business ethics thesis topics

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80 Outstanding Business Ethics Research Paper Topics

A business ethics research paper has to be engaging and a solution to a particular economic challenge. We have a compilation of the best business ethics topics to help you achieve this task. Read on.

Social Media Business Ethics Paper Topics

Writing a research paper for a high grade is not an easy task for every student. Check social media business ethics topics to get some inspiration.

Is monitoring employee’s online behavior by companies ethical?
Should a company fire an employee if they find their information on social media detrimental to its image?
What is the role of social media in achieving responsible business
The impact of CSR initiatives on Facebook and Twitter
How do new product introductions perform on social media?
How do enterprises manage negative responses on Facebook?
How to increase positive responses without eroding business ethics
Is the notion of ‘controversial fit’ on social media ethical?

Business Ethics Research Topics on Privacy

Installation of surveillance cameras to supervise employees
To what extent can bosses watch over the actions of their staff?
Is intercepting and reading E-mail messages in an office ethical?
What ethical problem does the merging of databases containing personal information pose?
The emergence of hackers and crackers and the threat to privacy
Software for decoding digital information
Who decides the personal or private information to gather?
Do businesses adhere to the confidentiality of information policy?

Health and Safety Business Ethics Paper Topics

How does organizational ethical climate affect personal safety ethics?
The conflict between personal safety ethics and professional safety ethics
Is the office ergonomics a pressing concern?
The role of the Occupational Safety and Health Act
Facility design consistent with health and safety regulations
Hazard identification and correction by companies
Who is responsible for shutting down dangerous activities
Provision of medical surveillance in workplaces

List of Business Ethics Topics on Environmental Damage

Are businesses using energy-efficient lighting?
Proper thermostat control of heating and cooling systems
Do companies have computer equipment operating efficiently?
Use of wind power and solar panels by industries
Reducing the business’s environmental impact and carbon footprint.
Replacing plastic packaging with biodegradable materials
Examining the effects of the business practices on other species
Dealing with activities that involve clearing land and destroying animals’ habitats

Ethical Research Paper Topics on Internal Relationships

Job satisfaction and dedication levels of employees
Impact of bullying and discrimination on workers
Productivity levels fall of employees when companies do not care about them
How to sustain a healthy atmosphere among employees
Unfair treatment due to race, religion or gender
How effective is the anti-discrimination law?
Bias among employees
Eliminating unethical behaviors within an organization

Ethics Research Paper Topics on Business Leadership

What is the mark of an ethical leader?
Objectivity and transparency as leadership traits
Leaders with strong, virtuous values those with weak values
Maintaining your temper as a leader
Dealing with anger in business as a leader
Can leadership prevail in the use of strength and violence?
How a leader’s moral stance determines his ethics
Are women better business leaders than men?

Interesting Business Ethics Topics on Social Responsibility

Making ethical decision making in big corporations.
Understanding the concept of corporate responsibility.
An inspiration for social responsibility in the workplace
Investing in corporate social responsibility
How CSR trends are evolving over time
Striking a balance between profit and social responsibility
Achieving competitive advantage and CSR
How learning can contribute to CSR

Business Ethics Paper Topic Idea in Sports

Encouraging character development through sports
How unethical behavior affects ones moral and ethical standards outside the pitch
Are sports competitions alienated from real life?
How games serve as a primary outlet of our ethics
Is faking a foul or injury ethical?
How athletes attempt to get a head start in a race
Using performance-enhancing drugs
Intimidating or taunting opponents

Advertising Ethical Issues Topics for Papers

Should children appear in adverts?
Is it right for half-naked ladies to appear in adverts?
Is exaggerating ads ethical?
Talking about the side effects of products in ads
Alcohol ads on TV
Cigarettes and tobacco
Fooling customers through practical things
Ethics of advertising a sanitary napkin

Bonus Ethics Paper Topics

The roots of business ethics in psychology.
The relationship between business success and personal integrity
The place of moral leadership in a company
How to make the right decisions every day at work
Implications of leadership malfunctions and ethical failures
How far can an ethical mishap take a company?
Who should be the moral police in a corporate organization?
What are the kinds of ethical dilemmas that people face at work every day?

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After going through the comprehensive list of topics concerning papers on business ethics, nothing can stop you now. All you need to do is to select one and get going. Nonetheless, if you still find it difficult, we have guru writing help on how to write business ethics research papers and much more! Give your assignment a professional feel by using our top-rated assistance now! The process is as easy as pie. Just c ontact us with a “ do my custom research paper now” request and get an A+. Why try to work on a paper and risk failing when an expert is only a click away!

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80 World’s Finest Business Ethics Topics For Research Paper

What is business ethics? MBA students in college or university need top business ethics research paper topics for their course. Any business cannot exist without ethics. It is a vital aspect that companies in numerous countries uphold to ensure their reliability and credibility.

Building a consensus between the moral aspects and the economic setting is what lecturers aim to see in students with such a paper. You will know how to write more topics on your own painstakingly with our top business ethics paper topic ideas in a moment.

Topics in Accounting: Business Ethics Research Paper

The perception of tax evasion ethics
Acceptable ethical behavior in the accounting workplace
The history of ethics in accounting
How governments handle accounting ethics
A case study of philosophers who contributed to the ethics of accounting
Cultural and political situations leading to accounting ethics
The concepts behind accounting ethics precepts and their applications
Different educational approaches in teaching accounting ethics

Corporate Culture Business Ethics Paper Topics

What role does corporate culture play in business ethics?
The place of organizational culture in improving performance
Business ethics in the management of mergers
Lessons from corporate scandals and organizational crises
Conducting a corporate cultural “audit.”
Factors determining the behavior of people in a corporate environment
How management impacts organizational culture
Methods used to incorporate ethics into the corporate culture.

Technology Business Ethics Research Topics

Encoding company values to stop destructive technologies
How to build a more robust data foundation to enhance security
Stakeholder privacy in the dissemination of information
Cultivating trust in destructive technologies
Demonstrating transparency using technology in business
Is data surveillance ethical?
Deploying the technology “power of all.”
Training business technologists to eliminate product bias
Advising employees on how technology may affect their jobs in the future

Business Ethics Paper Topics For Advertising

Is the use of misleading advertising unethical?
Why do companies use women in product advertising?
Is it ethical to use minors for business adverts?
Should alcohol companies advertise before the watershed period?
Is it ethical to advertise the sale of guns on TV?
What should happen to agencies with scam adverts?
Discuss why it is unethical for boxing companies to use provocatively dressed ladies
The impact of misleading headlines in advertisements
Is it ethical to use vague and obscene language in advertising?
Why should cigarette adverts have a warning for excessive use?
Compare and contrast men versus women adverts. Which ones sell?

Ethical Research Paper Topics in Business during Pandemics

Is it ethical to hike prices during pandemics
Should companies lay off their staff during the coronavirus period
Should small income businesses pay tax during adverse conditions
Why do enterprises hide commodities in times of crises
Is it ethical for real-estate agencies to continue charging rent?
Should governments supply subsidized products to stop competition?
Why pandemics may increase internal control risks
Is slashing more than 50% of salaries ethical?
Should employers grant their employees mandatory unpaid leaves?

Ethics Research Paper Topics for Managers

Why managers should have a Corporate Conscience
How good ethics translates to profit: A guide for managers
A critical approach to the integrity of managers
The social nature of morality in managerial positions
Is shrewd bargaining ethical for managers?
How can managers effectively resolve ethical problems
How unethical management can affect a company’s bottom line
Moral management is suitable for both the law and the market
Ethical managers save companies legal compulsion
How does good ethics result in excellence for managers?

Interesting Legal Business Ethics Topics

Why lawyers should not pursue their interests in the representation of a client
Are law schools teaching legal ethics effectively?
How should lawyers behave towards each other?
Should lawyers be compelled to honor their obligation?
How law and morality conflict
Can a promise be used in place of a contract?
How far should companies stand behind their products?
Is it ethical to use mentally insane people in adverts?
Claiming a product is better than others in ads.
Employment discrimination law ethics

Social Media Business Ethical Issues Topics for Papers

Should employers monitor employee behavior?
How social media leads to a breach of confidentiality
Social media and improper business practices and activities
Have blogs toned-down business ethics?
Use of social media by employees for their personal, non-company use
Discuss how employees use social media for the company’s business objectives
How to ethical answer questions on social media
Healthy employee social media policies
How applicable is the Kantian Ethics to the use of social media in business?
Proper ethical standards for social media use
Should companies turn off comments on social media?
Trust and brands management in social media
How to improve ethics using social media
Corporate social media policy for companies
Tips for posting on social media

The list of business ethics topics above should inspire you to get a paper and begin your essay or create more of them.

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170+ fantastic business ethics research paper topics to try out.

Many students struggle to choose their business ethics research paper topics. That’s because this subject has controversial and fascinating issues. What’s more, this subject keeps widening because people engage in different businesses. And people can’t do business without ethics. Therefore, companies in various countries must adhere to an ethical code of conduct to ensure their credibility and reliability.

University professors and lecturers ask learners to write research papers to gauge their understanding of this subject. Students should select interesting and engaging topics for their essays to ensure that educators love their work and award them high grades. If struggling to decide what to write about, here’s a list of business ethics topics to consider.

Interesting Business Ethics Topics

These are interesting business ethics topics that learners can research and write about to earn superior grades. Nevertheless, students should prepare to research extensively and analyze information to develop quality papers.

Should a company be honest with its customers?
Should a corporation be responsible for environmental protection
Moral principles and decision making in business
Employee relationships as an ethical principle of an employer
Ethical issues that surround corporation governance
Social responsibility in business
How to think, act, and compete ethically in business
Business ethics and environmental policies
How to teach business ethics
Ethical conflicts- Ways to avoid arguments on cultural, religious, national, and political basis in business
Cross-cultural and ethical concerns in business
Business decision making- What are the ethical considerations?
Psychological perspectives in corporate ethics
Approaching business ethics from a psychological viewpoint
How to approach business ethics from a philosophical viewpoint
Business principles and ethical standards
How to adhere to ethical rules in business
Ethical codes for trade associations
Ethical ways to prevent sexual harassment in business
Ethical codes for multinational companies
Can an ethical mistake cause bankruptcy?
Ethical dilemmas facing business owners
Organizing the structures that control ethical issues in business
Ethical values that employers share with workers
Are personnel and manager ethics different?
Ethical values for industrial communities
Corporate responsibility as an ethical concept
How to balance pragmatics with ethics- Effective managerial methods
How criminal behaviors can limit large corporations
How necessary are ethical codes for a company?
Types of corporate and white-collar crimes
Who’s responsible for a company’s corporative ethics?
Approaching ethics from a pragmatic perspective
Ethical failures caused by leadership malfunctions
To work ethics can facilitate making the right decisions
Moral leadership role in business
Business success and personal integrity
Business ethics- What are their psychological roots?
How to avoid being a victim of unethical actions at the workplace
What causes unethical behavior in business?

Easy Business Ethics Paper Topics

Some college students need simple topics that they won’t struggle to research, write about, and impress their educators. Consequently, they prefer writing about simple but exciting business ethics topics. If that’s what you’re looking for, here are brilliant ideas to consider.

Most students can have a relatively easy time researching and writing about these business ethics paper topic ideas. Nevertheless, a learner should first examine any of these ideas to develop a paper that will earn them the top grade.

What measures should a business organization implement to prevent sexual harassment?
Can business ethics help in evaluating the capital amount that a company should spend on health benefits?
Is being absolutely transparent with a target market ethical for a company?
Is discouraging pregnancies among employees ethical for a company?
How to evaluate illegal practices like bribery, corruption, and nepotism during the tendering process
How illegal and unethical behavior affect a company and society
Ethical evaluation of favoritism in a family-owned business
How to examine ethics in business contracts
Exploring privacy violation and social media as an infringement of business ethics
Is authenticity a type of business ethics?
How the management can stop the perception of women as sex symbols at the workplace
A case study of business ethics- A brief review of privacy infringements and surveillance by Facebook
How child labor amounts to business ethics’ violation
Should a company that profits from others’ peril continue operating?- Investigating unhealthy products from alcohol and cigarette companies
Privacy violation by social media as a business ethics’ breach
Misinformation to shareholders and the board- Investigating negligence as an unethical practice in business.
Ethics behind hazardous working conditions
Subway business model and ethics
How to promote a company’s ethical practices
Should businesses be held accountable for claims and promises they make regarding their service or product purposes?
Ethics behind the sale of a product before through testing and approval
How to address the ethical problem of a country that leads in production and manufacturing by has poor working conditions, low wages, and remuneration schemes
Ethical ways to achieve corporate social responsibility
Ethics governing different marketing techniques
Why do companies misinform their target customers about services and goods?
Is marking fast foods as healthy yet they increase the risk of diseases like diabetes ethical?
Examining the code of ethics in different economic sectors
Is refusing a female football coach in a male team ethical?
Is having an unsafe working environment unethical?
Is it ethical for a company to monitor the online behavior of its employees?

Business Ethics Research Paper Topics about Social Media

It’s almost impossible for a company to ignore social media and succeed in the current digital era. Consequently, ethical conduct by businesses on different social media platforms is a prominent research area. Here are some of the best topics in this category.

