v3n3: Lovett on May et al. on Business Ethics Education

“Evaluating a New Field of Research About the Influence of Business Ethics Education,” by Steven Lovett

A COMMENTARY ON “The Influence of Business Ethics Education on Moral Efficacy, Moral Meaningfulness, and Moral Courage: A Quasi-Experimental Study,” by Douglas R. May, Matthew T. Luth, and Catherine E. Schwoerer (J Bus Ethics 124(1) (2014): 67–80).

Abstract:

Douglas May, Matthew Luth, and Catherine Schwoerer identify and study an area that lacks empirical research, namely the effectiveness of teaching, and learning, business ethics, corporate social responsibility, and sustainability. The authors assess whether courses that teach ethical decision-making in business settings positively influence students’ moral efficacy, moral meaningfulness, and moral courage. Their findings demonstrate increases in the ethics education treatment group’s outcomes for each of the three variables. This experimental data is encouraging, but the definitional subjectivity of each variable, and the unique effects of various methods of instruction, should provide motivation for further research efforts.

To download the full PDF, click here: Lovett on May, Luth, and Schwoerer.