Business Ethics glossary (partial)
- actionable
- subject to (or providing grounds for) an action or lawsuit: e.g., slander
is actionable; letting air out of the tires of SUVs is not.
- affirmative action
- positive programs which are aimed at eliminating the effects of past discrimination;
as opposed to negative policies which are aimed at preventing further discrimination.
- alienation
- the effect, according to marx, of capitalist systems which do not allow
the working class to develop their productive potential or satisfy their real
human needs.
- antitrust
- the view that large oligopolistic or monopolistic companies should be broken
up into smaller firms to reinstate competitive pressures.
- bourgeoisie
- according to Marx, the class that owns the means of production.
- brand loyalty
- the result of effective advertising campaigns on consumers, which gives
large corporations control over a major portion of the market.
- bribe
- in business, a consideration (money, goods, preferential treatment, or
the like) given to an individual by a person outside the organization on the
understanding that when the individual acts on behalf of the organization,
the employee will deal favorably with the person or his/her firm.
- business ethics
- a specialized study of the moral standards that apply to business policies,
institutions, and behavior.
- but-for cause
- a cause without which the result would not have occurred
- capitalist justice
- the belief that benefits should be distributed according to the value of
the contribution made by the individual to a group.
- categorical imperative
- the requirement that i must act such that the maxim of my action could
be made universal law (or the requirement that in acting i always treat others
as ends in themselves and never as a means to an end).
- caveat emptor
- "let the buyer beware."
- caveat vendor
- "let the seller beware."
- command economy
- a system where a single authority makes the decisions about what is produced,
and by whom, and to whom it is distributed.
- communitarianism
- the belief that government should be authoritative, defining the needs
of the community and seeing that those needs are met.
- comparable pay
- a program that attempts to place higher salaries on positions that most
women already hold (as opposed to an affirmative action program that would
attempt to place more women into positions paying more).
- compensatory justice
- the belief that persons should have restored to them what they lose as
the result of another's wrong action.
- conflict of interest
- any conflict between private interests and official responsibilities.
It arises in business when an employee has a private interest in a task she
completes
for a business
that
is possibly
antagonistic
to the
best
interests
of the company and substantial enough that it might affect the employee's
independent judgment. Any conflict between the private interests and the
official or professional
responsibilities of a person in a position of trust.
- conflict of interest (actual)
- occurs when a person does discharge her duties in a way that is prejudicial
to the firm out of self-interest.
- conflict of interest (potential)
- occurs when a person is merely motivated or tempted to do discharge her
duties in a way that is prejudicial to the firm out of self-interest.
- conservation
- saving or rationing natural resources for future use.
- consistency requirement
- the necessity of moral principles to be applied the same way to everyone
in similar circumstances.
- contract
- legally enforceable promise
- contractual theory (of a seller's duties)
- the view that the relationship between a business and its customers is
a contractual one; the moral duties to the customer are those created by this
contract.
- copyright
- a person's exclusive right to reproduce, publish, or sell his or her original
work of authorship (as a literary, musical, dramatic, artistic, or architectural
work)
- cost-benefit analysis
- a method of determining the relative worth of an action, recognizing that
the costs of actions are often inversely related to the benefits derived from
completing them.
- countervailing power
- according to john kenneth galbraith, the force that balances and restrains
the economic power of any large corporation or other large corporate group
(for example, a union, or the government).
- crime
- conduct that is prohibited and has a specific punishment (as incarceration
or fine) prescribed by public law; public wrongs (acts prohibited by the
state that are punishable) - conviction ONLY IF (1) state demonstrates that
alleged actions violate criminal statutes, (2) prove beyond reasonable doubt
person did what is alleged, (3) demonstrate person had capacity (excluding
infancy, insanty, intoxication) for criminal intent (malicious, reckless,
negligent [failing to see reasonbable and substantial risk of harm])
- defamation
- communication to third parties of false statements about a person that
injure the reputation of or deter others from associating with that person
- depraved-heart murder
- a murder that is the result of an act which is dangerous to others and
shows that the perpetrator has a depraved mind and no regard for human life
- disclaimer
- a statement made by a seller explicitly disclaiming that the product is
reliable, serviceable, or safe.