These are brilliant topics for an essay or research paper. Learners should research any of these ideas extensively and take time to write top-notch pieces.

Should a corporate organization fire a worker with social media details that could hurt its image?
How corporate social responsibility initiatives on social media affect a business
How enterprises manage negative social media responses
Is controversial fit notion on social media ethical?
The performance of product introductions on social media
How social media can help in the achievement of responsible business
Can social media cause a confidentiality breach in a company?
Improper business activities and practices in social media
How blogs have toned down most business ethics
Ethical ways employees can use social media for non-company and personal purposes
Ethical ways a business can use social media to answer customer questions
Health company policies for guiding employees’ conduct on social media
How a business can ethically post on social media
Practical tips for using social media for corporate social responsibility
How companies can manage brands and trust in social media
Should a business turn off social media comments?
Proper ethical conduct on social media
How to apply Kantian Ethics when using social media for business purposes
How employees can use social media ethically to achieve a company’s objectives
How to enhance ethics when using social media for business

Business Ethics Essay Topics for College Students

Perhaps, you want to write an essay on an ethics topic in business. In that case, consider these ideas for your paper.

How fair play can improve a company’s bottom line
Corporate responsibility- What are the ethical underpinnings?
Is ethics a required course in business?
Ethical practices for modern businesses
What causes unethical behavior by companies
Is personal integrity a moral and a function for corporate success?
Ethical decision-making rules in a corporate environment
What are the qualities of an ethical business leader?
Transparency and objectivity as business leadership traits
How ethical leaders maintain their temper
How ethical business leaders deal with anger
Is using violence and strength a trait of ethical leaders?
What is the role of corporate culture in business ethics?
Methods of incorporating ethics in a company’s corporate culture
How the management affects an organizational culture
Factors determining people’s behavior in a corporate environment
How to conduct a cultural audit in a company
Lessons from organizational crises and corporate scandals
Business ethics in mergers’ management
How organizational culture can enhance a company’s performance
How encoding business values can prevent destructive technologies
Building a robust foundation for a company’s data to improve security
Stakeholder privacy in information dissemination
How to cultivate trust when dealing with dangerous technologies
How to demonstrate transparency when using business technology
How ethical is data surveillance?
How to deploy technology’s power of all
How to advise employees about the ethical use of technology
How unethical use of technology can affect a business
How to train technologists about ethical ways of eliminating product bias

This category also has hot topics in business ethics that educators and the audience will find interesting to read. Nevertheless, extensive research is necessary to come up with a brilliant essay on any of these ideas.

Dissertation Topics in Business Ethics

Perhaps, you’re pursuing an MBA or Ph.D., and you need a topic for your dissertation. In that case, this section has some of the best business ethics topics for presentation to your dissertation committee. Consider the following ideas for your paper.

These are ethics topics in business that most experts will find interesting. Yet, hese ideas still require extensive research to develop comprehensive papers.

Business ethics in the publishing industry- Authorship collaboration and sponsorship
How higher education institutions can teach business ethics- Comparing developing and developed countries
How to define the aesthetics concept in business ethics
Challenges facing ethical practices in the tourism sector
Ethics in practice and theory- What is the difference?
Business research ethics- An evaluation of incentives and more profound objectives in business
Analyzing ethical decision-making when doing business online
Historical countdown of ethical decision-making in business
Exploration of ethic code in a company via the management perspective
How to use the code of ethics to win trust among the employees
Business ethics within the share market
Motivations for business decisions by citizens- An ethical perspective
Corporate egoism, bribery, and exploitation- What are the links?
Business ethics practice and perceptions by students doing business while pursuing higher education
Business contracts and corruption among the international society
Investigating gift-giving, pharmaceutical representatives, and business ethics
Analyzing the relationship between business organizations and civil society via an ethical perspective
How corporate ethic code influences the employees’ sales behavior
How to integrate business ethics in corporate social responsibility
A critical analysis of a company’s management ethics

Business Ethics Debate Topics

Debates around business ethics aim to argue a position’s merit, differences between right and wrong, and common ethical boundaries. Here are controversial business ethics topics to consider for your project.

Should companies ban workplace relationships?
A comparison of genetically modified seeds versus pesticide use on seeds
Should clearance pricing have controls?
Is monopolizing all industry aspects ethical for a company?
How antibacterial soap affects people
Should countries that have legalized marijuana allow businesses to advertise it?
How ethical and relevant is performance review in a company?
Should companies compensate customers for delayed deliveries?
How over criminalizing a company affects society
The effectiveness of shareholder model in public company’s management
Is native advertising ethical and appropriate?
How large companies use their monopoly to influence consumers
Are white-collar criminals corporate psychopaths?
Should pharmaceutical companies sell their drugs at high prices?
Is tracking customers’ phones an ethical practice for banks to reduce fraud?
Is seeking opportunities that conflict with a government job ethical misconduct?
Using predictive analytics in siphoning worker’s email for risk- Is it ethical?
Why is reducing tax payment through inversion unethical?
Is colonizing another planet ethical from a business perspective?
Companies should give women more time to nurse their newborn babies
Should companies buy products from a business that doesn’t practice business ethics?
Should public institutions like schools hire the services of private companies?
Should amusement parks have unique safety regulations, depending on their locations?
Should business leaders and CEOs earn higher salaries than the other employees?
Should a small business have similar recall rules with global corporations?
Should US companies depend on the federal government’s bailout during financial trouble?
Should businesses use healthcare programs to pay for employees’ yoga studios, health clubs, and fitness needs?
Should companies share cancer research data with the general public?
Should firms that manufacture dangerous or addictive products contribute resources to the research for their use?
Why using workplace surveillance systems on employees is unethical
Why internet censorship is unethical and ridiculous
Businesses should ethically pay employees the minimum wage that the federal government mandates them
Companies should pay equal wages to all employees regardless of their gender or sex identity
Companies should prevent sexual harassment
Businesses should be responsible for preventing workplace discrimination
Companies should educate employees about ethical issues regarding their social media usage
Every company should be responsible for the safety and health of employees at the workplace
Every business should be held accountable for ethical issues surrounding its environmental responsibility

These are exciting topics about business ethics that learners can work on when writing academic papers and essays. However, learners can use a professional research paper writing service if unable to write academic papers . Several online companies offer custom writing help to learners at different study levels. Nevertheless, choose a company with ENL expert writers to get fast, cheap, and reliable assistance. That way, you’ll end up with a paper that will impress the professor to award you the top grade in your class.

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177 Interesting Ethics Paper Topics For Your Thesis

Ethics is a branch of study in philosophy that studies the concept of morality—what is good or bad, what is acceptable or unacceptable. It’s a philosophical theory that looks into moral rules and codes, principles, value systems, and other related concepts.

In academia, an ethical theory is used as one of the analytical tools in drawing analysis on several socio-cultural topics. Ethics can be applied to any particular subject matter in human society. And, on this, so many compelling, controversial or interesting ethical topics for academic essays and research papers have continued to spring up.

For students writing either an essay or a research paper on ethics, there are some relevant things to note about a good essay/research topic and writing a dissertation. They include:

Brainstorm on different topics Always go for a topic you are familiar with Choose a topic that has enough “flesh”. This is important as interesting topics will help you develop your essay/research Define your subject of interest. It makes the writing easier Properly researching for topics that serve contemporary social relevance Outlining is important for your research topic

What following some of these processes does for your essay/research/thesis is that it enriches your work and affords you the ability to communicate ideas clearly to readers. Here are some topics in ethics you can use for your essay/research.

Interesting Top Level Ethics Paper Topics for All Students

Writing a paper on ethics makes for an interesting writing experience because they usually require that the writer make a case for a particular subject based on whether the subject is right or wrong. There are so many ethical topics for papers. As a student, there are several ethical questions to debate, and you can choose to model your topic using some of these samples:

Discuss what should be done concerning the rise in the ban on safe abortion
Is the right to safe abortion practice unethical?
Should abortion practice be promoted or championed for women in society?
Are humans truly the root source for the issues of climate change and global warming the world is currently experiencing?
Is it right to discriminate against the sexes?
Is there a defining difference between sexes and gender?
Is the practice of gender-based violence ethical?
Should safe sexual practices be promoted?
Sex: A Study of the growing practice of sexual relationships outside marriage
Domestic Violence and how it can be combated
Marijuana: The distinction to its health roles and health challenges it poses on individuals
Is it unethical to promote capitalism and capitalist concepts?
A Study of Racism and measures to ensure its decline
Is it ethical to be a millionaire while there are so many less privileged people?
A study of the ethical challenges that come with being in the academia
Is war an ethical practice?
Why LGBTQ+ people should not be discriminated against
What are the ways workplace ethics can address issues of homophobia and internalized sexism?
Is sexism in the workplace an ethical practice?
The issue of microaggression and how it can be addressed
A study of why workplaces need ethical conduct that monitors issues of workplace harassment
Should salaries be uneven?
How unethical are uneven salary payment structures?
Should start-up tech companies hire more men for starters?
How people can prioritize online privacy
Is bridging online privacy unethical?
Is the right to privacy unethical?

Engaging Ethical Dilemma Topics

As ethics deals with the debate on morals, one of the ways topics on ethics manifests is in the subject of dilemma. Topics like this focus on trying to find a suitable justification for one idea over another. There are several ethics topics to write about on this subject. Some of them include:

Should students be allowed to bring their phones to school?
Should parents police every social activity of their children?
Should teachers use the cane on students as a disciplinary measure?
Is flogging a good correctional practice?
Should you leave your partner if they are of opposing political views?
Should opposing religious beliefs be a deal-breaker in relationships?
Should capitalism be abolished completely?
Should a teacher maintain some level of friendship with their students?
Is there any lingering importance of capitalism to society?
Is revenge a viable option in a relationship if your partner cheats on you?
Is sharing your experiences online the same as showing off a lifestyle?
Should people from different religious beliefs and backgrounds partner?
Is checking the DNA of your children important or necessary?
Should parents enforce their children on behaviors to take up?
Can discipline properly correct the attitudes of a child?
Should eating junk foods be avoided completely?
Should Halloween Trick or Treat and Costume be prioritized over Thanksgiving Dinners?
Should children hold different religious beliefs from their parents while still young?
Does strict parenting serve as the best way to raise a child?
Is it important to reveal a secret to a friend or to keep one’s peace?
Should cooking at home be prioritized over eating out?
Is socialism a more suitable social practice than capitalism?
Is accepting financial assistance from your parents acceptable after a certain age?
Should school authorities seize phones brought to school?
Is sending a child to a mixed school better than same-sex schools?
Can afforestation alone save the world from global warming and the general climate change condition?
Does being educated equate with being intelligent?

Ethical Issues to Write about in Your College Essay

One important thing to note about ethical topics is that they touch across so many different subjects. As a college student preparing to write an essay on ethics, rest assured as there are so many ethics ideas to write about. Here are some ethical topics to write about:

Does Hiring female employees cover a company’s sexist motives?
Should Actors be paid more than teachers?
Taking medical decisions for a patient without their consent
How ethical is the interference of the judiciary by the legislative arm of government?
Is it ethical to fire someone due to their dress code?
Is it unethical to wear colored hair to work?
Is censorship ethical?
Where does media censorship draw the line?
Is it ethical for religious figureheads to meddle in state politics?
Should gender be the reason why a person is restricted access to certain social privileges?
Should sexuality be a discriminatory factor in society?
Should companies and places of work provide counseling and therapy services for their employees?
Can Children wear makeup on special occasions?
Is it unethical to make medical decisions for a patient without any recognizable relatives?
Does dress code need to affect how you are addressed?
Should implementing ethics in sports be recommended?
Is police brutality an ethical practice?
The impacts of the excessive consumption of media content?
Is the excessive use of social media healthy?
How can companies ensure paid maternal and paternal leave?
How can the inclusion of non-binary people in company policies promote growth?
Is exclusion on the grounds of sexuality ethical?
Is exclusion due to political beliefs unethical?
How to promote ethical work culture?
How can a company ensure that ethical practices are promoted in their companies?

