Skip to main content
Log in

A Study of the Adjustment of Ethical Recogntion and Ethical Decision-Making of Managers-to-be Across the Taiwan Strait Before and After Receiving a Business Ethics Education

  • Published:
Journal of Business Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study conducted an empirical survey of 126 Business Ethics students in business and management departments within two universities across the Taiwan Strait to evaluate the impact on these managers-to-be of receiving an education in Business Ethics. The results show that, after receiving that Business Ethics education, students in both universities demonstrated significant improvements in the ethical weighting of their individual values, their recognition of ethical issues and their performance as ethical decision-makers. However, in respect of ethical decision-making, the behavior of these students is still sub-optimal, indicating a need for further improvements in the ethical education of managers-to-be across the Taiwan Strait.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Allport, G. W., P. Z. Vernon and G. Lindzey: 1960, Study of Values, 3rd ed. (Houghton Mifflin, Boston).

    Google Scholar 

  • Borkowski, S. C. and Y. J. Vgras: 1992, 'The Ethical Attitudes of Students as a Function of Age, Sex, and Experience', Journal of Business Ethics 11, 961-979.

    Google Scholar 

  • Buchholz, R. A.: 1992, Business Environment and Public Policy (Prentice-Hall, New Jersey).

    Google Scholar 

  • Cheng, P. S.: 1995, 'The Empirical Survey of Comparing and Contrasting Business Culture in Taiwan and in Mainland China', Essays of the Seminar of Business Culture and Human Resources Management in Taiwan and in Mainland China, 2-1-2-36.

  • Chiang, Y. F.: 1983, The Study of the Relationship between Leadership and the Life Types of Values of State-Run Business Managers. Unpublished thesis, National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chung, C. E.: 1995, The Study of Business Ethics Educations in Colleges and Universities. The essays of the second proseminar of business educations. Changhua, National Changhua University of Education, Taiwan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fan, C. C.: 1995, 'The Study of the Values of Chinese College Students in Three Areas', Essays of the Seminar of Business Culture and Human Resources Management in Taiwan and in Mainland China, 3-1-3-9.

  • Ferrell, D. C. and L. G. Gresham: 1985, 'A Contingency Framework for Understanding Ethical Decision-Making in Marketing', Journal of Marketing, 49.

  • Fritzsche, D.: 1997, Business Ethics: A Global and Managerial Perspective (McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., New York).

    Google Scholar 

  • Garaventa: 1998, 'Drama: A Tool for Teaching Business Ethics', Business Ethics Quarterly 8(3), 535-545.

    Google Scholar 

  • Guy, M. E.: 1990, Ethical Decision-Making in Everyday Work Situations (Quorum Books, Westport).

    Google Scholar 

  • Ho, Y. C.: 1995, 'The Value of Pensioner Relationship of Employees in Mainland China', Essays of the Seminar of Business Culture and Human Resources Management in Taiwan and in Mainland China, 5-1-5-15.

  • Hornsby, J., D. Kuratko et al.: 1994, 'The Ethical Perceptions of Small Business Owners: A Factor Analytic Study', Journal of Small Business Management (October).

  • Hsu, M. L.: 1988, Behavioral Science and Management (Taiwan: Sanmin Bookstore, Taipei).

    Google Scholar 

  • Huang, C. C.: 1999, The Study of Teaching Business Ethics in Colleges and Universities. Unpublished thesis, National Changhua University of Education, Changhua, Taiwan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Huang, K. L.: 1994. The Modification of Work Values of Business Employees Across the Taiwan Strait. Mandatory Research Report of Sinyi Cultural Foundation.

  • Klenin, E. R.: 1998, 'The One Necessary Condition 306 Chen-Fong Wu for a Successful Business Ethics Course: The Teacher Must Be a Philosopher', Business Ethics Quarterly 8, 561-574.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kohlberg, L.: 1981, The Philosophy of Moral Development (Harper & Row, New York).

    Google Scholar 

  • Longenecker, J. G., J. A. Mckinney and C. Moore: 1989, 'Ethics in Small Business', Journal of Small Business Management ( Jannuary), 27-31.

  • Morris, S. A.: 1997, 'Internal Effects of Stakeholder Management Devices', Journal of Business Ethics 16, 413-424.

