Question

what is corporate social responsibility? describe ethical and unethical behavior. what are the main roots of unethical behavior ?

Answer 1

Corporate social responsibility is a type of international private business self-regulation that aims to contribute to societal goals of a philanthropic, activist, or charitable nature by engaging in or supporting volunteering or ethically-oriented practices.

Ethical behavior, simply put, is doing the right thing. Unethical behavior is the reverse. In the workplace, unethical behavior certainly includes any deeds that violate the law, such as theft or violence. But unethical behavior can involve much broader areas as well, such as deliberate violations of company policies, or using hard-sell sales practices that may be legal, strictly speaking, but that take excessive advantage of human frailties. Examples of unethical behavior can be found in all types of businesses and in many different areas.

Psychological traps are the root causes of unethical behavior.

Psychological traps are similar to fish traps. A fish trap is comprised of a wire cage with an entrance shaped like a large funnel that narrows toward the inside of the cage; the design of the funnel directs the fish to swim into the trap. In the same way, an individual or organization is encouraged to move in a certain (unethical) direction once a psychological trap is present. Later, the action turns out to be disastrous and there are usually no simple means of reversing course.[1]

Because they are psychological in nature, some of these traps distort perceptions of right and wrong so that one actually believes his or her unethical behavior is right. If people are not aware of these traps, they can act as illusions or webs of deception. Once the traps are identified, however, they lose much of their power to ensnare, and people can more easily circumvent them just as voyagers who know the location of quicksand can navigate around it. When danger is clearly identified, one can prepare for it and avoid it.

Depending on their context, traps may be benign and can even exert a positive influence on our lives. For example, empathy is often considered the cornerstone of good ethics but in some circumstances, this personality trait can actually overpower our sense of fairness. This is because traps can incite tunnel vision; the pull to act on them is so strong that people can become blinded to other behavioral options. Individuals that we respect and admire even whole companies can descend rapidly down the path of corruption.