Ethical Argument Topics to Write About

The best part about writing an ethical essay is that it is about anything that is of interest. An important aspect of the ethical argument topic is that it is supported with evidence. There are so many ethical topics to write about that fall within this category, and they include:

Is the having of ethical codes and conducts important in an organization?
Should people only implement progressive ideas to meet societal needs?
Why LGBTQ+ should not be discriminated against
Is it unethical to come to work late?
Is government-sanctioned execution an ethical practice?
Is the American incarceration system an effective corrective system?
Is corrective rape an ethical practice?
Should the issue of internalized homophobia be addressed?
Internalized patriarchy and internalized homophobia, which one births one
Should smoking weed be made legal?
Why do the less privileged need free healthcare services
A study of the effects of colonialism and internalized slavery
Must aspiring journalists only focus on journalism courses?
Addressing what it means to be of ethical behavior
Should students be given a take-home assignment?
Is there any academic relevance to assignments?
Is access to free healthcare important?
Does following the ethics code have abt social relevance?
What role should developed countries play for developing countries?
Is analysis writing an important aspect of literature?
What role does ethics play in schools
Should the address of global warming be continuous?
Is there room for possible positive developments in global warming?
Is the practice of ethics the same as moral teaching
Should schools create sex education into their education curriculum

Comprehensive Ethics Debate Topics for Anyone

Just like the argumentative ethics topic, a debate topic on ethics centers majorly on choosing a part to argue for or against. This argument also is wrapped with evidence to support it. Your ethic topics can be on any subject. You can choose moral topics or any other topic with relevance. Here are some lists of ethical debate topics anyone can write on:

Should the use of Contraceptives be promoted?
Does legalizing weed make it any healthier?
Should school children bring phones into school settings?
The health impact of excessive engagement on social media
Social relevance and importance of having ethical conducts
Do companies with ethical conduct grow ahead
Does ethics make a workplace safer?
Are there importance on why sex education should be added to student’s
Why safe abortion rights should be legalized
Why the discrimination based on sexuality is harmful
Why the practice of hedonism is important
Sexual pleasure: Is it morally good?
Is happiness dependent on an external factor?
Why Institutionalized racism is the root cause of racism and racist beliefs
Should the use of drugs be legalized?
Is there any progressive importance to having a conservative view on things?
Should social media apps allow explicit sexual content?
Should social app builders have access to individual account
Can homeschool match formal school training?
Should the government ensure censorship measures?
Is voting during elections the only form of patriotism?
Is voting a patriotic display
Are families allowed to have contradicting religious beliefs?
Should state governments have any interference with the federal government?
Should teenagers have access to contraceptives?

Good Ethical Research Papers for your Thesis or Dissertation

Writing either a thesis or a dissertation is a necessary part of academia. As a university student, you can’t graduate from only writing essays withiut writing your graduating thesis. There are so many areas your research paper about ethics can focus on. Here is a list of ethical topics:

The contemporary relevance of applied ethics
The psychological impacts of the proliferation of technology
A Case Study of the legality of weed
A multi-dimensional approach to the subject of marriage
An ethical approach to the killing of animals
A case study of the critical ethical debates on the use of contraception
An analytical study of the relevance of ethical conduct in the workplace
An investigation into the social relevance and importance of the beauty pageantry culture
A critical study of normative ethics
The role of applied ethics in the building of a healthy work culture
An overview of the barriers associated with good leadership practice
A Study of the importance of ethical practice in the healthcare system
The study of ethics in business social responsibility
An Overview on how Ethics promotes a saner working culture
A look into how ethics promotes healthy social relationships
The ethical relevance for Doctor and Patient Confidentiality
Malpractice and Negligence an ethically challenging issue within the healthcare system
The social and health relevance to access to free healthcare insurance
A Study of the social relevance of ethics
Violence: violence against animals is still abuse
A look into strategic approaches to managing cyber crimes
Ethic reasons for the separation of the church from politics
Ethical Conduct: How Organizations with practicable ethics produces a toxic work environment
A look into how Social media negatively impacts the IQ of a student
The role of self-awareness and professional responsibility impacts social ethics in the workplace

Good Ethical Questions for Discussion

Primarily, ethics asks and answers the question of wrong or good. There are so many social issues that will make for good ethical questions for discussion. Here is a list of ethical questions for students to form insights from:

How does ethics help to promote healthy workplace awareness?
Does the practice of abortion negate morality?
Is it right for a rape victim to be denied access to safe and free abortion?
How do homophobia, racism, misogyny, and ableist practices hinder social growth?
Should there be free access to condoms and contraceptive pills?
Is free access to contraceptives better than the provision of menstrual materials
How can racism be dismantled in an organization without consideration to institutionalized racism?
How does the continuous promotion of capitalist concepts hinder societal progress?
Does capitalism truly hinder social growth?
Why should there be free access to contraceptive materials especially for women?
What are the possible feasible solutions to the issue of climate change?
Is it unethical not to share the wealth?
Is engaging in warfare the right way to bring solutions?
Does the use of makeup contradict the concept of beauty?
Why are LGBTQ+ rights human rights?
Is the legalization of cannabis ethical?
Does the way you dress need to be the reason you are addressed a certain way?
Are there moral problems that come with job automation?
What can be done to combat the use of harmful substances
Why should companies stop discriminating based on sex?
What is the social relevance of providing workplace access?
Why should parents and teachers stop flogging students?
What is the distinction between discipline and strictness?
Should religious beliefs be a dealbreaker in any relationship?

Are you a student who needs awesome essay writing help or thesis help and will require the professional services of writers in any particular field that will assist you with your write my thesis issues? We have expert 24/7 available online writers who are PhD holders, teachers, and professors in various fields that provide high quality custom thesis and essay materials that will not just help you pass your semester course but also gain you top grades, all at an affordable rate.

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Free Business Ethics Essay Examples & Topics

What is business ethics? An essay about it can be a task in your class. For that, you need to understand the term and what it implies.

Running a successful business, negotiating a contract, or simply dealing with clients is impossible without understanding and applying business ethics and its practices. It is a study of appropriate policies that companies and employees can use. They are vital in controversial situations that involve corporate governance, fiduciary responsibility, corporate social responsibility, etc.

That’s where the importance of business ethics comes from. For a company to be successful in the modern world, it should implement techniques and practices of business ethics. Customers and clients expect firms to behave appropriately. Operating this way is more than not breaking laws.

Our team came up with some tips that can help you write your business ethics essay. Additionally, you will find topics for different academic papers, and you can check our free samples.

How to Start a Business Ethics Essay

Let’s start with learning the basics of a business ethics essay. Here we will explain how to approach such a type of academic paper.

First of all, you need to see how this essay will differ from other assignments. That’s why we’ve prepared a step-by-step plan for you:

Pick an idea.

As you can imagine, you need to have a solid idea. It does not have to be defined at the very beginning. However, you need to know what direction you want to take. You need to come up with an assumption that you will later develop in your essay.

Research your topic.

The next step in starting your business ethics essay is to research the case carefully. The Internet, non-fiction books, interviews, business journals can become great sources for your paper.

Take notes.

While doing your research, you should always write down key information. It will ensure that you will not miss any vital data and keep track of good thoughts.

Craft a thesis statement.

After you’ve conducted your research, the next step is to explain your message and position. A thesis statement usually appears at the end of your introductory paragraph.

Think of your introduction .

After step number four, when your thesis statement is ready, you can develop your introduction. It has to catch readers’ attention and adequately introduce the topic of your essay. Additionally, think about the way it can be connected with your conclusion .

Outline your essay.

One more step before writing is organizing your text. Like any other academic paper, an ethics essay follows a structure. It consists of an introduction, body, and conclusion. The opening and the closing take about twenty percent of the entire article, and the rest eighty percent is left for the body.

17 Business Ethics Essay Topics

Now that you know how to start your business ethics paper, we’ve prepared a list of seventeen topics for your assignment. They can help you compose a fantastic essay about business ethics or use them to inspire your homework.

The topics are 100% original , so you can freely use them as your own:

Raising the minimum wage for minorities.
Issues with child labor.
Analyzing Uber’s business behaviors .
Is capitalism good or bad today?
How does social responsibility connect with business ethics?
Can moral principles guide business decisions?
Ethical issues in business law.
Advantages and disadvantages of Confucian business ethics.
The role of ethics in purchasing decisions.
Ways to eradicate unfair treatment due to race or religion at a workplace.
Walmart business ethics and ethical standards.
Social media in business ethics.
Ways to reduce business’s environmental impact.
Concept of corporate social responsibility.
CSR trends in 2021.
A balance between profit and CSR.
Ethical dilemmas people face every day at the workplace.

5 Business Ethics Research Paper Topics

We also came up with five high-quality business ethics topics for the research paper. Good luck with your essay and with learning more about business ethics!

List major ethical issues that business faces today.
Kantian approach to business ethics and morality.
How utilitarianism ethics can be used in companies.
The role of ethics in international business.
Applying Aristotle’s virtue ethics to business.

Thank you for reading the article till the end. Do not hesitate to share it with your peers who may need our tips or topics. Now, you can also look at our business ethics essay examples below.

1309 Best Essay Examples on Business Ethics

Mcdonald’s ethical issues: examples of unethical marketing practices.

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Justice Theory: Business Ethics, Utilitarianism, Rights, Caring, and Virtue

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BP Oil Company Ethical Dilemma

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Ethics in Tourism and Hospitality Industry Report

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Nike Inc.’s Corporate Social Responsibility Project

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PepsiCo Ethical Issues & Achievements

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McDonald’s Corporation’s Social Responsibility

Unethical business practices essay.

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Adelphia Communications Scandal and Ethical Issues

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Key Ethical Issues in Retailing and Distribution

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Business Ethics Is an Oxymoron: Essay Example

Cultural norms: fair and lovely and advertising.

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Workplace Ethical Issues Essay

The philosophical approaches to ethics, musk and tesla: a strong code of corporate ethics.

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The Ethical Issues of the Mattel Toy Scandal

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Utilitarianism and Deontology: The Case of Coca-Cola

Comparison of codes of ethics: the american counseling association and the american psychological association, corporate social responsibility: shell and bp.

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Corporate Social Responsibility at the Tesco PLC

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Business & Legal Issues: Ford Pinto

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Coca-Cola and Corporate Social Responsibility

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Dealing With Ethical Issues in the Workplace

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Coca Cola Company’ Corporate Social Responsibility

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Business Ethics: Is It Profitable?

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Apple’s Ethical Challenges Regarding Labor Practices

Quebec bridge collapse and ethical issues.

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The Blood bananas: Chiquita In Colombia

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Corporate Social Responsibility at Ben & Jerry’s

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The Lego Firm’s Corporate Social Responsibility

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The Volkswagen Company’s Emissions Scandal

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Google and Ethics

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Ethical Manager

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Incident at Morales

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Ethics in the Business Research

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Application of ethical theory

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Business Ethics of the H&M Company

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Starbucks’ Ethical Accusations

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Wal-Mart’s Ethical Issues

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Etihad Airways Company’s Organizational Behaviour

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New Balance Company’s Major Issues

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Ford Motor Company Ethical Strategies and Policies

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Emirate Airlines CSR Strategies and Management

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The National Youth Service Corps Schemes in Nigeria

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H. b. fuller and his resistol products ethical case.

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Is the Only Aim of a Business to Make Maximum Profit?

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Ethical Issues in Apple Inc.

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Corporate Social Responsibility: The Toyota Company

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The Nestle Company’s Environmental Sustainability Efforts

The wells fargo cross-selling scandal analysis, the implementation of corporate social responsibility and ethical behavior of qantas airways, ethical theories and ethical business practices.

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Boldly Go Case Study of Providence Healthcare

Conflict of interest.

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CSR in the Telecommunications Industry

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Ethical and Social responsibility issues in IHRM

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Ethics and corporate governance

Environmental responsibility in business, mcdonald’s ethical and moral dilemma.

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Corporate Social Responsibility in International Human Resource Strategy

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Starbucks’ Corporate Sustainability

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Corporate Social Responsibility in Apple Inc.

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British Airways Ethical System

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Walmart Company’s Global Ethics and Compliance Challenges

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Nike Business Code of Ethics

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The Wells Fargo Firm’s Ethical Case Analysis

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Factors Influencing Individuals’ Ethical Behaviour

Apple inc.’ short term action plans to improve its corporate social responsibility.

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How Airline Companies Can Be Corporate Social Responsible and Be Profitable?

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Resolving Ethical Issues in the Workplace: Utilitarianism and Kantian Ethics

Analysis of a vacant position in an organization.

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Organizational Structures

The unilever global company’s business ethics.

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Volkswagen’s Emission Scandal and Behavior Standards

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Business Ethics and Child Labour

Business ethics in john q. and wall street movies.

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Are CEOs Paid Too Much?

Ethics of nepotism in business.

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Emirates Airlines CSR Application

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Corporate Social Responsibility at Starbucks

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Ethical issues in glaxosmithkline, application of normative case theories, ethics in product safety of takata corporation.

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Toyota’s Crisis Communication Strategy and Corporate Social Responsibility

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XYZ Company Business Ethics Management

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Business ethics: triple bottom line, business ethics differences around the world.

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Admirable Qualities of a Good Employee

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Goodrich A7D’s Scandal

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Ethics in Financial Management

Business Ethics Journal Review

Edited by alexei marcoux & chris macdonald — issn 2326-7526.

About BEJR — Now 10 years in!
Books Received
Instructions for Authors
Past Issues
The Editors

Student’s Guide to Writing Critical Essays in Business Ethics (and beyond)

Here is some advice for writing critical essays, in business ethics but also in other fields. There is of course much more to say on the topic, but this is a start.

