Lingnan University

Department of Philosophy

Course Title : Contemporary Issues in Business Ethics

Course Code : PHI362

Recommended Study Year : 3
rd
year

No. of Credits/Term : 3

Mode of Tuition : Lecture and tutorial

Class Contact Hours : 2 hours Lecture/week
1 hour Tutorial/week

Category in Major
Programme
: Programme Elective

Prerequisite(s) : N/A

Co-requisite(s) : N/A

Exclusion(s) : Business Ethics

Exemption Requirement(s) : N/A

Brief Course Description : This course aims at an understanding of the
contemporary ethical issues in business, which
occurs in the capitalist society. Students are
expected to possess basic knowledge of ethical
concepts and general rules of moral reasoning.
They should also be acquainted with the main
theories of ethics. On the basis of this
theoretical background, students will be
introduced to the discussion of the problems of
business ethics. They include: employee rights
and duties, quality of working life, whistle
blowing, consumer safety and product liability,
environment protection, truth and advertising etc.

Aims : This course aims to
1. make students aware of the responsibilities of
corporations as well as the duties and rights of
individuals in business activities.
2. engage students in sound moral reasoning
with regard to contemporary business issues.

Learning Outcomes : Students will be able to tackle business issues
from a moral point of view and make moral
judgments which are based on sound arguments.
They are expected to be aware of their right as
stakeholders of government or corporate policy in
the business realm. They should also be aware
of their own responsibilities, no matter they are
employees or employers.

Indicative Content : 1. Ethics and business
a. Ethics
b. Myth of amoral business
c. The relation of business and morality
d. Business ethics
2. Morality and moral reasoning
a. The nature of morality
b. Properties of moral language
c. The is-ought distinction
d. Universality of a moral judgement
e. Moral conflicts and their resolution
3. Morality and corporations
a. The moral status of corporations
b. The moral responsibility of corporations
4. Employer-employee relationships
a. The obligations of employers
i. J ustice in hiring, firing and
promotions
ii. Wages and working conditions
b. The rights and duties of employees
i. Rights to work and autonomy
ii. Company lives and privacy
iii. Whistle blowing and the duty of
loyalty
iv. Secrecy and the right to intellectual
property
5. Contemporary business issues
a. Environmental protection and
sustainable development
b. Consumer safety and product liability
c. Marketing, truth and advertising
d. Affirmative action
6. Corporate culture
a. Aristotelian approach to business ethics
b. Code of conduct in the corporation.

Teaching Method : Lectures and tutorials

Measurement of Learning
Outcomes
: By group presentation, written essays and written
examination.

Assessment : 60% Continuous Assessment
40% Final Examination

Required Readings : Hoffman, W.M. and R. E. Frederick. Business
Ethics: Readings and Cases in Corporate
Morality. 3
rd
ed. New York: McGraw-Hill,
1995.
Velasquez, M.G. Business Ethics: Concepts and
Cases. 4
th
ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J .:
Prentice-Hall, 1998.

Supplementary Readings : Beauchamp, T.L. Case Studies in Business,
Society and Ethics. 3
rd
ed. Englewood
Cliffs, N.J .: Prentice-Hall, 1993.
Beauchamp, T.L. and N.E. Bowie eds. Ethical
Theory and Business. 4
th
ed. Englewood
Cliffs, N.J .: Prentice-Hall, 1998.
Becker, L.C. The Finality of Moral J udgement:
A Reply to Mrs. Foot. The Philosophical
Review, 82: 364-370, 1973.
Behrman, J .N. Essays on Ethics in Business and
the Professions. Englewood Cliffs, N.J .:
Prentice-Hall, 1988.
De George, R.T. Business Ethics. 3
rd
ed.
New York: Macmillan, 1990.
DesJ ardins, J .R. and McCall, J .J . Contemporary
Issues in Business Ethics. 3
rd
ed. Belmont,
C.A.: Wadsworth, 1996.
Donaldson, T. and A. Gini eds. Case Studies in
Business Ethics. Englewood Cliffs, N.J .:
Prentice-Hall, 1993.
Donaldson, T. and P.H. Werhane eds. Ethical
Issues in Business: A Philosophical Approach.
5
th
ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J .:
Prentice-Hall, 1996.
Frederick, W.C. Values, Nature and Culture in
American Corporation. New York: Oxford
University Press, 1995.
Frederick, W.C., J . E. Post and K. Davis.
Business and Society: Corporate Strategy,
Public Policy, Ethics. 7
th
ed. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1992.
Garrett, T.M. and R.J . Klonoski. Business
Ethics. 2
nd
ed. Englewood Cliffs, N.J .:
Prentice-Hall, 1986.
Madsen, P. and J . M. Shafritz eds. Essentials of
Business Ethics. New York: Meridian, 1990.
Shaw, W.H. and V. Barry. Moral Issues in
Business. 5
th
ed. Belmont, C.A.:
Wadsworth, 1992.
1999
1995

1990[Kuang, mei-tsz.
Market Enviromentalism: lessons for Hong
Kong. Hong Kong: Chinese University
Press], 1990.

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