- discriminatory practice
- an employment practice which has the effect of wrongful discrimination,
regardless of whether it is intentional or systematic; the practice may deal
with recruitment, screening, promotion, discharge, and/or conditions of employment.
- distributive justice
- concerned with the fair distribution of society's benefits and burdens;
the belief that individuals who are similar in all relevant respects should
be given similar benefits and burdens.
- do-nothing
- the view that, in the face of monopolies, governments should take no action
whatsoever.
- due care
- the care that an ordinarily reasonable and prudent person would use under
the same or similar circumstances
- due care theory (of a seller's duties)
- the theory that, since consumers must depend on the greater expertise of
the manufacturer, the manufacturer not only has a duty to deliver a product
that lives up to the express and implied claims about it, but also has a duty
to exercise due care to prevent others from being injured by the product -
even if the manufacturer explicitly disclaims such responsibility.
- due diligence
- such diligence as a reasonable person under the same circumstances would
use: use of reasonable but not necessarily exhaustive efforts; the care that
a prudent person might be expected to exercise in the examination and evaluation
of risks affecting a business transaction
- due process (procedural)
- a course of formal proceedings (as judicial proceedings) carried out regularly,
fairly, and in accordance with established rules and principles
- due process (substantive)
- a requirement that laws and regulations must be related to a legitimate
government interest (as crime prevention) and may not contain provisions that
result in the unfair or arbitrary treatment of an individual
- duty
- an obligation assumed (as by contract) or imposed by law to conduct oneself
in conformance with a certain standard or to act in a particular way
- duty not to coerce
- the duty of a seller not to take advantage of gullibility, immaturity,
ignorance, or any other factor that might reduce the buyer's ability to make
a rational choice.
- duty not to misrepresent
- the duty of a seller not to deliberately deceive the buyer into thinking
something about a product that the seller knows is false.
- duty of disclosure
- the duty of a seller to inform the buyer of any facts about the product
that would affect the decision to purchase it.
- duty to comply
- according to the contractual theory, the seller has a duty to carry through
on any implied claims he knowingly makes about the product.
- ecological ethics
- the idea that the environment should be protected for its own sake (also
known as deep ecology).
- ecological system
- an interrelated and interdependent set of organisms and environments.
- egalitarian justice
- the belief that every person should be given exactly equal shares of a
group's benefits and burdens.
- equilibrium price
- the point at which the supply and demand curves meet (also known as the
point of equilibrium); at this point, the price buyers are willing to pay
for a certain amount of goods exactly matches the price sellers must take
to cover the costs of producing that same amount.
- ethical relativism
- the belief that morality varies according to culture or time.
- ethics
- the study of morality or the moral standards of a society or an individual.
- evidence
- something that furnishes or tends to furnish proof; esp: something (as
testimony, writings, or objects) presented at a judicial or administrative
proceeding for the purpose of establishing the truth or falsity of an alleged
matter of fact (see also admissible best evidence rule exclusionary rule
exhibit foundation objection, preponderance of the evidence relevant scintilla
state's evidence suppress testimony witness Federal Rules of Evidence in
the Important Laws section) (compare allegation argument proof). Q.v., kinds
of evidence.
- evidence, burden of proof
- the responsibility of producing sufficient evidence in support of a fact
or issue and favorably persuading the trier of fact (as a judge or jury) regarding
that fact or issue Example: the burden of proof is sometimes upon the defendant
to show his incompetency -- W. R. LaFave and A. W. Scott, Jr. (compare standard
of proof). Note: The legal concept of the burden of proof encompasses both
the burdens of production and persuasion. Burden of proof is often used to
refer to one or the other. Burden of proof and burden of persuasion are also
sometimes used to refer to the standard of proof.
- evidence, clear and convincing
- a conforming to or being the standard of proof required for some civil
cases or motions in which the party bearing the burden of proof must show
that the truth of the allegations is highly probable. Example: clear and convincing
proof.
- evidence, preponderance of
- the standard of proof in most civil cases in which the party bearing the
burden of proof must present evidence which is more credible and convincing
than that presented by the other party or which shows that the fact to be
proven is more probable than not; also: the evidence meeting this standard.