Writing your own critical essay:

What kinds of criticisms should you offer in your essay? There are a nearly infinite number of errors or problems that you might spot in an essay or book that you want to critique. Here are a few common ones to look for, to get you started:

Point out one or more logical fallacies. Did the author present a false dilemma , for example? Or an argument from ignorance ? Has the author presented a false analogy or a hasty generalization ?
Critique the scope of the author’s claim. For example, does the author claim that his or her conclusion applies to all cases, rather than just to the small number of cases he or she has actually argued for?
Point out unjustified assumptions. Has the author made questionable assumptions about some matter of fact, without providing evidence? Alternatively, has the author assumed that readers share some questionable ethical starting point, perhaps a belief in a particular debatable principle?
Point out internal contradictions. Does the author say two things that, perhaps subtly, contradict each other?
Point out undesirable implications / consequences. Does the author’s position imply, perhaps accidentally, some further conclusion that the author (or audience) is unlikely to want to accept, upon reflection?

In general, a good critical essay should:

Describe and explain in neutral terms the article or book being critiqued. Before you start offering criticism, you should demonstrate that you understand the point of view you are critiquing.
Be modest. Your goal should be to offer some insight, rather than to win a debate. Rather than to “show that Smith is wrong” or “prove that Sen’s view is incorrect,” you should set your aims on some more reasonable goal, such as “casting doubt” on the view you are critiquing, or “suggesting reason why so-and-so should modify her view.”
Be fair. Sometimes this is referred to as the “principle of charity.” It has nothing to do with donating money. Rather, it is about giving the other side what you owe them, namely a fair reading. Your goal is not to make the author whose work you are criticizing sound dumb. Rather, the goal is to make her sound smart, but then to make yourself sound smart, too, but showing how her view could be improved.
Be well structured . Professors love structure. Remember: a critical essay is not just a bunch of ideas; it is an orderly attempt to convince someone (in most cases, your professor) of a particular point of view. Your ideas will only have real punch if you put them in a suitable structure. That’s not all that hard. For example, make sure your opening paragraph acts as a roadmap for what follows — telling the reader where you’re going and how you propose to get there. Make sure each paragraph in the body of your essay has a main point (a point connected to the goal of your essay!) and that its point is clearly explained.
Stick to two or maybe three main arguments . “The three main problems with Jones’s argument are x, y, and z.”
Be clear. That means not just that your essay should be clearly structured, but also that each sentence should be clear. Proof-reading is important: get someone with good writing skills to proof-read your essay for you. If you can’t do that before your deadline, you can proof-read your essay yourself by reading it out loud. We’re serious. It is much easier to spot errors in your own writing if you read out loud.

A few more tips:

Cite your sources carefully. Use whichever citation method your professor says to use. If in doubt, use one of the established methods (such as APA or Chicago ). But whatever you do, make sure to give credit to the people whose ideas you use, if you want to avoid being charged with plagiarism.
Use what you’ve learned in class. Your professor would love nothing more than to know that you’ve been paying attention. So try to make use of some of the concepts discussed in class, or in your course textbook.
Don’t try to sound like an author. Just say what you want to say. Trying to sound like an author just leads people to use big words they don’t understand and to write complex sentences that overshoot their grammatical skills. Just write it more or less the way you would say it out loud, in short, clear sentences.
Follow instructions. Failing to follow instructions is easily the most common way students screw up when writing critical essays. Read the assignment instructions through carefully — twice! — and then if anything is unclear, ask your professor for clarification.

Looking for essay topics? Check out Business Ethics Highlights .

See also: The Concise Encyclopedia of Business Ethics

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Ethical Research in Business Ethics

Editorial Essay
Published: 29 November 2022
Volume 182 , pages 1–5, ( 2023 )

Cite this article

Gazi Islam 1 &
Michelle Greenwood 2

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In this editorial essay, we argue that business ethics research should be aware of the ethical implications of its own methodological choices, and that these implications include, but go beyond, mere compliance with standardized ethical norms. Methodological choices should be made specifically with reference to their effects on the world, both within and outside the academy. Awareness of these effects takes researchers beyond assuring ethics in their methods to more fully consider the ethics of their methods as knowledge practices that have broader institutional consequences. Drawing from examples in published research, we examine five ways in which authors can formulate their methodological approaches with purpose, care and reflexivity.

Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.

Business ethicists are accustomed to confronting the “hard cases” of ethical choices in organizational life. We believe that business ethics scholarship must be equally sensitive to ethical nuances in the design and implementation of research methods in our own activities. In the complexities of research practice, ethical considerations around method and design exceed the standardized templates of methods textbooks. Where research designs begin and end and whom they implicate as protagonists, who receives voice, protection and authority, and what is rendered visible and invisible within the field of study. These are thorny questions that are not amenable to check-list style compliance guidelines, even where such guidelines also have an important role (cf., Greenwood, 2016 ).

In our exchanges with authors and within the editorial team, we have confronted a plethora of hard cases that highlight the challenges of research ethics beyond rule compliance. To what extent should the mode of data collection (such as crowdsourced data or social media platforms) answer to ethical quandaries around digital labour and online surveillance? When should organizations or individuals engaging in ethically problematic practices be named, and when must they be anonymized? To what extent should the relationships between researchers and participants be problematized within methods sections, including financial and power relationships between funders, researchers and participants? What are the respective roles of institutional ethics boards and journal editorial teams (along with other actors in the research ecosystem) in validating the ethical permissibility of a design? When should hard ethical questions lead a study to be rejected at the review stage, rather than passed along to the research community to make its own judgment? Such questions (and many, many more) have filled our days with deep reflection, and the current editorial aims to share some of these reflections with the Journal of Business Ethics community, albeit in necessarily schematic form. Specifically, we aim to both expand thinking about research ethics to include elements that are often considered outside of methods, and situate conventional methodological ethics in relation to this broader vision. The result will be a plea for a research ethics based on purpose, care and reflexivity.

Between Prescriptive and Evaluative Research Ethics

In a previous editorial essay (Islam & Greenwood, 2021 ), we borrowed a distinction by Williams ( 1985 ) between prescriptive and evaluative ethics; the former refers to what one should do, while the latter to what the world should look like. Mapped onto methods, this analytical distinction differentiates between specific methodological practices (e.g., one should design measures that fit the core constructs, one should gather informed consent) and the broader social and practical implications of research (e.g., the goals of science to innovate, educate or emancipate). We emphasize that this is an “analytical” distinction because, in practice, these aspects of ethics are deeply intertwined, and we distinguish them primarily to show how they spill into each other. Actions should be prescribed, at least in part, for the worlds they contribute to making, although in the fog of situated practice, we are often unaware of, or unable to, clearly link our actions to those future worlds.

From this distinction, it is easy to differentiate heuristically between ethics in research methods, that is, the ethical norms and practices internal to research design and execution, and the ethics of research methods, that is, whether those methods should be used in the broader evaluative sense. In many cases, these ethical levels align, with ethical practices working toward an evaluatively desirable world. Gathering informed consent is important because it is desirable to promote a world of autonomous choice (e.g., Hansson, 2006 ). Hypothesizing after the results are known is problematic because promoting false positive statistical results reduces replicability and thus scientific certainty about the world (Kerr, 1998 ). To take the previous example, however, some have argued that “HARK”ing is less ethically problematic when research is transparently exploratory (Hollenbeck & Wright, 2017 ); in this case, what is ethically problematic is not the practice per se, but the lack of transparency between a given practice and its exploratory (rather than confirmatory) intent. As for informed consent, in cases where a signed form substitutes for, rather than expresses, true participant autonomy (cf., Dubois et al, 2012 ), it can obscure rather than clarify the ethics of a research project. To begin with, the presentation of a priori formulated protocols for consent presumes that the identified participant is the only stakeholder in the research who is affected by the research in a manner that would require their consent. Moreover, this protocol may preclude collaborative models in which participants actively construct research protocols with researchers (Hansson, 2006 ). In both of these examples, a practice is justified on the basis of a deeper evaluative motive, but the mapping between the two is imperfect and situation-dependent.

Tensions may appear between prescriptive and evaluative dimensions of research methods, giving rise to ethical polemics or dilemmas. To give one example, we have had recent debates around the ethics of online data crowdsourcing from platforms such as Amazon MTurk (e.g., Newman et al., 2021 ). Much discussion has been given to best practice in terms of construct validity and similar “internal” considerations of research design as well as issues such as “bots” or fraudulent respondent activity that affect validity. However, broader considerations in terms of labour exploitation on online platforms (e.g., Shank, 2016 ) bridge internal and external research ethics, given internal norms for participant autonomy and external considerations of the public good. Less discussed are the systematic effects of widespread use of online data collection for disembodying researchers from participant communities, entrenching economies of digital labour and surveillance, and reifying a context-free individual as the object of social scientific study. These, we would argue, are methodological outcomes that may contribute to undesirable worlds, and thus are materially relevant for ethical consideration.

Other examples illustrate the opposite tension between prescriptive and evaluative research ethics. In a provocative article, Roulet et al. ( 2017 ) describe the potentials of “covert” research, where normally unacceptable practices of researcher concealment are weighed against laudable goals such as revealing workplace abuse or unethical organizational practices. In such cases, practices that are prescriptively problematic (e.g., collecting data without consent, concealing researcher identity) are defended on the grounds that the ethical goods, in terms of creating a better world, legitimate such practices. While the example of online platforms seems more defensible at the level of practice but questionable at the level of broad systemic implications, that of covert research seems more problematic at the level of practices while (possibly) defensible in terms of its ethical purposes.

More than simply a conflict between means and ends, however, such tensions reveal discrepancies between ends that are “localized” as specific practices (e.g., the goal of conducting a valid study according to current norms) and the more broad-based ends of research (e.g., creating a better world through socially reflexive knowledge production). Our challenge at the Journal of Business Ethics as editors, and our counsel to authors, reviewers and editors is to reflexively seek equilibrium between the practical ethics of research design and execution and the broader promotion of the public good that is the ultimate end of science.

Guiding Ethical Research in Business Ethics

Situating research ethics within the relationship between concrete ethical practices and evaluative goals of social improvement adds complexity to ethical decisions, forcing researchers, reviewers and editors to confront real ethical dilemmas that cannot be dissolved in mere compliance practices. We think the recognition of this complexity is salutary. It emphasizes that the review process is one moment in the broader network of evaluative practices that includes—but is not limited to—institutional ethics approval processes prior to submission, ethical and legal considerations of publishing houses and scholarly societies that administer academic production, and reception of research after publication. Each of these moments bring into light different ethical stakes, and we see our editorial role as an important but not exhaustive evaluative moment. From our perspective, our role is not to present a hurdle over which only the most flawless research can pass, but to curate a conversation with the greatest potential for scholarly generativity and progress. This makes our goal a collective one, and we judge research for its ability to promote the field, by being rigorous, by being interesting, by being reflexive, or by some combination of these epistemic virtues. From the research ethics we have outlined we derive certain guiding principles for evaluation.

Showing Links Between Methodological Design and the Broader Purpose of the Study

Business ethics scholarship should clarify its purpose through clearly articulated research questions and hypotheses, while explaining in its methods why specific research practices are important for a broader purpose, and why that purpose is itself ethically relevant. Specifically, the methods discussion should reflect how the ethics-related purpose of the study is consistent with the methodological approach adopted, both in terms of the broad design and specific practices. In short, integration of methods with the wider purpose of the study, and alignment between the two, is a mark of ethically sensitive research.

In their recent study of child labour in Indian cottonseed oil farms, D’Cruz et al. ( 2022 ) demonstrate an exemplary integration of methods and purpose to explore a topic that is notoriously difficult to study methodologically. Drawing on analyses of children’s drawings, together with detailed conversational extracts, the authors paint a powerful picture of the experience of violence in a population of working children. Rather than staying only at the level of lived experiences, however, the authors use those experiences to understand how processes of embedding and disembedding labour within society are manifested at the micro level. Thus, their visual and discursive methods become powerful tools to link everyday suffering with macro processes of economy and society.

Acknowledging the Web of Relationships Within Which Research Methods are Embedded

Each aspect of the research process, from protocol design to data collection to peer review, involves multiple actors who collectively construct the meaning of scholarship (Greenwood, 2016 ). While it may not be possible to make this network entirely visible, the ability to do so increases the transparency and value of a scholarly inquiry.

In his study of external funding on research freedom, Goduscheit ( 2022 ) uses qualitative interviews, program materials and observations to understand how funding bodies shape research outcomes. He shows how expectations from funding bodies can shape the types of topics studied, the ways in which research questions are answered and the forms of research output that are produced. Rather than simply deeming such influences to be unethical, he analyses the positive and negative features of the evolving relationships between researchers and funding bodies and their implications for developing scholarship.

Similarly acknowledging relationships but on a very different topic, Allen et al. ( 2019 ) describe the role of reflexivity in sustainability research, where ecological responsibility can result from acknowledging the multiple relationships between humans and the environment. Promoting an “ecocentric radical-reflexivity”, they point to how methods such as participatory action research and arts-based methods can help identify organizational actors as embedded in ecological relationships. In this example, as in the previous one, research is recognized as more than simply the execution of accepted standards. Rather, ethical research depends on developing sensibilities towards the complex economic and ecological relationships in which scholarship is situated.

Complementing Compliance with Purpose

Ethics should be explicitly discussed as an aspect of methodology, but this is best done when a focus on compliance with standards is complemented by a consideration of core ethical issues and a transparent discussion of how decisions were made in response to those issues. Doing so reveals those decisions as tailor-made for the case at hand and not imposed upon the case without regard for its specificities (Greenwood, 2016 ). In other words, compliance is not a sufficient criterion for ethical research methods, and a methodological approach focused exclusively on ethical compliance criteria may miss the “bigger picture” of the role of the methods in the broader scientific and social goals of the study.

