Practice Questions 5 – Flashcards
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answersquestion
the term ethics refers to accepted principles of right or wrong that govern the conduct of a person, the members of a profession, or the actions of an organization
answer
T
question
many of the ethical issues in international business are rooted in the fact that political systems, law, economic development, and culture vary significantly from nation to nation
answer
T
question
the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act outlawed the paying of bribes to foreign government officials to gain business
answer
T
question
"Facilitating payments" are payments to secure contracts that would not otherwise be secured
answer
F
question
the Convention of Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions obliges member-states and other signatores to make the bribery of foreign public officials a criminal offense
answer
T
question
The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) refers to the idea that businesspeople should consider the social consequences of economic actions when making business decisions
answer
T
question
The power of a multinational corporation is constrained not only by laws and regulations, but also by the discipline of the market and the competitive process
answer
T
question
Ethical dilemmas are situations in which only one of the available alternatives seems ethically acceptable
answer
F
question
societal business ethics are not divorced from personal ethics
answer
T
question
an organization culture that requires to be purely economic allows unethical behavior to flourish and persist
answer
T
question
according to Milton Friedman, businesses should undertake social expenditures beyond those mandated by the law and required for the efficient running of a business
answer
F
question
according to the concept of cultural relativism, a firm, while operating in any host country, should adopt the ethics of the culture that is predominant in its home country
answer
F
question
a righteous moralist claims that while operating in a foreign country, a multinational company should follow the ethical standards of the host country
answer
F
question
the righteous moralist's approach to ethics is typically associated with managers from developed nations
answer
T
question
Kantian ethics asserts that if a manager of a multinational sees that firms from other nations are not following ethical norms in a host nation, the manager should not either
answer
F
question
according to John Rawl's difference principle, wide variations in income and wealth can be considered just if the market based system that produces this unequal distribution also benefits the least-advantaged members of society
answer
T
question
business leaders should use every relevant opportunity to stress the importance of business ethics and make sure that key business decisions not only make good economic sense but also are ethical
answer
T
question
the internal stakeholders of a company do not have an exchange relationship with the company
answer
F
question
ethics officers act as an internal ombudsperson with responsibility for handling confidential inquiries from employees
answer
T
question
refers to accepted principles of right or wrong that govern the conduct of a person, the members of a profession, or the actions of an organization
answer
Ethics
question
the Sullivan principles attempted to fight against
answer
apartheid laws
question
true about Sullivan principles
answer
they promoted the abolition of apartheid laws
question
due to certain strict environmental and employment standards in its home nation, Taurus Inc. has shifted its operations to developing nations. Hence, the firm has now been able to gain competitive advantage by avoiding costly pollution controls. This strategic move of Taurus Inc. will be considered
answer
immoral
question
most likely to be considered unethical
answer
orion Inc. sends its waste products for disposal to a developing nation because the pollution control laws in its home country are much more strict than those in the developing nation
question
global commons refers to
answer
natural resources from which everyone benefits but for which no one is specifically responsible
question
what occurs when a resource held jointly by all, but owned by no one, is overused by individuals, resulting in its degradation
answer
the tragedy of the commons
question
in the modern world, corporations can worsen the global tragedy of the commons by
answer
moving production to locations where they are free to pump pollutants into the environemtn
question
Brian Wing Inc. has won the bid to build airplanes for a host country government. however, the execution of the contract has been delayed due to certain unproductive, bureaucratic procedures in the less developed nation. In order to legally overcome this problem, Brian Wing Inc. could resort to the payment of
answer
speed money
question
Which of the following refers to the idea that businesspeople should consider the social consequences of economic action when making business decisions, and that there should be presumption in favor of decisions that have both good economic and social consequences
answer
social responsiblity
question
in a business setting, the term noblesse oblige refers to
answer
a benevolent behavior that is considered the responsibility of successful enterprises
question
the practice of "gift giving" between the parties to a business negotiation is considered right and proper behavior in many Asian cultures. However, some Westerners view the practice as a form of bribery, and therefore unethical, particularly if the gifts are substantial. This reflects that
answer
what is ethical depends on one's cultural perspective