Example: Plaintiffs must show by a preponderance of the evidence that defendant's
negligence proximately caused the injuriesfact that is part of the situation
from which a case arises and that is established by testimony or other evidence.
- evidence, reasonable doubt
- a doubt esp. about the guilt of a criminal defendant that arises or remains
upon fair and thorough consideration of the evidence or lack thereof. Example:
all persons are presumed to be innocent and no person may be convicted of
an offense unless each element of the offense is proved beyond a reasonable
doubt -- Texas Penal Code. Note: Proof of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt
is required for conviction of a criminal defendant. A reasonable doubt exists
when a factfinder cannot say with moral certainty that a person is guilty
or a particular fact exists. It must be more than an imaginary doubt, and
it is often defined judicially as such doubt as would cause a reasonable person
to hesitate before acting in a matter of importance.
- evidence, standard of proof
- the level of certainty and the degree of evidence necessary to establish
proof in a criminal or civil proceeding. Example: the standard of proof to
convict is proof beyond a reasonable doubt (see also clear and convincing,
preponderance of the evidence) (compare burden of proof clear and convincing
evidence at evidence reasonable doubt). Note: Preponderance of the evidence
is the least demanding standard of proof and is used for most civil actions
and some criminal defenses (as insanity). Clear and convincing proof is a
more demanding standard of proof and is used in certain civil actions (as
a civil fraud suit). Proof beyond a reasonable doubt is the most demanding
standard and the one that must be met for a criminal conviction.
- evidentiary fact
- a fact that is part of the situation from which a case arises and that
is established by testimony or other evidence
- exponential depletion
- the theory that a resource will be used up more and more quickly.
- external cost
- the cost that those other than a manufacturer must bear for the production
of a product.
- extortion
- to obtain (as money) from a person by force, intimidation, or undue or
unlawful use of authority or power; when the payee demands the payment by
threatening injury to the payer's interests; it is not a bribe, and the payer's
moral responsibility may be diminished in proportion to the severity of the
threat; in business, when an individual demands a consideration from persons
outside the firm as a condition for favorably dealing with them.
- fact
- a matter of objective reality: any of the circumstances of a case that
exist or are alleged to exist in reality: a thing whose actual occurrence
or existence is to be determined by the evidence presented at trial
- fact (evidentiary)
- a fact that is part of the situation from which a case arises and that
is established by testimony or other evidence
- fact (material)
- a fact that affects decision making: a fact that would influence a reasonable
person under the circumstances in making an investment decision (as in purchasing
a security or voting for a corporate officer or action);
- fair use
- a use of copyrighted material that does not constitute an infringement
of the copyright provided the use is fair and reasonable and does not substantially
impair the value of the work or the profits expected from it by its owner
- fair wage
- the moral wage to pay an employee; based on an area's (and industry's)
going wage, the capabilities of the firm, minimum wage laws, and other considerations.
- false statement
- a statement that is known or believed by its maker to be incorrect or untrue
and is made esp. with intent to deceive or mislead: the federal crime of concealing
a material fact, making a false statement, or using documents known to be
falsified
- false swearing
- the making of false statements under oath or affirmation in a setting other
than a judicial proceeding
- felony
- serious moral offenses punishable by long-term confinement or loss of civil
rights [e.g. murder, rape, arson]; a federal crime for which the punishment
may be death or imprisonment for more than a year
- felony murder
- a murder that occurs in the commission of a serious felony (as burglary
or sexual battery)
- fiduciary
- one often in a position of authority who obligates himself or herself to
act on behalf of another (as in managing money or property) and assumes a
duty to act in good faith and with care, candor, and loyalty in fulfilling
the obligation: one (as an agent) having a fiduciary duty to another
- fiduciary duty
- a duty obligating a fiduciary (as an agent or trustee) to act with loyalty
and honesty and in a manner consistent with the best interests of the beneficiary
of the fiduciary relationship (as a principal or trust beneficiary)
- fiduciary relationship
- a relationship in which one party places special trust, confidence, and
reliance in and is influenced by another who has a fiduciary duty to act for
the benefit of the party
- first-degree murder
- murder that is committed with premeditation or during the course of a serious
felony (as kidnapping) or that otherwise (as because of extreme cruelty) requires
the most serious punishment under the law
- fraud
- any act, expression, omission, or concealment calculated to deceive another
to his or her disadvantage: a misrepresentation or concealment with reference
to some fact material to a transaction that is made with knowledge of its
falsity or in reckless disregard of its truth or falsity and with the intent
to deceive another and that is reasonably relied on by the other who is injured
thereby
- free goods
- goods that no one owns.