Nielsen’s ( 2016 ) paper on ethical praxis and action research elaborates on how research involves ethical decision making and situated, pragmatic choices that go beyond simply ticking the correct ethical boxes. Describing these from an Aristotelian perspective, he elaborates how researcher-participant interactions give rise to emergent research concerns that are both knowledge-related problems and problems for practice. The ethics of action research in this context is about facing unique problems that cut across the researcher-practitioner divide and can draw upon but are not limited to pre-existing ethics templates.

Adopting an Explanatory Versus a Justificatory Orientation

Methodological descriptions of ethics often have the tone of justification claims legitimizing authorial choices in terms of sample, data collection or analysis. Such justifications are warranted, and are good practice, but we believe that value is added when authors are more forthright about their ethical difficulties and dilemmas. Specifically, we value their attempts to work out those dilemmas transparently for a scholarly audience, that is thereby given access into the workings of scientific decision-making process and not simply presented with a black box labeled “method”. There is more value in showing the path taken to an ethical judgement than simply defending that the end decision was a good one. This also implies that wrong turns, changes of track, and similar ethical revisions should be described and contribute to the value of a paper.

Litz’s and Turner’s ( 2013 ) study of unethical practices in inherited family firms provides an interesting case of how researchers can productively describe the dilemmas they face methodologically. Given the difficulty of gathering data about the unethical practices of family members, they candidly ask “how does one approach a question so laced with shame and stigma?”(p.303). Rather than presenting their method in terms of templates used to justify their choices, they recruit the readers directly into their dilemma and walk them through their choices, which involved confronting participants with dramatic scenarios that allowed them to disclose intimately held views more safely. Ultimately building this technique into a validation exercise and a quantitative analysis, the latter are given credibility by their grounding in the initial researcher dilemma that led to the methodological approach.

Transparency and Reflexivity in Writing and Link Between Methods and Results Sections

Because transparent and reflexive description of methods integrates theoretical considerations within the methods itself, such description allows the method to operate more organically within the broader argument of the paper. Doing so allows authors to establish links between the methods and discussion sections, to describe what went right or wrong, what the limitations and possibilities of the method were, and how future research could remedy possible shortcomings or harms of the given method.

For example, Bontempi et al. ( 2021 ) study of CSR reporting inspired by the case of the Ethiopian Gibe III dam is exemplary of how methods can be used to reflexively and transparently link methods and results. Engaging in a “counter reporting”, the study draws upon conceptual literature, archival and theoretical research, and activist on-the-ground engagement to build an alternative view of reported social engagement around hydroelectric dams. Alternating between inductive and deductive approaches, these authors were particularly reflexive and deeply transparent in their methodological description, including detailed and publicly available information from their codebook in the article’s supplementary materials. The result went beyond the standard critique of CSR discourses to actively create a counter-discourse that was both scholarly and activist in orientation. The resulting discursive struggle continued onto the blogosphere, with methodological debate between the authors and the company itself over methods. Footnote 1 We see such interaction and engagement as key to the social relevance of research.

Purpose, Care and Reflexivity

Research ethics have conventionally been concerned with the procedural aspects of scholarship, in particular the methods. Gold standard in this regard has been to not merely treat ethical standards as hurdles but as aspirations. In this sense an ethical researcher is one who does not only comply but who also cares. We suggest that care requires researcher to actively reflect on and take responsibility for their ethical practices and their research goals, and to situate their practices reflexively within a broader collective process of scholarly inquiry. Thus, we extend the notion of care to embrace the reflexivity of the researcher with regard to their own positionality (and privilege) and with regard to the purpose of research, treating ethics as central to the entire research endeavor. Complementing ethical theorizing that draws data from orthodox empirical methods, we encourage scholars to take up new forms of ethical empirical research in which connections between the conduct of the research and the motivation of the research are deeply and actively formed. The guiding principles we outline in this editorial are aimed at integrating organic, particularized and reflective narratives about the ethical conduct and goals of research in the methods section and throughout the manuscript. Editors, reviewers and authors can all contribute to treating research ethics more centrally in business ethics research.

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Business Ethics Dissertation Topics Ideas & Examples

Published by Alvin Nicolas at November 28th, 2022 , Revised On February 5, 2024

Business ethics is a critical study of the moral difficulties that arise in business. If you’re planning to pursue business studies, the first step is to learn about the effects of unethical practices that result in poor decisions for the business.

In simpler words, Business ethics is a field of study that ensures you’re operating your business in the right direction for your customers and employees. This field of study is often harder to master than it seems, as every new chapter holds different ethical implications. In this article, we have discussed business ethics and listed business ethics dissertation topics .

From a broader perspective, business ethics have many different aspects, and it’s essential to learn them individually to become more aware of them.

If you don’t know, business ethics are branches of the same tree that govern businesses’ operations. Legislation and regulations can codify them; sometimes, they include unexplained ethical values.

However, getting a degree in this field can open rooms of opportunities for you, in the long run, to understand how businesses deal with employees, customers, suppliers, and other stakeholders. These principles help companies build trust with the people they interact with and create a positive work environment. However, there are four main types of business ethics: personal, organizational, societal, and environmental.

Personal ethics include rules to avoid insider trading and not accepting bribes.
Organizational ethics address issues such as obeying labour laws, respecting intellectual property rights, and protecting confidential information.
Societal ethics address matters like complying with local laws, paying taxes promptly, and supporting charitable causes.
Environmental ethics focus on minimizing waste and pollution to protect the environment for future generations to enjoy.

The following list includes the top business ethics themes for you to read, write, and share your thoughts.

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List of Business Ethics Dissertation Topics

An overview of some ideas for business ethics research papers follows.

Health and Safety in the Workplace Studying safe working conditions to reduce the rise of “psychosocial risks” and work-related stress and mental health concerns.
Ethics in Accounting Practices Understanding the importance of accurate bookkeeping practices for small privately held companies to keep accurate financial records
Nondisclosure and Corporate Espionage Studying the consequences of risk of current and former employees stealing information to discourage these types of ethics violations.
Technology and Privacy Practices Learning the developments in technological security for both employees and employers.
Discrimination Studying the causes of discrimination for businesses of all sizes to allow employees to receive the same treatment
Workplace harassment Learning the long-term impact of harassment on employees and their workplace performance.
Abuse of Leadership Authority Understanding leadership roles can inform employers about their authority for the betterment of the business.
Nepotism and Favoritism Teaching basic business ethics to avoid nepotism and favouritism for equal treatment with the employees.
Privacy Practising the art of balancing work life and personal life to help employers get more productive at work.
Corporate Espionage Teaching moral ethics to businesses to prevent the misuse of any company data for monetary purposes.
Create Company Policies Sharing basic company policies to ensure proper behaviour of the employees at work.
Monitoring Pertinent Information Tracking employee activity to build trust among the employee and employers.
Nondisclosure Agreement Conveying the need and importance of a Nondisclosure Agreement to uphold sensitive information.
Create a Meritocracy Building a solid meritocracy system to appreciate and reward employees based n their efforts and work performance.

Select a top business ethics dissertation subject from the list above to begin writing your dissertation . Or you could hire one of our expert dissertation writers to suggest topics and produce a paper on your chosen topic.

A degree in business ethics can prepare you for corporate compliance, risk management, or auditing career. Moreover, you will also learn about legal and ethical issues in business, how to identify and manage risks, and the start to develop policies and procedures that ensure compliance with laws and regulations.

With a degree in business ethics, you can work in the human resources department of a company and help create and enforce policies. You could also work as a consultant, allowing businesses to navigate the complex ethical landscape. You might even choose to teach business ethics at the collegiate level. No matter what you do, your degree in business ethics will prepare you to make a difference in the business world.

In short, You’ll have an excellent grasp of how ethical decisions should be made and how those decisions can impact an organization. With your strong understanding of ethics, you’ll be able to keep the focus on building long-term business success.

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How to define the term business ethics.

Business ethics refers to moral principles and values that guide ethical decision-making and behaviour in the context of business practices and interactions.

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Ethical Research Paper Topics

Table of contents

1 Types of Ethics
2 How to Select the Best Ethical Research Paper Topics?
3 Ethical Issues Topics
4 Ethical Conflicts Topics
5 Medical Ethics Topics
6 Environmental Ethics Topics
7 Criminal Justice Ethics Topics to Write About
8 Top 10 Ethics Topics to Debate
9 Social Responsibility Ethics Topics
10 Business Ethics Research Paper Topics
11 Sports Ethics Topics
12.1 First Tip
12.2 Second Tip
12.3 Third Tip
12.4 Fourth Tip
12.5 Fifth Tip
13 Conclusion

Ethical research paper topics cover various human, animal, and environmental rights issues. Research ethics aim to protect the well-being and rights of participants and ensure that research is conducted responsibly and accountable. In this context, ethical research paper topics can be crucial to academic inquiry and public debate.

In this text, you’ll find out about:

Choosing a topic that aligns with personal interests and passions can make it easier to delve deeper into any moral or immoral problems. All this contributes to the ongoing conversation around ethics and its impact on society.
Tips for choosing ethical research paper topics include selecting a matter of personal interest. It’s also important to note relevance to society, ethical problems in different fields, appropriate scope and depth, and thorough research and analysis.
Examples of ethical research paper topics include end-of-life issues, animal experimentation, ethics of gay marriage, ethical hacking, ethical leadership, ethical philosophy, and ethical concerns.

Types of Ethics

Several areas can be explored when choosing a topic for an ethical research paper. But if you feel overwhelmed, you can buy APA research paper to get help with your assignment. People have different areas of interest when it comes to ethics. Some people have an interest in medical ethics. It talks about things like assisted suicide, organ donation, and the use of medical technology. Other people like business ethics, which looks at how companies can be responsible and honest in their marketing. Environmental ethics is another important area. It covers topics like climate change, animal rights, and sustainability. Whatever area you choose, picking something you care about is important.

How to Select the Best Ethical Research Paper Topics?

If you are a student looking to choose the best ethical research paper topic, it cannot be easy to decide. Remember that, if stuck, buying college research papers can help you get inspired. Here are some other tips that you can follow:

Personal Interest: It’s important to ensure your chosen topic interests you. By doing so, you will keep yourself motivated throughout the process of writing. It will help you produce a paper that is not only well-written but also engaging.
Relevance to Society: Note to choose a topic that not only aligns with your values but is also relevant to society.
Ethical Issues in Different Fields: While choosing a topic, consider topics related to different fields, such as teaching ethics, global warming ethics, workplace ethics, nursing ethics, virtue ethics, religious ethics, and biomedical ethics topics.
Scope and Depth: This is a point that students often overlook; it’s important to choose a topic that is neither too narrow nor too broad. Ensure you can draft a meaningful conclusion in a research paper and that the topic is relevant enough. This will ensure that you have enough information to cover without feeling overwhelmed.
Thorough Research and Analysis: After shortlisting your topic, conduct thorough research and analysis. This encompasses gathering relevant information and credible sources.

Need help with research paper writing? Get your paper written by a professional writer Get Help Reviews.io 4.9/5

Ethical Issues Topics

Ethical issues are prevalent and can arise in various fields and contexts. Understanding these issues’ impact is crucial for promoting ethical behavior and decision-making. Here are some thought-provoking ethics essay topics that can spark discussion:

End of Life
Animal Experimentation
Ethics of Gay – Scientific and Ethical Criticism
The Psychology Behind the Ethical Dilemma Situations in Law Enforcement
The Value and Ownership of Human Tissue
Weighing the Benefits against the Ethical Costs of the Sale of Construction Equipment in Africa
The Use of Performance-Enhancing Drugs
Blind Obedience
Plagiarism Issues for Higher Education
Resolving Ethical Business Challenges

Ethical Conflicts Topics

An ethical dilemma arises when individuals or groups are faced with a decision requiring them to weigh conflicting values per the ethical rules. These conflicts can be challenging to navigate and require careful consideration and analysis. Here are some ethical conflicts topics that can help you explore the ethical implications.

The Picture of Dorian Gray Conflict
Organizational Structure and Corporate Social Responsibility
The Ethical Dilemma in Our Society
The Psychology Behind the Law Enforcement
Product Safety
The Use of Deception
Managerial Ethics & Social Responsibility
Ethical Consumerism
Business Ethics in the Government
Sexual Harassment: Why Is it Wrong

Medical Ethics Topics

Medical ethics is a required field that examines healthcare professionals’ and patients’ ethical dilemmas. With the advancement of medical technology and the changing landscape of healthcare, it is important to stay up-to-date on issues such as stem cell research. Here are some medical ethics topics that can help you understand the ethical responsibilities in healthcare.

