Solution Manual
Ethics in Information Technology, Third Edition
Chapter 1—An Overview of Ethics
Self Assessment Questions
1. moral code
2. virtue
3. good will
4. consistency
5. respondeat superior
6. reputation
7. vision, leadership
8. board of directors
9. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
10. renew investors trust in corporate executives and their firm's financial reports
11. A Code of Ethics
12. Social Audit
13. Ethics training
14. development of a problem statement
15. utilitarian
16. brainstorming
Discussion Questions
1. There are many ethical issues about which people hold very strong opinions—
, abortion, gun control, and the death penalty, to name a few. If you were a team
member on a project with someone whom you knew held a different opinion from
yours on one of these issues, would it effect your ability to work effectively with this
person? Why or why not?
You will meet many people in your lifetime who have opinions and values that are
different from yours and it is important that you learn to get along with and be able to
work effectively with such individuals.
2. What do you think are the most important factors that helped you define your won
personal code of ethics?
Student answers will vary based on personal experiences.
3. Do you think that ethics in business is improving or getting worse? Defend your
position. Student answers will vary based on personal experiences. Students may point
to the recent decline in the economy and the various CEOs that have been in the news for
acting in an unethical manner as evidence that ethics in business is getting worse.
4. Do you believe that an organization should be able to escape criminal liability for
the acts of its employers if it has acted as a responsible corporate citizen, making
strong efforts to prevent and detect misconduct in the work place? Why or why not?
Student answers will vary, but students should evaluate the following in making their
decision:
what was the corporation doing to prevent and detect misconduct in the
workplace?
how egregious were the acts of its employees?
how did the organization respond once it detected misconduct by the employees?
were the employees involved disciplined?
5. The Ethics Resource Center indentified five characteristics of a successful ethics
program. Suggest a sixth characteristics, and defend your choice.
Possible answers might include:
employees are treated fairly
company conducts regular social audits
, employees are able to report unethical behavior without fear of retaliation
employees regularly participate in ethics training
6. Which incident has a greater negative impact on an organization—an unethical act
performed by any hourly worker or the same act performed by a senior manager of
the organization. Explain your answer fully. Should the hourly worker be treated
differently than the senior manager who committed the unethical act? Why or why
not?
An unethical act performed by a senior member of an organization could potentially have
a much greater negative impact on an organization than the same act performed by an
hourly worker. Although an employer can be held responsible for the acts of its
employees, senior members of organizations are expected to be highly trained, highly
educated, and to uphold the highest of standards. An hourly worker, on the other hand,
might not have the same level of training, education, or knowledge and understanding of
ethical standards that the senior member should have. Although both should be
disciplined, it may be appropriate to treat the senior manager more harshly than the
hourly worker. It is much more likely that unfavorable publicity will be generated by the
senior member of the organization than the hourly worker and the public will expect to
see disciplinary action taken.
7. It is a common and acceptable practice for managers to hold people accountable to
meet ‘stretch’ goals, quotas, and budgets. How can this be done in a way that does
not encourage unethical behavior on the part of employers?
Employees must have a knowledgeable resource with whom they can discuss perceived
unethical practices. The organization must have a code of ethics and the employees must
know how and to whom they can report violations safely and without fear of retaliation.
Managers can set an example by communicating the code of ethics and using it in their
own decision making. Employees should be aware of sanctions for breaching the code of
ethics. Employees can be rewarded with bonuses of some sort when meeting 'stretch'
goals while not violating their code of ethics.
8. Is every action that is legal also ethical? Can you describe an action that is legal but
ethically wrong? Is every ethical action also legal? Is the law, not ethics, the only
, guide that managers need to consider?
The increased globalization of organizations has created a much more complex work
environment that spans diverse societies and cultures and that makes it much more
difficult to apply principles and codes of ethics consistently. Employees, shareholders,
and regulatory agencies are increasingly sensitive to issues such as violations of
accounting standards, failures to disclose substantial changes in business conditions to
investors, nonconformance with required health and safety practices, and production of
unsafe or substandard products. Their increasing vigilance raises the risk of financial loss
(through lawsuit, loss of business, or loss of business value) to businesses that do not
foster ethical practices or that run afoul of required standards.
9. Do you think it is easier to establish an ethical work environment in a nonprofit
organization? Why or why not?
Students answers will vary based on their beliefs or experiences with different
organizations. Students may tend to agree that it is easier given that the board of directors
in a nonprofit organization reports directly to the local communities that the nonprofit
serves.
10. This chapter discusses four approaches to dealing with moral issues. Identify and
briefly summarize each one. Do you believe one perspective is better than others? If
so, which one and why?
Virtue Ethics Approach- The ethical choice is the one that best reflects moral virtues
in ourselves and our communities.
Utilitarian Approach- The ethical choice is the one that produces the greatest excess
of benefits over harm.
Fairness Approach-The ethical choice is the one that treats everyone the same and
does not show favoritism or discrimination.
Common Good Approach- The ethical choice is the one that advances the common
good.
