A comparison of business ethics commitment in private and public sector orgnaizations in Sweden

This paper reports the results of a study of the top 500 private sector organizations and the top 100 public sector organizations in Sweden. It is a replication of the study by Svensson et al. (2004). The aim of the study was to describe and compare the business ethics commitment of organizations across the two sectors. The empirical findings indicate that the processes involved in business ethics commitment have begun to be recognized and acted upon at an organizational level in Sweden. Some support is provided to show that codes of ethics are developing in some of Sweden’s largest private and public sector organizations – although this is happening to a lesser extent in the public sector. It is noted that an effect of a code of ethics on the bottom line of the business was acknowledged by respondents in both private and public sector organizations. We believe that the supporting measures of business ethics commitment appear to be underutilized in both private and public sector organizations in Sweden (among those that possess codes of ethics), thus indicating that the commitment to business ethics in Swedish organizations has potential for future development.

Measurement and structural properties of organizational codes of ethics in private and public Sweden

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test the measurement and structural properties in a model of organizational codes of ethics (OCE) in Sweden.

Design/methodology/approach – The measurement and structural properties of four OCE constructs (i.e. surveillance/training, internal communication, external communication, and guidance) were described and tested in a dual sample based upon private and public sectors of Sweden.

Findings – Results show that the measurement and structural models of OCE in part have a satisfactory fit, validity, and reliability.

Research limitations/implications – The paper makes a contribution to theory as it outlines a set of OCE constructs and it presents an empirical test of and OCE model in respect to measurement and structural properties. A number of research limitations are provided.

Practical implications – It provides a model to be considered in the implementation and monitoring of OCE. The present research provides opportunities for further research in refining, extending, and testing the proposed OCE model in other cultural and organizational settings.

Originality/value – The OCE model extends previous studies that have been predominately descriptive, by using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling.

Communicating the ethos of corporate codes of ethics in the UK and the USA

Business ethics has been a consideration for corporations in the USA since at least the early 1960s, whilst in the UK this interest in business ethics appears to be just over 20 years old. In a survey of the top 500 companies operating in the private sector in the UK and the USA, it would appear that corporations operating in the UK have embraced the ethos of codes of ethics differently to their USA counterparts and that this difference may well be in line with their different adoption rates over the last 50 years of the need for business ethics in organizations. The USA seems to lead the UK in most areas, except when it comes to ethical audits and incorporating the ethics code into the strategic planning process. Could this omission in respect to strategic planning be the Achilles Heel of US business?

About global leadership and global ethics, and a possible moral compass : an introduction to the special issue

This paper reviews a number of huge challenges to ethical leadership in the twenty-first century and concludes that the need for global ethical leadership is not merely a desirable option, but rather – and quite literally – a matter of survival. The crises of the recent past reveal huge, and in some cases criminal, failures of both ethics and leadership in finance, business and government. We posit that mainstream economic theory’s construct of ‘homo economicus’ and its faith in the ‘invisible hand’ of the market constitute deeply flawed foundations upon which alone policy may be built and, farthermore, that these problematic foundations exert substantial shaping power over the institutional and discursive landscapes in which international business is transacted. Analogously, we argue that dominant approaches to business ethics and corporate social responsibility are, if not incorrect, at least in need of revisiting in terms of questioning their basic assumptions. Instead of the smugness of Western (especially Anglo-American) attitudes towards other ways of thinking, valuing and organising, it appears clear that openness, cooperation and co-creation between the developed and developing worlds is a basic prerequisite for dealing with the global challenges facing not just leaders, but humanity as a whole. This objective of stimulating discussion between dominant and marginal voices has guided our selection of papers for this Special Issue. We have thus included not only representatives of research from within the parameters of mainstream business ethics, IB or leadership scholarship, but also innovative contributions from fields such as military history, information technology, regulation, spirituality and sociology.

Changing perspectives : teaching and learning centres’ strategic contributions to academic development in Australian higher education

This article reports on a study of Australian teaching and learning centres to identify factors that contribute to their effective strategic leadership. These centres remain in a state of flux, with seemingly endless reconfiguration. The drivers for such change appear to lie in decision makers’ search for their centres to add more strategic value to organisational teaching, learning and the student experience. Through a synthesis of findings based on interviews, a survey of directors of centres and focus groups, the article identifies paradigmatic shifts in the ways centres see themselves, relate to their organisations and respond to external environmental forces. From an understanding of paradigm shifts, strategic contributions to academic development in the sector are framed organisationally through key points of leverage. Points of leverage are manageable actions that can be taken to maximise overall institutional impact and effectiveness.

Indigenous research ethics : new modes of information gathering and storytelling in journalism

Veteran Indigenous affairs reporter Tony Koch emphasises the importance of respect, trust and listening in his journalism practice. This paper draws on Koch’s insights as well as recent scholarship on the policies and value of listening to support the proposal that Indigenous research ethics provide a concrete framework for improving media representations of Indigenous people and their access to news media. The university ethics process cannot replicate the understanding Koch has gained from 25 years of interacting with Indigenous people and their communities. However, this paper argues it provides a pathway along which journalism academics and their students can learn to engage with Indigenous people, navigate Indigenous public spheres and produce high-quality reporting that reflects Indigenous people’s aspirations. Journalists within the academy, who are not subject to the commercial or organizational pressures of the news industry, are especially well placed to collaborate with Indigenous people to deliver new ways of conducting research and telling stories that privilege their perspectives. Koch’s newsgathering practice demonstrates that many principals of this progressive approach are also achievable in mainstream journalism.

Ethics education in accounting curricula : evidence from Malaysia

This study reveals that the extent to which accounting academics integrate ethics in their teaching is significantly and positively associated with the belief in their ability to teach ethics, which is found to be a function of peer support, Head of Department leadership and their own attitudes towards ethics education.

Interrogating the ethics of literacy intervention in Indigenous schools

Recognising that literacy is fundamental to the educational success of Indigenous students, this essay reviews current literacy intervention programs from a social justice perspective. It reveals the tension between policies and initiatives that have addressed the two key rights of Indigenous people – the right to access mainstream knowledge and language through the provision of empowering education and the right to sustain their own languages and cultures through culturally responsive education. In particular, the essay focuses on the National Accelerated Literacy Program (NALP) – a large-scale initiative supported by the former Liberal and the current Labour government in 2004-2008. A spin-off from NALP has been the formation of the Accelerated Literacy Consultants’ Network that provides professional development sessions in Accelerated Literacy and literacy education more broadly to teachers from Aboriginal Independent Community Schools across Australia. The essay questions the view of justice in the NALP’s theoretical and pedagogical design and its effects on teaching and learning in Aboriginal schools. The paper, then, discusses the primacy of ethics in literacy education in order to make it more hospitable and responsive to cultural-linguistic differences.

Implanting sustainability in business strategies : CSR, ethics or the law

This paper elucidates the conundrum faced by Australian businesses in developing ‘sustainable’ business strategies that are acceptable to a multiplicity of stakeholders. A content analysis of the web pages for leading Australian companies indicates that there is little tangible evidence that sustainable business practices are being implemented. The authors propose several directions for research into substantive issues between ethical behaviour, corporate social responsibility and environmentally sustainable behaviour for businesses. Each of these areas is developing research in relative isolation. However, we argue that this paradigmatic divide is limiting the opportunities for research to provide real insight into seemingly intractable problems.