Euthanasia Pros and Cons
Parents who want their Babies to be Deaf Through Genetic Modification and the Role of Genetic Counseling
Legalizing Physician-Assisted Suicide to Suffering/Terminally Ill Patients
Implanting the VeriChip Inside the Human Body
Informed Consent of Human Research
Abortion Issue, Ethics, and Philosophy
Medical Law & Ethics
The Ethics of the Gay Gene
Childhood Obesity: Global Epidemic and Ethical Concerns
Medical Marijuana

Environmental Ethics Topics

Environmental ethics is a branch of philosophy that explores the ethical responsibility of human interactions with the natural world and environmental protection. Examining these issues and our moral obligation through an ethical lens is important. Here are some environmental and ethical topics that can help you understand and explore a human’s moral duties:

Saving an Endangered Species
Benefits of Adopting a Pet from an Animal Shelter
Organic Foods: a Better Option for Humans and the Environment
Environmental Racism against Native American
Positive Effect of Veganism on the Environment
Five Ways Immigration–Driven Population Growth Impacts Our Environment
Overpopulation Effects on Health and the Environment
Deforestation of Rainforests and its Effects on the Environment
Are Self-driving Cars Good for the People, the Environment, and the Future?
Fracking: an Environmental and Political Issue

Criminal Justice Ethics Topics to Write About

Criminal justice ethics is a field that examines the ethical dilemmas and challenges within the justice system. From the police force to the courts and prisons, many complex ethical principles must be considered. Here are some topics that can help you explore:

Why is it Necessary to Teach Ethics in Criminal Justice Law Business and Medical
Sexual Assault and Harassment in the Army
Corporal Punishment as the Main Cause Behind Serial Killers
Primary Justice Models in the American Legal System
The Racial Injustice Existed in our Judicial System
Winds of Change in America’s Criminal Justice System
Sides Involved in Police Brutality
Racial Profiling Within the Criminal Justice System
Gender Equality and Crime
Domestic Terrorism in the Land of the Free

Social Responsibility Ethics Topics

Moral problems and moral Responsibility in society mean that everyone has a duty. They should act in the best interests of society and the environment. This concept has become increasingly important in modern business and society. This is because individuals and companies are being held accountable for poor ethical values. Here are some interesting ethics topics:

Different Perspectives on the Concept of Corporate Social Responsibility
Research Related to Responsibility to Protect and the Role of Major Powers
What is Responsibility, and why is it important
The Importance of Respect
Value transmission in Multinational Corporations
Freedom and Responsibility in Sartre
Adolf Hitler and Responsibility for the Holocaust
Understanding of Responsibility for Social and Economic Justice
The Global Responsibility for the Refugee Crisis
A Comprehensive Prison Reform to Help Reduce the Number of Inmates Detained in Prison

Business Ethics Research Paper Topics

Business ethics is the study of ethical principles and moral values in business. With the increasing focus on sustainability and corporate social responsibility, the importance of business ethics has increased. Here are some of the top business ethics topics that can help you analyze and understand the ethical dilemma topics in business:

A Review of Business Ethics in Chase
Business Ethics in Negotiations
Stability of Business Ethics in Organizations
Business Ethics Discussion at Walmart INC
Adherence to Generally Accepted Concepts of Business Ethics
Legal Aspects of Business Ethics
Business Ethics and Social Responsibility
Review on Businesses Without Values and Ethics
The Relevancy of Ethics for Business Decisions
Ethics and the Business Professional

Tech Ethical Problems Research Topics

The advancement of technology and the growth of tech companies has brought about many ethical challenges. Many ethical theories need to be addressed. From privacy concerns to using artificial intelligence, use of ethics boards, and computer crimes, it is important to examine these issues from an ethical standpoint. Here are some tech ethics paper topics for you:

Policies, Ethics, and Promises: Improving Techfite’s Reputation and Morale
Education System and Educational Technologies
Steve Jobs and the Technological Revolution
An Issue of Social Media and Cyber Crimes
AI as the Future of Technology and a Big Asset for IBM
The Impact of Technology on our Daily Lives: Advancements and Challenges
Cybercrimes: an Unprecedented Threat to the Society
Is Technology Bringing Us Closer to the World of Big Brother
Home Depot’s Technological Solution to Discrimination in the Workplace
Influence of Technologies on People

Sports Ethics Topics

Sports ethics is a field that explores the moral and ethical dimensions of sports and athletic competition. The topics can be related to an athlete’s responsibility of ethics in conducting professional sports events. Here are some sports ethics research paper topics that can help you explore:

Inequality of Pay in Sports
Should Sports Betting Be Legal Everywhere
Compensation of College Athletes
Gender And Sexuality In Sport In the 21st Century
Wheelchair Basketball Game While Disabled
Gender Inequality In Athletic Sports
College And African American Male: Basketball Athletes
Gender Wage Gap Within Sports
The Way People View Women In Sports
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) And Its Impact On Women In Sports

Tips for Choosing a Good Ethics Research Paper Topic

Choosing a good topic is important, as it will impact the direction of your research and the quality of your paper. Here are some tips to help you choose a good moral ethics topic for your academic writing.

Choose a topic that interests you. Selecting a topic you are passionate about is important, as it will keep you motivated throughout the research and writing process. Consider your experiences, interests, or current events that spark your curiosity.

Narrow down your focus. Ethics is a broad field, and it can be overwhelming to tackle large ethical topics. Instead, focus on a specific aspect or issue within the field of ethics. This will allow you to produce a more comprehensive paper.

Consider the relevance and significance of the topic. Look for topics relevant to contemporary society or currently being debated. You can also consider issues that have not yet received much attention in research. Good ethical research papers help you explore a moral and immoral problem.

Ensure that there is enough information available on the topic. Make sure that your paper’s format follows the guidelines; you can check how to cite an article to ensure that everything is on-point. Before you decide on a topic, conduct a preliminary search to ensure enough credible sources available on the subject matter.

Choose a topic that aligns with your research goals and objectives. Your research paper should have a clear purpose and intent. Thus, select a topic to enable you to achieve those goals. Also, note that the conclusion in research papers must be solid and comprehensive. Finally, it is important to ensure that the case aligns with the guidelines and requirements of your course.

To sum up, picking a topic for your ethics research paper can be difficult, but there are tips in this article that can help. Try looking into various fields. These include medical ethics, friendship ethics, pregnancy ethics, genetic engineering research, capital punishment, racial conflicts, etc. You can encourage critical thinking by examining ethical issues like these. You can also start conversations and make a big difference in the ongoing discussions about ethics and how it affects society.

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178 Best Business Ethics Research Paper Topics You Will Love

Are you looking for some of the most interesting business ethics topics? We know you are, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this article. The good news is that you have arrived at just the right place at just the right time. Our expert writers have just finished updating our list of business ethics research paper topics. You will find the best business ethics essay topics right here and it only takes a minute or two of your time to find the perfect idea.

Use our business ethics research paper topics, a list of the most interesting ethics topics in business, easy business ethics topics, business ethics paper topic ideas for high school, business ethics during the pandemic, ethics research paper topics for college, interesting business ethics topics, social responsibility ideas, technology business ethics ideas, managers and ethics ideas, social media business ethics ideas, health and safety, controversial business ethics topics, business ethics debate topics, dissertation topics in business ethics, legal business ethics ideas, hot topics in business ethics, business ethics and environmental protection, business ethics topics for presentation, advertising business ethics ideas.

But why use any of our business ethics paper topics? Well, the simple answer is because they are not only 100% original and very interesting, but also completely free. Yes, you can pick any of our topics and write a great research paper about it without having to pay anything.

Another reason is the fact that we are constantly updating the list of topics. You can always find interesting or controversial topics that nobody else has thought about right here. As you probably know, this usually means you will get bonus points from your professor. Everyone appreciates an original idea, you can be sure of that.

If you are looking for top-notch ethics topics in business, you are in luck. We have a long list of 178 ideas that you can choose from. Our list of business ethics topics is split into 18 sections, so every student should be able to find the right topic quickly. Without further ado, here are the topics you can choose from completely free of charge:

We’ll start our list with the easy business ethics topics. If you don’t want to spend days working on your research paper, just pick one of these ideas and get started right away:

Discuss the concept of Corporate Conscience
Business ethics in accounting
Selling a product that does not work
The food supplements market in the UK
Can companies be blamed if people misuse their products?
The concept of honesty in business
Child labor in Indonesia
Uber drivers: employees or contractors?
Discuss bribery
Analyze the concept of “Respect of Others”
Promise-keeping in US companies

If you are a high school student who is interested in writing about business ethics, we have a very nice selection of business ethics paper topic ideas for high school students right here:

Business ethics in the finance sector
Promoting products are not tested
Discuss the concept of fairness
Regulating medical advertisements
Discuss discrimination at the workplace
Analyze the corporate governance concept
Insider trading: ethical or not?
Discuss fiduciary responsibilities
The concept of loyalty in business
The concept of Concern for Others

It would definitely be interesting to discuss business ethics during the Pandemic. Your professor will surely award you some bonus points if you choose any of these topics:

Companies hiding commodities at the start of the pandemic
Should SMBs pay tax during a pandemic?
The toilet paper shortage
Should companies make profits by selling face masks at inflated prices?
Ethical concerns during the Covid-19 pandemic
The huge profit made by medical companies
Providing healthcare service to everyone
US companies and their response to the COVID-19 pandemic
Mandatory unpaid leave in the United Kingdom
Laying off staff to protect the business from Covid19.

College students should pick some more difficult topics to write about. Here are some excellent ethics research paper topics for college students:

Analyze the autonomy principle of ethics
Business ethics in the trade sector
Analyze personal business ethics
Discuss professional business ethics
Discuss the fidelity principle of ethics
Corporate business ethics: and in-depth analysis
Competitive advantages provided by business ethics
Employee happiness and business ethics
Advantages of business ethics
Discuss the nonmalefience principle

We have a list of the most interesting business ethics topics right here. Pick any of them and start working on your essay right now:

Business ethics in corporate law
The beneficience principle
The justice principle of ethics
The veracity principle of ethics
The right and wrong concepts in business ethics
Discuss descriptive ethics
Analyze the value theory
The Privacy core behavioral norm
Corporate policies in the UK
Regulated vs. unregulated firms in the US

Social responsibility business ethics topics are relatively difficult to find these days. To make sure you get a top grade on your paper, use one of these ideas:

Discuss the concept of CSR (corporate social responsibility)
Poor working conditions in Chinese factories
Corporate social responsibility in the United States
Best practices for CSR
Notable corporate social responsibility trends
Ethical decisions in CSR
Corporate social responsibility in the United Kingdom
CSR in Europe vs. CSR in Africa
Asian corporations and their corporate social responsibility track records
Corporate social responsibility and competitive advantage

The boom in technology businesses has also led to some new ethical issues. Check out the following technology business ethics ideas and pick the one you like:

Is employee surveillance ethical?
Technology that ensures transparency in a company
Discuss the concept of destructive technology
Discuss stakeholder privacy
Social media use at the workplace
Should companies be watching their employees all the time?
Social media and its role during a job interview
Product bias in UK companies
Marketing tools: the negative effects no one is talking about
Expensive software or better salaries?

Discussing ethics from the perspective of a manager is a sure way to get some bonus points. This is not an easy research paper, so make sure you know how to write one. Examples include:

Managers that excel at enforcing business ethics
Discuss bargaining from an ethics point of view
Moral management at the workplace
Morality and ethics required of a good manager
Discuss the integrity of Apple managers
Discuss the integrity of Amazon fulfillment center managers
Slashing the salaries of your employees: is it ethical?
Unethical management and its effects on the image of the company
Proper ethics standards and their effects on company profits

Our ENL writers have put together a list of the best social media business ethics ideas. Here are some of our most interesting ideas:

Answering questions on social media ethically
Posting on social media ethically
Ethical concerns of ad targeting on social media
Using social media in an ethical way in the US
Discuss corporate social media policies in the UK
Discuss Kantian Ethics as it applies to the use of social media
Social media and its inherent dangers at the workplace
Social media comments: On or Off?
Improving ethics regarding social media use
Personal social media accounts used for company ads

Of course, you can talk about health and safety business ethics, especially considering the COVID-19 pandemic. Pick one of these ideas and write your essay in no time:

Correcting safety hazards in corporations
Discuss the importance of office ergonomics
Who is responsible for an employee’s health?
Preventing dangerous activities at the workplace.
Should all companies have their own medics?
Discuss personal safety ethics in the US
Professional versus personal ethics in the UK
Health and safety regulations at the workplace
The profit or the safety of the employee?
Health and safety hazards during the Covid-19 pandemic

You should not be afraid to write your papers on controversial business ethics topics. Most professors actually encourage this kind of approach. Here are some great ideas that you can use right now:

The religious origins of business ethics
The philosophical origins of business ethics
Discuss the business ethics regarding intellectual property
International issues affecting business ethics in the US
Executive compensation in the UK
Discuss transparency from an ethical POV
Business ethics as an academic discipline
Abusive behavior at the workplace
Insider trading from an ethics point of view
Discuss a major accounting scandal in the United States

Do you need to write a debate about business ethics? No problem. Check out the following list of business ethics debate topics and choose the one you like the most:

Employee commitment
Business ethics equal higher profits?
Shareholder’s opinions on ethics
Ethics at a financial firm
Business ethics at a marijuana company
Business ethics and customer satisfaction
Whistleblowing: ethical concerns
Corporate espionage
Non-disclosure agreements

