Critical Thinking Questions
Question 1
One of the special strengths of an individualistic culture is the absence of rank. That implies that one cannot be confined to a single social class for all his or her life. All individuals are equal in an individualistic culture. Secondly, the strength of freedom to make choices. This freedom is vital in influencing the government to intervene in scenarios that an individual may require assistance or make the government not to interfere with people’s lives. Thirdly, another strength is the right to protect private property (Browne, Meyer, and Williamson, 2004). An individual has the right to protect and use what they have acquired fairly, for whatever purpose he or she wants to use it. Fourthly, any form of advancement is based on an individual’s level of effort and talent.
As a manager, some of the aspects of individualism need to be restricted. For instance, having the right to use what one has acquired needs to be restricted to some extent. It is important for one not to use private property to propagate unlawful activities. Further, on the choices a manager makes, they have to be rational and ethical in terms of the people it is likely to affect or influence. It would be unethical to make choices that result to people losing lives or homes.
Question 2
Bureaucratic ethics in organizations refers to what is right as long as it comes from top management (Browne, Meyer, and Williamson, 2004). This concept of ethics has increased and has influenced managers to make individual decisions that they consider teamwork. Thus, based on the bureaucratic ethics, managers are able to provide their own decisions as final in a teamwork context. This allows managers to have a cushion of protection, in case of any problems as the decision is likely to be viewed as teamwork. Additionally, in most teams, in organizations, the team leader or manager is responsible for making the final decisions thus all team members have to agree on that. This is similar to bureaucratic ethics where what is right is what the top management agrees or decides.
Question 3
It becomes important to provide a valid explanation why an ethical disaster may have happened. For instance, the ethical disaster may have been caused by an individual who psychological is sick or mentally ill. Furthermore, people have different levels of maturity. The lack of maturity can be a cause of a person engaging in unethical behavior. Therefore, organizations can be able to develop assessment of the employees during recruitment to reduce the chances of unethical situations arising. Socially, some individuals may lack the ability to distinguish good from bad. This is important since it may help in developing training programs that improve the behavior of an individual.
Firstly, recognizing that all humans are morally flawed is a vital aspect in understanding why unethical behavior exists. Thus, identifying a cause for an ethical situation such as accounting fraud requires evaluating the people involved. This would include ascertain or finding reasons that motivated individuals to perform the unethical conduct. For instance, in case of poor pay, the individuals might have been motivated to conduct unethical behavior in the sense that obtaining more funds could solve their monetary problems. Thus, such information may help review payment structure for individuals who deal with sensitive accounting procedures so that they are not tempted to commit fraud.
Reference
Browne, M. N., Meyer, A., & Williamson, C. (2004). Practical business ethics for the busy
Manager. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