- free market system
- a system where individual firms, privately owned, make their own decisions
about what they will produce and how they will produce it.
- hearsay
- a statement made out of court and not under oath (or in any other unreliable
circumstance) which is offered as proof that what is stated is true.
- historical materialism
- the belief that history is determined by changes in the economic methods
by which humanity.
- hostile environment harassment
- employment discrimination consisting of unwelcome verbal or physical conduct
(as comments, jokes, or acts) relating to the victim's constitutionally or
statutorily protected classification (as race, religion, ethnic origin, or
age) that has the effect of substantially interfering with a person's work
performance or of creating a hostile work environment
- ideology
- a system of normative beliefs shared by a group, expressing answers to
questions about human nature, the purpose of society, and the values of the
group.
- implied claim
- a claim about the quality or character of a product that is knowingly -
though not explicitly- made by a seller.
- implied warranty
- the indirect contractual relationship made between a company and its customers
by its advertisements.
- insider information
- confidential and proprietary information about a company which has a material
or significant impact on the price of the company's stock.
- insider trading
- the illegal use of esp. material inside information for profit in financial
trading
- institutionalized discrimination
- wrongful discrimination which is part of the routine behavior of a group
or corporation; it may be either intentional or unintentional.
- intellectual property
- the property that consists of an abstract, nonphysical object; such property,
unlike physical property, is nonexclusive.
- intentional discrimination
- wrongful discrimination which is done knowingly either by an individual
or a group.
- invidious contempt
- the belief that members of another sexual or racial group are inferior
or less worthy of respect.
- involuntary manslaughter
- manslaughter resulting from the failure to perform a legal duty expressly
required to safeguard human life, from the commission of an unlawful act not
amounting to a felony, or from the commission of a lawful act involving a
risk of injury or death that is done in an unlawful, reckless, or grossly
- isolated discrimination
- wrongful discrimination which is part of the isolated behavior of a single
individual; it may be either intentional or unintentional.
- job discrimination
- the wrongful act of discriminating in employment on the basis of prejudice
or some other morally reprehensible attitude; it is discrimination not based
on individual merit, derived at least in part from racial or sexual prejudice,
and having a negative impact on the interest of the employee.
- job satisfaction
- a measure of how workers perceive their own jobs; it is determined by experienced
meaningfulness, responsibility, and an employee's knowledge of results.
- justice as fairness
- associated with john rawls the belief that the distribution of benefits
and burdens in a society is just only if each person has an equal right to
the most extensive basic liberties compatible with similar liberties for all,
and social and economic inequalities are arranged so that they are both to
the greatest benefit of the least advantaged and attached to offices and positions
open to all fairly and equally.
- law of agency
- the law that specifies the legal duties of employees ("agents") toward
their employers ("principals"); it states that "an agent is subject to a duty
to his principal to act solely for the benefit of the principal in all matters
connected with his agency" and prohibits the agent from acting "for persons
whose interests conflict" with those of his principle.
- law of nature
- according to locke, the moral principle that since all men are free and
equal, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions.
- libel
- a defamatory statement or representation esp. in the form of written or
printed words : a false published statement that injures an individual's reputation
(as in business) or otherwise exposes him or her to public contempt
- libertarianism
- the belief that freedom from human constraint is necessarily good, and
thus that constraints imposed by others are necessarily evil.
- maintainability
- the ease with which a product can be repaired and kept in operating condition.
- malfeasance
- the commission (as by a public official) of a wrongful or unlawful act
(beyond negligence) involving or affecting the performance of one's duties
e.g. accepting bribes or personal favors for business advantage--a malfeasor
does something illegal)
- manipulation of supply
- when firms operating in an oligopolistic market agree to limit their production
so that prices rise to higher levels than they would in free competition.