Dissertation topics in business ethics are meant for university students or postgrads who want to start working on their dissertation. These topics are quite complex and require a lot of work to write a paper about them:

Privacy at the workplace
Racial discrimination in US companies
Time-consuming business ethics
Adobe: a case study of business ethics
Microsoft’s business ethics code
Business ethics in Amazon’s fulfillment centers
Mandatory unpaid leaves in the United Kingdom
Solving ethical problems effectively
Accounting ethics and their use in the US

Our team of experienced writers has compiled a list of the best legal business ethics ideas for you. Take a look at the following ideas and pick one today:

The moral police of a corporation
Legal implications of misleading headlines
Legal implications of scam adverts
Should companies stand behind their services?
Comparing your product with others: a legal view
Morality versus law in the corporate environment
The concept of legal ethics
Discuss business ethics at a law firm
Can promises be viewed as binding contracts?
Using mentally-impaired people in ads

Are you looking for the most interesting ideas for your next essay about business ethics? No problem, we have a list of hot topics in business ethics right here for you to choose from:

Discuss corporate social responsibility
Analyze the ethics in a company’s sales department
Sexual harassment at the workplace in the US
Ethical problems when running a used car dealership
The manufacturing sector and environmental damage
Selling products that have not been tested
The food supplement business
The sale of anti-Covid medication in 2023
Subway’s business model from an ethical POV
Business ethics on Facebook

As you’ve probably guessed, business ethics are very important when it comes to the environment (and protecting it). Take a look at these wonderful business ethics and environmental protection ideas:

Energy-efficient lighting in companies around the UK
Proper heating and cooling systems
How to reduce the carbon footprint of your business?
Business activities that are destroying the land.
Avoiding the destruction of animal species
Wind power in the manufacturing sector.
Solar panels on every office
Biodegradable materials or plastic bags?
Saving money or protecting the environment?
Optimizing the consumption of resources

Do you need to write a presentation about business ethics? Perhaps you don’t have much time at your disposal. Pick one of our awesome business ethics topics for presentation and start writing your paper in minutes:

Analyze the ethics in a company’s marketing department
Examples of unethical conduct
Should companies be 100% honest?
Higher taxes for the fast food industry
Production industry to pay higher taxes for pollution
Religious views on business ethics
Psychological implications of ethics
International problems with business ethics
Management accountability in the US
Improving operations through business ethics

When it comes to advertising, business ethics is a very interesting thing to talk about. In fact, we have some exceptional advertising business ethics ideas for you right here:

Discuss the concept of misleading advertising
Should we advertise guns on TV in the United States?
E-cigarettes and the business ethics concerns of advertising them.
Discuss misleading headlines and their uses.
Scam advertisements in the United Kingdom
Using minors to advertise products: good or bad?
Alcohol adverts and their negative impact.
Women and their role in advertising
Obscene language in advertisements in the US
Advertisements that promote smoking

Need Help From Our Expert Writers?

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What is a good topic for business ethics?

Good topics on business ethics are: ethical considerations in the workplace, business ethics in accounting, a look at huge profits made by medical companies, and corporate social responsibility. You can explore some good topics; however, choosing one depends on your interests, assignment, and goals.

What are the research paper topics related to ethics?

Examples of research paper topics related to ethics are: is it ethical to use animals to test various products, what is the ethics behind spying on someone online, what is nurses’ responsibility when a patient does not take their meds. When choosing a topic, ensure that it is something that interests you and one that you can get enough information on.

What are the 5 biggest ethical issues facing businesses?

The five most significant ethical issues facing businesses are bribery and corruption, unethical accounting, abuse of leadership and authority, corporate espionage, discrimination and harassment, and technology and privacy practices. Remember that the type of ethical issue that a business faces can vary depending on the industry and the regulations they have set.

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376 Ethical Topics & Questions for Research Papers, Essays, Debates, & More

Are there white lies with good intentions? Should euthanasia be permitted by law?

Both of these questions are ethical dilemmas – situations with two or more conflicting moral choices. Ethical dilemmas involve conflicting values and moral obligations. To ease the understanding of such predicaments, you can approach ethics (or moral philosophy). This branch of philosophy suggests the concepts of good and bad and provides theories to determine moral behavior.

In this article, we will explore different ethical topics and theories applicable to them. You will also find practical tips on how to write an essay on the most complex ethical issue. Let’s start!

💥 TOP 12 Ethical Topics

📚 Normative Ethical Theories

🤔 How to Answer Ethical Dilemmas

📝 Ethical Research Paper Topics

🧑🏾‍⚕️ ethical topics in healthcare.

🌳 Environmental Ethical Issues

🖥️ Ethical Topics in Technology

⚡ ethical argument topics.

🏺 Philosophy Essay Topics
👩🏽‍🎓 Ethical Questions for Students

💬 Ethical Persuasive Speech Topics

🔦 ethical topics for presentation, ❓ ethical questions: faq, 🔗 references, 💥 top-12 ethical topics.

Here are some ethical topics that are popular for discussion in 2023:

Privacy concerns in social media advertisement.
Ethics of using artificial intelligence for marketing.
Digital surveillance and personal data protection.
Genetic engineering and ethical boundaries.
Ethical issues in educational technology.
Ethical challenges in healthcare data sharing.
Environmental ethics and sustainable development.
Ethical dilemmas of autonomous vehicles.
Bioethics in medical research and experimentation.
Ethical considerations in cybersecurity practices.
Ethical concerns in the use of big data.
Ethical implications of blockchain technology.

Normative ethical theories provide principles or guidelines for determining what is morally right or wrong. There are three broad (and competing) groups of ethical theories:

Consequentialism believes that the consequences of an action determine its moral value.
Deontology emphasizes adherence to moral rules and duties.
Virtue ethics focuses on developing moral character and embodying virtuous traits.

🤔 How to Answer Ethical Dilemma Questions

Sometimes it seems that ethical dilemmas don’t have the right answers . But you can choose the best one for yourself if you establish a certain decision-making algorithm.

To answer ethical dilemma questions, follow these steps:

Below, you will see lists of ethical topics from different areas of human knowledge and activities. There are plenty of topics to write about, no matter what your focus of study is.

Ethical Topics in Business

Corporate social responsibility in multinational companies.
The role of business ethics in insurance companies .
Ethical challenges in international supply chain management.
Transparency and accountability in financial reporting.
The role of business ethics in recruiting new employees using social media .
Workplace diversity and inclusion ethics in the USA.
Data privacy and security of employees in the workplace.
Global warming and business ethics .
Bribery and corruption in business transactions.
Whistleblowing and ethical reporting mechanisms.
Business ethics: Indian tea plantation workers .
Ethical considerations in advertising and marketing practices.
Fairtrade and ethical sourcing in global business.
Business ethics of concealing facts in reports .
Ethical leadership and decision-making in organizations.

Ethical Fashion Topics

Sustainability and eco-friendly practices in fashion.
Maintaining ethical standards in fashion .
Ethical implications of fast fashion and overconsumption.
Fair wages and labor rights in garment manufacturing.
Supply chain as a crucial component of sustainability in the fashion industry .
Animal cruelty-free and ethical sourcing of materials.
Transparency in supply chains and traceability of products.
Child labor in the fashion industry .
Body image and ethical representation in fashion advertising.
Recycling and upcycling in the fashion industry.
Overseas sweatshops in the fashion industry .
Cultural appropriation and respect for traditional designs.
Ethical considerations in fashion collaborations and partnerships.
Fashion Nova’s labor standards and transparency .
Fashion industry’s impact on local communities and artisans.

Ethical Issues in Criminal Justice Topics

Use of force and police brutality in the United States.
The code of ethics in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice .
Racial profiling and discriminatory practices in law enforcement.
Ethical considerations in undercover operations and informant handling.
Criminal justice: philosophies of corrections .
Integrity and honesty in witness testimony and evidence presentation.
Ethical challenges in the use of informants and confidential sources.
Professional ethics in criminal justice: Singleton vs. Norris .
Juvenile justice and ethical treatment of young offenders.
Capital punishment and ethical implications of the death penalty.
Criminal justice ethics: police corruption & drug sales .
Ethical issues in plea bargaining and prosecutorial discretion.
Ethical responsibilities of defense attorneys and client representation.
The criminal justice service violations and ethical issues .
Rehabilitation and ethical approaches to offender reintegration.

Media Ethics Paper Topics

Accuracy and fact-checking in media reporting.
Communication and social media ethics in the United Arab Emirates .
Journalism ethics in the era of misinformation.
Privacy concerns and ethical boundaries in media coverage.
Media ethics: censorship of online material and behavior .
Ethical considerations in photojournalism and image manipulation.
Sensationalism and ethical dilemmas in news reporting.
Media ethics: principle of privacy .
Conflict of interest and transparency in media ownership.
Diversity and representation in media storytelling and content.
Mass media ethics in news coverage .
Ethical challenges in social media and online journalism.
Intellectual property and plagiarism in media production.
Media censorship in the US .
The role of media in promoting ethical discourse.

Ethics in healthcare ensures that medical professionals prioritize patient well-being, maintain confidentiality, and make decisions rooted in moral principles. Choose one of the topics below for a paper on ethics in medicine:

Informed consent and patient autonomy in healthcare decisions.
Healthcare ethics: physician-assisted death .
Ethical considerations in end-of-life care and medical assistance.
Allocation of scarce resources and equitable healthcare distribution.
Abortion: an ethical dilemma .
Confidentiality and privacy of patient health information.
Ethical challenges in clinical research and human experimentation.
Medical ethics: implications of a confidentiality breach .
Ethics of physician-assisted suicide in healthcare.
Organ transplantation and ethical considerations in donor selection.
Obamacare and healthcare reform: ethical challenges .
Ethical dilemmas in reproductive medicine and assisted reproduction .
Cultural competence and ethical practices in healthcare delivery.
Medical ethics: pet euthanasia .
Ethical considerations in the use of emerging technologies in healthcare.

Ethical Topics in Nursing

Ethical considerations of artificial intelligence in nursing care.
Nursing ethics in patient advocacy .
Understanding and managing confidentiality breaches in nursing.
Ethical implications of assisted suicide for nursing practice.
Hospice care and nursing ethics provisions .
The moral dilemma of resource allocation in nursing.
Addressing the tension between cultural sensitivity and medical guidelines.
Euthanizing handicapped people: ethical and moral concerns .
Discussing the impact of health inequities on nursing ethics.
Ethical challenges in implementing telehealth in nursing.
Circumcision: ethical dilemma and a nurse’s role in it .
The moral landscape of mandatory vaccination for nurses.
The nursing profession’s role in addressing medical errors.
Ethic-of-care and ethic-of-justice in nursing leadership .
Exploring the nurse’s role in patient advocacy.

Biomedical Ethics Topics

Impact of gene editing on the future of healthcare.
Cryonics and its ethical side .
Ethical issues surrounding prenatal genetic testing.
The role of bioethics in emerging infectious diseases.
Embryo harvesting: ethical implications .
Ethical challenges in stem cell research .
Ethical considerations in human organ and tissue transplantation.
Bioethics: the use of marijuana for medical purposes .
Privacy and consent in the age of digital health data.
Addressing animal rights in the context of biomedical research.
Neuroimaging methods and arising ethical issues .
The ethics of personalized medicine and genetic discrimination.
Bioethics of advancements in neurotechnology and brain-computer interfaces.
Cloning research ethics: ethical dispute and issues .
The ethics of extending human lifespan through biotechnology.
Surgery complications and bioethical decision-making .

🌳 Environmental Ethical Issues Topics

Environmental ethics guide individuals and organizations to act responsibly towards the planet. Such actions promote sustainable practices and biodiversity conservation and mitigate the adverse impacts of human activities on ecosystems. Here is a list of ethical environmental topics for research:

Ethical responsibility for climate change for future generations.
Sea dumping: legal and ethical issues .
The role of environmental justice in urban planning.
Ethical considerations in the use and disposal of plastics.
The issue of global climate change from an ethical perspective .
Implications of luxury fashion on the environment and ethics.
The ethical responsibility of corporations in pollution.
Land use and environmental ethics .
The intersection of environmental ethics and indigenous rights.
The ethical debate surrounding geoengineering as a climate solution.
Environmental ethics: genetically modified organisms .
The moral duty towards the preservation of biodiversity.
Ethical considerations in the transition to renewable energy sources.
Environmental ethics: intrinsic value of objects .
The role of capitalism in environmental degradation.
Commercial fishing: environmental ethics case study .

Animal Ethics Topics

Ethical considerations in the treatment of companion animals.
Nestlé animal testing and business ethics .
The role of ethics in wildlife conservation efforts.
The ethics of animal testing in scientific research.
Ethical issues in animal research .
The environmental and ethical impact of factory farming.
The moral status of animals in ecological ethics.
Is animal testing ethical ?
Ethical approaches to invasive species management.
Addressing the ethical implications of zoos and animal captivity.
Ethics of using animals in medical research .
The ethical debate around hunting as a conservation strategy.
Ethics of the human-wildlife conflict resolution.
Scientific experiments on animals from ethical perspectives .
The moral side of animal cloning and bioengineering.