    Google Scholar 

  • Navran, F.: 1987, 'Are Your Employees Cheating to Keep Up?', Workforce 76(8), 58-61.

    Google Scholar 

  • Panko, R.: 1997, 'Home Delivery', Best's Review 98(1), 60-63.

    Google Scholar 

  • Quinn, J. J.: 1997, 'Personal Ethics and Business Ethics: The Ethical Attitudes of Owners/Managers of Small Business', Journal of Business Ethics 16, 119-127.

    Google Scholar 

  • Robbins, S. P.: 1993, Organizational Behavior: Concepts, Controversies and Application, 6th ed. (Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ).

    Google Scholar 

  • Schwepker, C., O. C. Ferrett and T. Ingram: 1997, 'The Influence of Ethics Climate and Ethical Conflict on Role Stress in the Sales Force', Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 25(2), 98-108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sims, R. R.: 1994, Ethics and Organization Decision-Making: A Call for Renewal (Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc., Westport).

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, P. L. and E. F. Oakley: 1994, 'A Study of the Ethical Values of Metropolitan and Non-Metropolitan Small Business Owners', Journal of Small Business Management (October), 17-27.

  • Su, Y.: 1998, Managerial Ethics (East Publishing, Shanghai, China).

    Google Scholar 

  • Tones, T. M.: 1991, 'Ethical Decision-Making by Individuals in Organization: An Issue-Contingent Model', Academy of Management Review 16(2), 366-395.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tzai, M. T.: 1992, Business Ethics and Managerial Educations. The Essays of the Fourth Proseminar of National Managerial Education (National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan).

    Google Scholar 

  • Verbeke, W., C. Quwerker and Z. Peelen: 1996, 'Exploring the Contextual and Individual Factors on Ethical Decision-Making of Sales People', Journal of Business Ethics 15(11), 1175-1187.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vyakarnam, S., A. Baieley et al.: 1997, 'Towards an Understanding of Ethical Behavior in Small Firms', Journal of Business Ethics 16, 1625-1636.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang, C. M. and W. C. Chung: 1994, Introduction to Business Culture (Northwest University Publishing, Sian, China).

    Google Scholar 

  • Weng, C. P.: 1997, Ministry of Education Modifies Rules of Higher Education and Enforces Sexual Education in Human Education (URL: http://csmart2.iis.sinica.edu.tw/can/getcontent.cgi).

  • Wu, C. F.: 1995, 'The Modification Among the Values of Administrators in Different Organizations and Ethical Determinants in Decision-Making', NTU Management Review 6(2), 135-158.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wu, C. F.: 1998, 'A Study of the Correlations Among Job Values, Decision-Making Types and Business Ethics of Business Administrators of Taiwanese Enterprises', Journal of Human Resources Development 10, 157-173.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wu, C. F:. 1999, 'The Study of Organizational Climate and the Methods of Strengthening: Organizations in Taiwan and in Mainland China as Targets', Soochow Journal of Economics and Business 27, 39-68.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wu, C. F.: 2000, 'A Study of the Correlations Among Ethical Decision-Making of Employees, Corporate Business Ethics and Organizational Performances: Comparing Taiwanese Outstanding SMEs, General SMEs and Large Enterprises', NTU Management Review 11(1), 232-260.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wu, C. F.: 2002, The Realization of Business Ethics (Chien Cheng Publishing, Taichung Hsien, Taiwan).

    Google Scholar 

  • Wu, C. F.: Unpublished, 'The Study of Global Business Ethics of Taiwanese Enterprises in East Asia: Identifying Taiwanese Enterprises in Mainland China, Vietnam and Indonesia as Targets', Journal of Business Ethics, 1-15

  • Yang, K. S.: 1995, 'Familism and Organizational Management', Essays of the Seminar of Business Culture and Human Resources Management in Taiwan and in Mainland China 1-1-1-26.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Wu, CF. A Study of the Adjustment of Ethical Recogntion and Ethical Decision-Making of Managers-to-be Across the Taiwan Strait Before and After Receiving a Business Ethics Education. Journal of Business Ethics 45, 291–307 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024167503455

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024167503455

Navigation