Ethics in Information Technology, Third Edition
Chapter 1—An Overview of Ethics
Self Assessment Questions
1. moral code
2. virtue
3. good will
4. consistency
5. respondeat superior
6. reputation
7. vision, leadership
8. board of directors
9. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
10. renew investors trust in corporate executives and their firm's financial reports
11. A Code of Ethics
12. Social Audit
13. Ethics training
14. development of a problem statement
15. utilitarian
16. brainstorming
Discussion Questions
1. There are many ethical issues about which people hold very strong opinions—
, abortion, gun control, and the death penalty, to name a few. If you were a team
member on a project with someone whom you knew held a different opinion from
yours on one of these issues, would it effect your ability to work effectively with this
person? Why or why not?
You will meet many people in your lifetime who have opinions and values that are
different from yours and it is important that you learn to get along with and be able to
work effectively with such individuals.
2. What do you think are the most important factors that helped you define your won
personal code of ethics?
Student answers will vary based on personal experiences.
3. Do you think that ethics in business is improving or getting worse? Defend your
position. Student answers will vary based on personal experiences. Students may point
to the recent decline in the economy and the various CEOs that have been in the news for
acting in an unethical manner as evidence that ethics in business is getting worse.
4. Do you believe that an organization should be able to escape criminal liability for
the acts of its employers if it has acted as a responsible corporate citizen, making
strong efforts to prevent and detect misconduct in the work place? Why or why not?
Student answers will vary, but students should evaluate the following in making their
decision:
what was the corporation doing to prevent and detect misconduct in the
workplace?
how egregious were the acts of its employees?
how did the organization respond once it detected misconduct by the employees?
were the employees involved disciplined?
5. The Ethics Resource Center indentified five characteristics of a successful ethics
program. Suggest a sixth characteristics, and defend your choice.
Possible answers might include:
employees are treated fairly
company conducts regular social audits
, employees are able to report unethical behavior without fear of retaliation
employees regularly participate in ethics training
6. Which incident has a greater negative impact on an organization—an unethical act
performed by any hourly worker or the same act performed by a senior manager of
the organization. Explain your answer fully. Should the hourly worker be treated
differently than the senior manager who committed the unethical act? Why or why
not?
An unethical act performed by a senior member of an organization could potentially have
a much greater negative impact on an organization than the same act performed by an
hourly worker. Although an employer can be held responsible for the acts of its
employees, senior members of organizations are expected to be highly trained, highly
educated, and to uphold the highest of standards. An hourly worker, on the other hand,
might not have the same level of training, education, or knowledge and understanding of
ethical standards that the senior member should have. Although both should be
disciplined, it may be appropriate to treat the senior manager more harshly than the
hourly worker. It is much more likely that unfavorable publicity will be generated by the
senior member of the organization than the hourly worker and the public will expect to
see disciplinary action taken.
7. It is a common and acceptable practice for managers to hold people accountable to
meet ‘stretch’ goals, quotas, and budgets. How can this be done in a way that does
not encourage unethical behavior on the part of employers?
Employees must have a knowledgeable resource with whom they can discuss perceived
unethical practices. The organization must have a code of ethics and the employees must
know how and to whom they can report violations safely and without fear of retaliation.
Managers can set an example by communicating the code of ethics and using it in their
own decision making. Employees should be aware of sanctions for breaching the code of
ethics. Employees can be rewarded with bonuses of some sort when meeting 'stretch'
goals while not violating their code of ethics.
8. Is every action that is legal also ethical? Can you describe an action that is legal but
ethically wrong? Is every ethical action also legal? Is the law, not ethics, the only
, guide that managers need to consider?
The increased globalization of organizations has created a much more complex work
environment that spans diverse societies and cultures and that makes it much more
difficult to apply principles and codes of ethics consistently. Employees, shareholders,
and regulatory agencies are increasingly sensitive to issues such as violations of
accounting standards, failures to disclose substantial changes in business conditions to
investors, nonconformance with required health and safety practices, and production of
unsafe or substandard products. Their increasing vigilance raises the risk of financial loss
(through lawsuit, loss of business, or loss of business value) to businesses that do not
foster ethical practices or that run afoul of required standards.
9. Do you think it is easier to establish an ethical work environment in a nonprofit
organization? Why or why not?
Students answers will vary based on their beliefs or experiences with different
organizations. Students may tend to agree that it is easier given that the board of directors
in a nonprofit organization reports directly to the local communities that the nonprofit
serves.
10. This chapter discusses four approaches to dealing with moral issues. Identify and
briefly summarize each one. Do you believe one perspective is better than others? If
so, which one and why?
Virtue Ethics Approach- The ethical choice is the one that best reflects moral virtues
in ourselves and our communities.
Utilitarian Approach- The ethical choice is the one that produces the greatest excess
of benefits over harm.
Fairness Approach-The ethical choice is the one that treats everyone the same and
does not show favoritism or discrimination.
Common Good Approach- The ethical choice is the one that advances the common
good.
