Social Responsibility

1. Social Responsibility Maintains that businesses should not function amorally, but should contribute to the welfare of their communities. Recognizes multiple objectives: economic, social, and environmental dimensions from each and all activities Related to: sustainability, Citizenship If not “amoral,” then has ethical dimensions

2. Determinants of Moral Behavior Characteristics (Moral Intensity) of the Issue Social Characteristics Relationships with “others” Type of Relationships Structure of Relationships Steps towards moral behavior Recognize the moral Issue Make a Moral Judgment (establish Intent) Engage in Moral Behavior Cognitive Dissonance Individual Characteristics Situational Characteristics Level of Cognitive Moral Development

3. Analysis & Evaluation Recognition Situational Framing Action Personal Characteristics Culture Social Networks Economic Environment Foreseeable Consequences Utility Rights Justice Care Perceptions & Behavioral Intentions Individual

4. Ethical Philosophies vs. Reasoning Philosophy Perspective Utility vs Justice vs Rights vs Care Teleology vs Deontology vs Virtues

5. Question 1:  I do not care what motivates other people; I judge them solely on the basis of what they do. Strongly agree Agree Neutral/undecided Disagree Strongly disagree Question 2:  When I am trying to decide what the right thing to do is, I look at the consequences of the various alternatives open to me. Strongly agree Agree Neutral/undecided Disagree Strongly disagree

6. Question 3:  The right thing to do is whatever is best for everyone. Strongly agree Agree Neutral/undecided Disagree Strongly disagree Question 4:  We should look at the overall consequences of our actions in each and every case. Strongly agree Agree Neutral/undecided Disagree Strongly disagree

7. Question 5:  If someone tries to do the right thing but it works out badly, they still deserve moral credit for trying. Strongly agree Agree Neutral/undecided Disagree Strongly disagree Question 6:  What is the most important thing in life? Pleasure Happiness Ideals such as truth and beauty Having your preferences satisfied

8. Philosophical Ethics • Teleological (design & purpose) • Results oriented • Actions have no intrinsic ethical character (acquire moral status from their consequences) or • Deontological (obligation) • Act oriented • Actions are inherently right or wrong (e.g., lying, cheating, stealing)

9. Ethical Frameworks • Utilitarianism (Bentham & Mills) • Ethics of consequences • Deontology (Kant) • Ethics of Duty [action] (Ethical laws) • Principles willed into Universal laws • Treat people as ends (not means) • Virtues (Aristotle) • Ethics of Character

10. Bentham’s Hedonistic Calculus • Bentham (not originally called Utilitarianism) • Moral science (vs. ascetic religious) • Quantifying pleasure • Pleasure good, pain bad • Hedonistic calculus (7 aspects) • Intensity (Intrinsic strength of the pleasurable or painful feelings produced.) • Duration (how long they last) • Certainty / Uncertainty (likelihood of sensations being produced by given action. • Propinquity / Remoteness (how soon they will be felt) • Fecundity (whether actions lead to pleasure) • Purity (whether actions lead to pain) • Extent (number of people affected) • Open, public, objective, fair • Mill’s types of pleasure (quality vs. quantity)

11. Basic Insights of Utilitarianism The purpose of morality is to make the world a better place. Morality is about producing good consequences, not having good intentions We should do whatever will bring the most benefit (i.e., intrinsic value) to all of humanity.

12. The Purpose of Morality The utilitarian has a very simple answer to the question of why morality exists at all: The purpose of morality is to guide people’s actions in such a way as to produce a better world. Consequently, the emphasis in utilitarianism is on consequences, not intentions.

13. Fundamental Imperative The fundamental imperative of utilitarianism is: Always act in the way that will produce the greatest overall amount of good in the world. The emphasis is clearly on consequences, not intentions.

14. The Emphasis on the Overall Good We often speak of “utilitarian” solutions in a disparaging tone, but in fact utilitarianism is a demanding moral position that often asks us to put aside self-interest for the sake of the whole. Utilitarianism is a morally demanding position for two reasons: It always asks us to do the most, to maximize utility, not to do the minimum. It asks us to set aside personal interest.

15. The Dream of Utilitarianism:Bringing Scientific Certainty to Ethics Utilitarianism offers us a powerful vision of the moral life, one that promises to reduce or eliminate moral disagreement. If we can agree that the purpose of morality is to make the world a better place; and If we can scientifically assess various possible courses of action to determine which will have the greatest positive effect on the world; then We can provide a scientific answer to the question of what we ought to do.