question
Davis is the manager of a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in a developing country. The manufacturing unit does not meet the acceptable standards of the manufacturing facility in the home nation. He knows that demanding a better manufacturing unit will raise the cost of the drugs mainly exported to other less developed countries, and hence its price. But he also realizes that by not demanding a better unit, the employees are prone to serious health issues. Davis is facing
answer
an ethical dilemma
question
best exemplifies an ethical dilemma
answer
Andrew is responsible for deciding whether he should upgrade the manufacturing unit with new machines and reduce costs for clients, or retain the impoverished manual labor
question
most likely to reduce the pressure on managers to violate their personal ethics
answer
keeping managers psychologically and geographically close to the parent company
question
Unipeg Corporation has uniform high sales targets for its employees all across the globe, regardless of the environmental constraints in each market. Employees are penalized for any shortfall. This has caused many employees to falsify the values of their sales. In this context, the roots of unethical behavior can be traced to
answer
unrealistic performance expectations
question
the CEO of Cold Chip Software engages in corruption and uses his power in the company to enrich himself and his family members. Consequently, his employees also engage in the same behavior. In this case, the roots of unethical behavior can be traced to
answer
organizational leadership
question
What explicitly rejects the idea that businesses should undertake social expenditures beyond those mandated by the law and required for the efficient running of a business
answer
the Friedman doctrin
question
who asserted that the only social responsibility is to increase profits, so long as the company stays within the rules of law
answer
Milton Friedman
question
What straw man approaches to business ethics is best summarized by the maxim "When in Rome, do as the Romans"
answer
Cultural relativism
question
Neon Synergy Inc. operates in three different countries, and is headed by a CEO who believes that the best approach to ethics is cultural relativism. In this context, what is most likely to be true regarding Neon Synergy
answer
the business units of Neon Synergy will be solely based on the goal of maximization of societal goods
question
Three Torque Inc., a US based multidimensional company, allows its managers to make facilitating payments in host countries to expedite government formalities. However, in countries where such payments are considered as unethical, the company restricts its managers from indulging in such activities. This behavior of the company illustrates the straw man approach of
answer
cultural relativism
question
Shangrilah Sandals is a manufacturing firm in a developing country, where it routinely uses grease payments to local officials to expedite overseas shipments. It has decided to open a plant in the US, and has determined that it would not offer any facilitating payments to US officials. Shangrilah's behavior illustrates the straw man approach of
answer
cultural relativism
question
A righteous moralist is most likely to claim that
answer
a multinational home-country standards of ethics are the appropriate ones for companies to follow in foreign countries
question
Jonathan is the manager of his company's facilities in the Philippines. He believes in ensuring the exact same standards of working conditions, wages, and labor management in the Philippines as practiced by the company's corporate office in its home country, the US. His policy does not always lead to profits because of the vast cultural differences between the two nations. Which of the following straw men approaches to ethics is most likely being adopted by Jonathan
answer
righteous moralism
question
A multinational corporation that adopts the naïve immoralist approach to ethics will most likely
answer
believe that, in a host country, any action is ethically justified if everyone is doing it
question
the utilitarian philosophy for business ethics primarily focuses on
answer
weighting the benefits, costs, and risks associated with a course of action
question
Ethics approach that holds an action is judged desirable if it leads to the best possible balance of good consequences over bad consequences
answer
utilitarian
question
Drawback of the utilitarian approach to business ethics
answer
it omits the consideration of justice
question
Philosophy of ethics hold that people should be treated as ends and never purely as means to the ends of others
answer
Kantian ethics
question
Violation of ethics according to Kantian Philosophy
answer
employing people to work at sweatshops
question
according to the theory of rights
answer
fundamental human rights and privileges
question
true about the universal declaration of human rights
answer
according to this declaration, it is unethical to employ child labor in sweatshops even if that happens to be common in some countries
question
in stating that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights and that they are endowed with reason and conscience and should act toward one another in a spirit of brotherhood, article 1 of the Universal declaration of human rights echoes
answer
Kantian ethics
question
justice theories primarily focus on
answer
the attainment of fair and equitable distribution of economic goods and services
question
Concept developed by John Rawls and posited that everyone is imagined to be oblivious to all of his or her particular characteristics such as race, se, intelligence, nationality, family background, and special talents
answer
veil of ignorance