- manslaughter
- the unlawful killing of a human being without malice
- misdemeanor
- a crime punishable by a fine and by a term of imprisonment not to be served
in a penitentiary and not to exceed one year; less serious moral offenses
punishable by fines or short-term confinement
- misfeasance
- the performance of a lawful action in an illegal or improper manner: the
performance of an official duty in an improper or unlawful manner or with
an improper or corrupt motive (e.g. auto maker not installing gas tanks less
subject to explode on impact--they create a problem)
- misrepresentation
- an intentionally or sometimes negligently false representation made verbally,
by conduct, or sometimes by nondisclosure or concealment and often for the
purpose of deceiving, defrauding, or causing another to rely on it detrimentally
- mixed economy
- an economy with both free market and central planning attributes.
- monopoly competition
- a market system where one seller has a substantial share of the market
(close to 100%) and no other sellers can enter.
- moral responsibility
- the idea that agents are culpable for acting or neglecting to act.
- morality
- the standards that an individual or a group has about what is right and
wrong (also, the subject that ethics investigates).
- multiple access
- when a resource can be used by several separate extractors, their shared
access will lead to the resource being depleted more quickly than if only
one extractor had access.
- murder
- the crime of unlawfully and unjustifiably killing another under circumstances
defined by statute (as with premeditation): such a crime committed purposely,
knowingly, and recklessly with extreme indifference to human life or during
the course of a serious felony (as robbery or rape)
- natural rights
- the rights that nature teaches each man that he has according to the law
of nature.
- naturalistic fallacy
- the logical error made when what exists is equated to what should exist.
- negligence
- failure to exercise the degree of care expected of a person of ordinary
prudence in like circumstances in protecting others from a foreseeable and
unreasonable risk of harm in a particular situation. Passive negligence:
failure to do something (as to discover a dangerous condition on one's property)
that
is
not a breach
of an affirmative duty and that in combination with another's act is a cause
of injury. Collateral negligence: negligence on the part of an independent
contractor that is not connected
with a manner of working or risk ordinarily associated with particular work
and for which the employer of the contractor is not liable. Gross negligence:
negligence marked by conduct that presents an unreasonably high degree
of risk to others and by a failure to exercise even the slightest
care in protecting them from it and that is sometimes associated with conscious
and willful indifference to their rights.
- nonfeasance
- failure or omission to do something (due to negligence or incompetence)
that should be done or esp. something that one is under a duty or obligation
to do: (e.g. city council not placing a stop sign at a lethal pedestrian
crossing--they
neglect a known problem)
- nonintential discrimination
- wrongful discrimination which is done unthinkingly or unintentionally either
by an individual or a group.
- oligopolistic competition
- a market system where a small group of sellers has a substantial share
of the market and no other sellers can enter; such markets are said to be
highly concentrated.
- original position
- according to rawls, the situation of a group that would say a principle
is morally justified; they must be rational self-interested persons who know
they will live in a society governed by the principles they accept but who
do not know the race, sex, religion, social position, interests, or abilities
that they will have.
- osha
- the occupational safety and health administration, founded in 1970 by congress
to "assure ...every working man and woman in the nation safe and healthful working
conditions."
- peaked depletion
- the theory that a resource will be used up quickly at first, and then more
slowly as it becomes more difficult to extract.
- perfect competition
- a market system in which no buyer or seller has the power to significantly
affect the prices at which goods are being exchanged.
- perjury
- the act or crime of knowingly making a false statement (as about a material
matter) while under oath or bound by an affirmation or other officially prescribed
declaration that what one says, writes, or claims is true
- political model
- the model of business organizations that emphasizes competing power coalitions
and formal and informal lines of influence and communication; generally, this
model is a more complex network of relationships than that represented by
an organizational chart.
- pollution
- the undesirable and unintended contamination of the environment.
- price discrimination
- when a seller charges different prices to different buyers for identical
goods or services.
- price fixing
- when firms operating in an oligopolistic market secretly agree to set prices
at artificially high levels.
- price leadership
- related to price setting; when oligopolistic industries recognize one firm
as the firm that sets the price, that firm is the price leader.