16. Intrinsic Value Many things have instrumental value, that is, they have value as means to an end. However, there must be some things which are not merely instrumental, but have value in themselves. This is what we call intrinsic value. What has intrinsic value? Four principal candidates: Pleasure Jeremy Bentham Happiness John Stuart Mill Ideals G. E. Moore Preferences Kenneth Arrow

17. Pleasure Definition: The enjoyable feeling we experience when a state of deprivation is replaced by fulfillment. Advantages Easy to quantify Short duration Bodily Criticisms Came to be known as “the pig’s philosophy” Ignores higher values Could justify living on a pleasure machine

18. Happiness Advantages A higher standard, more specific to humans About realization of goals Disadvantages More difficult to measure Competing conceptions of happiness

19. The Utilitarian Calculus Math and ethics finally merge: all consequences must be measured and weighed. Units of measurement: Hedons: positive Dolors: negative

20. What do we calculate? Hedons/dolors may be defined in terms of Pleasure Happiness Ideals Preferences For any given action, we must calculate: How many people will be affected, negatively (dolors) as well as positively (hedons) How intensely they will be affected Similar calculations for all available alternatives Choose the action that produces the greatest overall amount of utility (hedons minus dolors)

21. Business Systems • Economic systems (underlying ideologies) • “normative” beliefs • Motivation? • Basic purpose(s)? • Function of society • Market • Free-Market • John Locke’s (rights) • All are free and equal • Rights of freedom, property, and protection • Negative / positive rights? • Rights versus justice? • Individualistic assumption? • Adam Smith’s (utilitarian) • Market competition serves society better than government • Unrealistic assumptions of perfect competition

22. Business Systems • Keynesian • Free-markets alone are not enough • Not the most efficient • Social Darwinism • Survival of the fittest • Penalties for incompetence and ignorance • Naturalistic fallacy • Free-Trade • Benefits of specialization and trade • Comparative (rather than absolute) advantage • Production costs are not constant • Means of production is portable.

23. Business Systems • Command • Marx’s economic substructure / social superstructure • Exploitation of workers “surplus” • Separation (alienation) of workers from product • Subordination of government to ruling class’ interests • State control is victimized by individuals • Mixed Economy • Retains Market and Private Property system • Relies on governmental policies

24. Business Ethics Cell 1 Legal Responsibility Ethical Responsibility Cell X Cell 3 Cell2 Economic Responsibility

25. Business Ethics Legal Responsibility Ethical Responsibility Cell X Cell “X” Profitable, Legal and Ethical Proceed with enthusiasm! Economic Responsibility

26. Business Ethics Cell 1 Legal and Ethical Not Profitable: Seek Profitable alternatives Cell 1 Legal Responsibility Ethical Responsibility Economic Responsibility

27. Business Ethics Legal Responsibility Ethical Responsibility Cell 2 Profitable and Legal Proceed cautiously Cell2 Economic Responsibility

28. Business Ethics Legal Responsibility Cell 3 Profitable and ethical Likely, also legal; Proceed cautiously Ethical Responsibility Cell 3 Economic Responsibility

29. Bremer’s “big picture” perspective

30. Three Models of Managerial Ethics Moral Management Amoral Management Immoral Management Unintentional Intentional

32. Ethical Standards? • Integrity • Possessing and adhering to high principles • Honesty • Fair, just, truthful and morally upright • Fidelity • Loyalty, allegiance, accuracy • Charity • Voluntarily helping those in need • Tolerance • Ability to endure hardship, accepting different views • Responsibility • Accountable, willing to take a stand • Self-Discipline • Ability to motivate or restrain oneself

36. open access information for all free access development, self-determ-ination autonomy knowledge sharing responsibility participation, open access participation right to read development, information competence education for all life-long learning education for all right to write deliberative democracy collaboration knowledge sharing information ecology inter-generational access right to learn self-determi-nation information control privacy, data protection no censorship right to com-municate right to filter inclusive-ness justice sustain-ability The information ethics matrix values and rights in electronic environments right to commu-nicate rights values This PP file is made publicly available under the following Creative-Commons-License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/de/ Rainer Kuhlen – Computer and Information Science – University of Konstanz, Germany Transborder Library Forum – Chihuahua, Mexico – March 2005