite different in their definitions, they can mutually influence one another. For instance, normative economic views can indicate what normative economics are likely to occur based on the history of statistical data. How does market efficiency, economizing, and the market systems affect these ethical issues? In terms of market efficiency and the market system as a whole, this of course is determined both on a national basis and on a global level by supply and demand. In terms of social welfare or social responsibility, it is usually the task of overnment(s) to make sure that global corporations do not begin to monopolize the market; in addition, the government has various tools in its power to control huge corporations, whether through environmental concerns, or through fiscal policy and taxation.
Government has the power to redistribute wealth, if voters and their legislators give the government the power. Ethics in business is necessary because business can become unethical, and there are plenty of evidences as in today on unethical corporate practices. When the people ignore ethics in business then there is no guarantee of corruption being eliminated. This can cause larger business to take advantage of the smaller business because there are no rules in place to prevent it from happening.
Therefore the entrepreneur must have an ethical code in place for all business practices to make sure they are doing the right thing for their employees and customers. References Clayton, J. (2010). Doing business in Jamaica? Retrieved November, 17 2013 from http://www. ]amaicans. com/info/inforesources/business_etiquette. shtml. Dictionary. com (2013). Ethics. Retrieved November 17, 2013 from http://dictionary. reference. com/browse/ethics Fok, L. Y. , Hartman, S. J. & Kwong, K. (2010).
Differences in business ethical values: a study of differences in business ethical values in mainland China, the U. S. and Jamaica. 21-26. Schulman, M. (2010). Business ethics in China. Retrieved November 17, 2013 from http://www. scu. edu/ ethics/publications/ethicalperspectives/business- china. html. Given the current pressures on China, Jamaica, and America expressed in the article, how would ethics play a role in decision making for financial, environmental, and cultural issues? How are the concepts of positive and normative economics reflected these ethical issues?