- price setting
- when firms in an oligopolistic market conclude that cooperation, rather
than competition, is in their collective best interests, they may reach the
independent conclusion that they will all benefit if, when one firm raises
its prices, the others will follow.
- private cost
- the cost a manufacturer bears to produce a product.
- private property system
- a system that maintains a system of property laws to assign private individuals
the right to make decisions about what they own.
- production costs / selling costs
- with reference to advertising, production costs are the costs of the resources
consumed in producing a product; selling costs are the additional costs of
resources that do not go into changing the product but rather are invested
in persuading people to buy it.
- proletariat
- according to marx, the alienated working class.
- rational model
- the model of business organizations which defines them as structures of
formal relationships designed to achieve a technical or economic goal with
maximum efficiency; often associated with a firm's organizational chart.
- reasonable risk
- a risk that is known and judged to be acceptable by the buyer.
- regulation
- the view that large companies should not be broken up to reinstate competitive
pressures; instead, regulatory agencies should be set up to restrain and control
their activities.
- reliability
- the probability that a product will function as the consumer is led to
expect.
- resource depletion
- the consumption of finite or scarce resources.
- retail price maintenance
- when a manufacturer sells to a retailer only on condition that they agree
to charge the same set retail prices for its goods.
- retributive justice
- the belief that agents should be punished or blamed for wrongdoing.
- reverse discrimination
- a term used by opponents of affirmative action; the idea that affirmative
action's effects are preferential treatment for minorities and discrimination
against white males on the basis of an irrelevant characteristic--race or sex.
- right to privacy
- the personal right to limit information about oneself, balanced in business
organizations against other legitimate rights by considering relevance, consent,
and method.
- rights
- in general, an individual's entitlement to something; legal rights are
those dictated by a system of laws; moral rights are those that permit or
allow all humans to do or to have something done for them; negative rights
prohibit others from interfering with an individual's actions; positive rights
grant others the duty to provide an individual with something she or he needs.
- rule-utilitarianism
- the view that an individual action is right when it is required by correct
moral rules and if the sum total of utilities produced if everyone were to
follow the rule is greater than the sum total utilities produced if everyone
did not follow the rule.
- second-degree murder
- a murder that is committed without premeditation but with some intent (as
general or transferred intent) or other circumstances not covered by the first-degree
murder statute
- service life
- the period of time during which a product will function as effectively
as the consumer is led to expect it to function.
- slander
- defamation of a person by unprivileged oral communication made to a third
party: defamatory oral statements
- social audit
- a regular measurement and recording of the impacts of a corporation's activities
upon society.
- social cost
- the cost which society bears to produce a product.
- social costs theory (of a seller's duties)
- the theory that the duties of the manufacturer extend far beyond those
imposed by contractual and due care duties; manufacturers should pay the cost
of any injuries sustained through any defects in their products, even when
they exercise due care and have taken all reasonable precautions. (related
to the legal doctrine of strict liability.)
- socialist justice
- the belief that benefits should be distributed according to need and burdens
according to ability.
- state of nature
- according to locke, the state where each man is the political equal of
all others, perfectly free of any constraints except the law of nature.
- supply curve
- a line on a graph indicating the prices producers must charge to cover
the average costs of supplying a given amount of a commodity.
- surplus value
- the difference between the value of labor and the wage paid for it.
- third-degree murder
- a murder that is not first- or second-degree murder: as a murder committed
in the perpetration of a felony not listed in the first-degree murder statute
- to internalize costs
- to move external costs inward, making them part of the private cost of
a commodity.
- toxic substance
- a substance harmful to some form of life.
- tying arrangement
- when a firm sells a buyer a certain good only on condition that the buyer
also purchase other goods from the firm.
- unlimited goods
- goods that seem to be limitless, like the environment.
- utilitarianism
- the view that actions are right when they produce the greatest net benefits
or the lowest net costs.
- vice
- defect; a moral fault or failing; immoral activity (as prostitution).
- virtue
- strength, an acquired disposition that is valued as a part of the character
of a morally good human being and that is exhibited in the person's habitual
behavior.
- whistleblowing
- the act of attempting to disclose wrongdoing in or by an organization;
it can be either internal, when the act is reported to the organization, or
external, when it is reported to an outside source.