Making Bad Apples Good: Teaching Ethics to Business Students

Research has shown that business students are less ethical than students in other disciplines (Segal et al., 2011), which is a worrying finding, considering that unethical business practices are seen as a major feature leading... [ view full abstract ]

Research has shown that business students are less ethical than students in other disciplines (Segal et al., 2011), which is a worrying finding, considering that unethical business practices are seen as a major feature leading to the world economic recession in 2008. However, business schools across the globe have consistently taught the subject of ethics in order to instil an ethical mind-set in their graduates. The way business ethics is embedded in the curriculum has been the subject of much debate, with a range of pedagogical approaches taken. This paper examines the current teaching of ethics at Cork Institute of Technology, by examining two business programmes that take different pedagogical approaches. The findings suggest that there is little difference in how business ethics is perceived by students regardless of how it is taught, and points to ethical values and principles being formed much earlier in a person’s life.

Business Ethics, Ethics, Ethics Education [ view full abstract ]

Business Ethics, Ethics, Ethics Education