Volume 1, Issue 5

This study explores MBA student experiences of ethical dilemmas in business and their perception of ethics education and of training needs in MBA programs. Changes in the business world --globalization, increasing diversity of the workforce, and the predominance of group decision processes -- impact the type of dilemmas MBA students experience and the nature of ethical decision making, enlarging it from the individual to the group. How MBA programs can respond to these changing training needs was addressed through focus groups with full-time MBA students in a large, U.S. public university. Results show that MBA students perceive that a broad array of ethical skills are needed for the business world and should be taught in MBA programs. A heuristic model for future program development and research is introduced.

The ultimate, practical objective of understanding both prejudice and tolerance is to reduce discrimination. No where is this more important than in diverse societies where differences exist in culture, colour and creed. Tolerance is only necessary when difference or diversity is present and entails endurance at the most basic level and acceptance at its best. Racial tolerance has been under-researched and is largely unexplored from a psychological perspective and there are both definitional and conceptual issues needing further clarification. This paper will discuss definitional and conceptual issues surrounding tolerance in general and racial tolerance in particular and report on the fledgling literature about racial tolerance.

The work being profiled here is modified from a chapter written with other colleagues (cited below). Previous studies have indicated that the undergraduate experience influences political beliefs and participation, and civic and political responsibility. In this study, Stephens and his colleagues examined the moral and civic education efforts of three campuses, California State University @ Monterey Bay, The United States Air Force Academy, and the University of Notre Dame.

Hauer's study examines whether character education influences Russian teachers' attitudes and character. Particularly, she was interested in examining whether any of the following were positive influences: challenges, personal growth opportunities, relationships with family. During the 1998-1999 school year, these Russian teachers worked with a trainer to improve their understanding and skills in character and moral education. The teachers all used varied methods, but all were utilizing the My World and I training program.

How will moral citizens require to be morally educated for life in the 21st century? Taking my cue from Martha Nussbaum's Cultivating Humanity, I want to argue that moral citizens will require a moral education in the ethics that undergird Nussbaum's three desiderata of the education of citizens, namely, the ability to engage in self-critical examination, allegiance to the ideal of world citizenship, and the development of what Nussbaum calls the narrative imagination. Embedded in these three dimensions of the education of citizens is, I believe, a conception of moral decency that is, when properly construed, designed to make educated citizens moral citizens.