Food Ethics Topics

Ethical concerns of genetically modified foods’ impact on the environment.
Underweight products and deontological ethics .
Food waste and its ethical concerns.
The ethical debate on organic versus conventional farming.
Ethical eating in daily food practices .
The ethical and ecological effects of the meat industry.
Balancing the demand for seafood with sustainable practices.
Food safety issues in modern agriculture .
The ethics of the global food supply chain in developing countries.
Evaluation of the environmental ethics of palm oil production.
Food ads ban for childhood obesity prevention .
Food sovereignty and its significance in ecological ethics.
The ethical implications of mono-cropping and biodiversity loss.
Do marketers condition us to buy more junk food ?
Ethical dilemmas in the use of pesticides in agriculture.

In the technology sphere , ethics can influence the development and use of innovations. Ethical approach ensures privacy protection and promotes inclusive technology solutions. Below, you will find several topic lists regarding ethics in technology:

Computer Science Ethics Topics

The ethical concerns of artificial intelligence development.
Electronic surveillance as an unethical practice .
Outdoor privacy and surveillance in the digital age.
The ethics of data collection and use by tech companies.
Computer attacks and critical privacy threats .
Implications of autonomous vehicles on societal ethics and safety.
Ethical considerations in the development and use of deepfakes.
Obscenity and computer ethics .
Cybersecurity and ethical considerations in protecting user data.
The ethics of algorithmic bias in machine learning.
Computer ethics and privacy .
Ethical challenges in the application of facial recognition technology.
The responsibility of tech companies in spreading disinformation.
Computer ethics and data protection .
The ethics behind AI’s influence on job displacement and unemployment.

Aviation Ethics Topics

Ethical challenges of automation in aviation safety.
Aviation security and Al-Qaeda in Yemen .
The balance between profitability and safety in commercial aviation.
Ethical responsibilities of air traffic controllers.
Safety risks in the modern aviation industry .
Ethical considerations in the age of crewless aerial vehicles.
Ethics of environmental sustainability in the aviation industry.
Criminalization of aviation accidents .
Ethical challenges in aviation maintenance practices.
The moral dilemma of overbooking flights in the airline industry.
Aviation security is over-reliant on technology .
Ethical issues in the crisis management in aviation.
The role of whistleblowers in promoting aviation safety.
Sustainability in global aviation companies .
Ethical implications of advanced surveillance technologies in aviation security.

Engineering Ethics Research Paper Topics

Navigating the ethics of autonomous vehicles in society.
Engineering professionalism and ethics .
The role of ethics in sustainable engineering practices.
Ethical considerations in the age of artificial intelligence engineering.
Chernobyl disaster and engineering ethics .
Conflicts between innovation and safety in civil engineering projects.
The responsibility of engineers in managing climate change.
Engineering ethics: patent rights and legal issues .
Ethical challenges in the disclosure of engineering failures.
The implications of biotechnology in bioengineering ethics.
Machinery accident from an ethical standpoint .
The role of ethics in software engineering and data privacy.
Ethical considerations in the use of drones for engineering.
Ethical manufacturing and technology trends .
The ethical dilemmas in nuclear engineering.
Engineering competence and the code of ethics .
The ethics of using performance-enhancing drugs in sports.
Circumcision: medical, ethical, and human rights issues .
Should artificial intelligence be allowed to make life-or-death decisions?
Do celebrities have a moral responsibility to be role models?
Nightingale Pledge: medical ethics perspectives .
The ethical debate on privacy versus security in the digital age.
Are autonomous vehicles a boon or a bane for society?
Hurricane Katrina: government ethical dilemmas .
Should schools be allowed to use surveillance cameras on students?
Is it ethical to use animals for scientific experimentation?
Debate on circumcision: is it unethical and unlawful ?
Is the use of gene editing in babies ethically acceptable?
Is it ethically right to deny healthcare based on lifestyle choices?
Samsung and child labor: business ethics case .
The ethics of commercialization of organ transplants.
Are social platforms ethically responsible for the spread of fake news?
Obesity in Afro-Americans: ethics of intervention .
Should governments be allowed to censor the internet for national security?
Is it ethically right to use facial recognition technology in public?
Fetal abnormality and the ethical dilemma of abortion .
Is it ethical to prioritize economic growth over environmental sustainability?
The ethical implications of giving minorities benefits in college admissions.
Discrimination as an unethical business situation .
Should companies have the right to track their employees’ online activities?
The ethical debate on the death penalty as a justice form.
Ethical dilemmas in business: KFC Company’s case .
Is it ethically acceptable to use AI for predictive policing ?
Should parents have the right to choose their child’s genetic traits?
The relationship between economic rationality and ethical behaviour .
Is it ethically right to implement social credit systems in society?

🏺 Philosophy Essay Topics: Ethics

The role of cultural relativism in moral philosophy.
Aristotle’s views on ethics .
Ethics of the philosophy of existentialism.
Kantian ethics in contemporary society.
Kant’s deontological ethical theory .
The use of virtue ethics in modern moral dilemmas.
The influence of Stoicism on contemporary ethical thinking.
Cicero’s views on citizenship and ethics .
The ethical debate on utilitarianism versus deontology .
The philosophical implications of moral objectivism versus moral subjectivism.
Kant’s and Mill’s ethical philosophies .
Ethical implications of free will in the era of AI.
The philosophy of ethical egoism in capitalist societies.
Aristotle’s ethical theory about euthanasia .
The relevance of Nietzsche’s master-slave morality in modern ethics.
The role of empathy in moral philosophy and ethics.
Moral philosophical views: from Plato to Nussbaum .
Ethical questions raised by determinism and indeterminism.
The influence of Eastern philosophies on contemporary ethics.
Aristotle and virtue ethics .
The role of ethics in postmodern philosophy.
The ethics of responsibility in existentialist thought.
Theories of ethics: consequentialism and ethical relativism .
Moral obligations towards future generations in environmental ethics.
Individual ethics versus collective ethics.
Philosophical views of ethics and morality .
Aristotle’s concept of eudaimonia in modern society.
The ethical questions raised by the philosophy of solipsism.
Nonconsequential theory of ethics: case analysis .
The ethics of hedonism in contemporary societies.

👩🏽‍🎓 List of Ethical Questions for Students

We have ensured that you can find the perfect ethical topic depending on the type of assignment you received. You can find debate, discussion, speech, and presentation topics here.

Ethical Debate Topics

What are the ethical implications of capital punishment?
Fetus with deformities: what is its moral status ?
Should there be a moral limit to scientific discoveries?
Is it ethical to use animals in circus performances?
How do ethical theories view gay marriage ?
Is the commercialization of human organs ethical?
Is it ethical to use DNA from extinct species?
Should parents be responsible for children’s crimes ?
Should physicians be allowed to assist in patient suicide?
Is it ethical to clone humans for medical purposes?
Should parents spank their children ?
Is the use of child labor ethical?
Should religious beliefs influence public health policy?
Why should you be moral when it is not in your best interest to do so ?
Should gene editing in unborn children be allowed?
Is it ethical to implement robotic soldiers in warfare?
Should the United States abolish the death penalty ?
Is euthanasia in terminally ill patients ethical?
Should society implement universal basic income?
Should the sale of human organs be legalized ?
Is it ethical to design babies with specific traits?
Is the censorship of artistic expression ethical?
Should animals be used in medical research ?

Ethical Discussion Topics

The ethical implications of social media on personal privacy.
Should sex and violence be restricted on television ?
How should we address ethical issues in global outsourcing?
The ethical implications of data breaches and digital privacy.
Should same-sex couples be allowed to adopt children ?
The ethics of sustainable consumption of electronic devices.
The ethics of wealth disparity in capitalist societies.
Should we not abolish capital punishment ?
The role of ethics in sustainable development and climate change.
Ethical considerations of health disparities in society.
Should smoking be illegal ?
Ethical considerations of pandemic response and vaccine distribution.
The role of ethics in animal rights and testing.
Should parents avoid vaccinating their children ?
Ethical considerations in the rise of the gig economy.
The ethical implications of facial recognition technology in public.
The right-to-die bill: why should all states pass it ?
Ethical dilemmas in genetic testing and personalized medicine.
The role of ethics in global migration and refugee crisis.
Should cigarette manufacturers be prohibited ?
The ethics of using AI in predictive policing.
The ethical considerations of child labor in global supply chains.
Should Kant be criticized for his absolutism ?
Why should animal testing for cosmetics be globally banned?
Corporate fraud as an ethical and leadership dilemma .
The need for ethical considerations in AI development.
Why the right to privacy should be prioritized in the digital age?
Stem cell research ethics, pros and cons, and benefits .
The importance of ethical farming practices for a sustainable future.
Why must corporations take responsibility for their carbon emissions?
Ethics of Obamacare and Trumpcare .
The necessity of ethical treatment of workers in global supply chains.
The importance of ethical considerations in medical research.
Should Americans adopt a vegan lifestyle ?
Why should technology companies be held accountable for data breaches?
The need for ethical standards in reporting and journalism.
Should we withhold life support ?
Why should businesses prioritize corporate social responsibility?
The importance of ethical considerations in education system reforms.
Should children be tried as adults for murder ?
Why should organ donation be encouraged as an ethical duty?
The necessity of transparency in governmental decision-making.
Ethical dilemma: should gene editing be performed on human embryos ?
Why should we consider the ethical implications of autonomous weapons?
The importance of sustainable consumption in the fight against climate change.
Animal testing for cosmetic or medical purposes should not be allowed .
Why should we prioritize ethics in the fashion industry?
The necessity for implementing ethical norms in genetic engineering.
Should human cloning be allowed ?
Why should we consider ethical implications of wealth disparity ?
The importance of ethically addressing refugee and migration crises.
How much should we do for our fellow men ?
The necessity of ethical governance in the use of facial recognition.
Ethical concerns in using virtual reality for psychological treatment.
Patient’s violence and the use of doctor force – medical ethics .
The role of ethical dilemmas in shaping public policy.
The ethical issues and carbon footprint of global supply chains.
British Petroleum: corruption involving ethics .
The ethical implications of data breaches in technology companies.
The ethical landscape of genetic engineering.
Domino’s Pizza: ethical dilemma case .
Ethical considerations in the use of personal data for political microtargeting.
Evaluating the ethical considerations in predictive policing.
The code of ethics of the American Nurses Association .
The role of ethics in responsible journalism and fake news.
The ethics of personalized pricing based on consumer data analysis.
Apple Corporation: ethical and social responsibility .
Ethical implications of intensive livestock farming on animal welfare.
Visualizing the environmental impact of single-use plastics in marine ecosystems.
Business ethics and dilemmas in the film Michael Clayton .
Ethical considerations in access to healthcare for marginalized populations.
Ethical dimensions of cultural appropriation.
International legal and ethical issues in business .
The role of ethics in organ donation and transplantation.
The ethical implications of economic disparity in capitalist societies.
Chevron Company: ethical analysis .
Ethical considerations in journalism and media ethics.
The role of ethics in sustainable development and consumption.
College sport: ethical issues .
Visualizing the environmental impact of fast fashion through data.
Ethical dilemmas in pharmaceutical industry marketing strategies.
Ethical dilemmas in Shakespeare’s Hamlet .
The ethical challenges in the education reform policies.

What Are Ethical Questions?

Ethical questions are inquiries that explore moral issues, challenging us to consider right and wrong, good and bad. They often deal with dilemmas where a decision about the appropriate behavior or action must be made. Ethical questions are relevant in many fields, such as business, healthcare, politics, science, and education.

What Are the Seven Ethical Principles?

The seven ethical principles are common guidelines in ethical decision-making across various fields:

Autonomy – respect for individuals’ right to decide for themselves.
Beneficence – obligation to promote well-being and good.
Non-maleficence – duty to cause no harm.
Justice – ensuring fairness and equitable distribution of resources.
Fidelity – maintaining loyalty and keeping promises.
Veracity – commitment to truthfulness and honesty.
Confidentiality – respecting the privacy of others.

What Are Some Ethical Topics?

Ethical topics cover a broad spectrum of issues across multiple domains. In healthcare, topics like euthanasia, patient confidentiality, and genetic engineering are common. In business, we discuss corporate social responsibility, whistleblowing, and fair trade. Environmental ethics covers animal rights, sustainability, and climate change. In technology, topics like data privacy, AI ethics, and cybersecurity are popular.

Ethics Awareness: UC San Diego
Solving Ethical Dilemmas; Ethics in Law Enforcement
A Framework for Ethical Decision Making – Markkula Center for Applied Ethics
5 Ethical Issues in Technology to Watch for in 2023 | CompTIA
The Very Best 127 Philosophical Questions 2023
Identifying Ethical Issues; Exploring Business
How to Write About an Ethical Dilemma – Synonym
The RIGHT Decision Method: An approach for solving ethical dilemmas | Institute on Community Integration Publications
A Brief Guide to Writing the Philosophy Paper | Harvard College Writing Center
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What Are Business Ethics & Why Are They Important?

Business professional pressing a graphic that reads "Business Ethics" and is surrounded by icons

27 Jul 2023

From artificial intelligence to facial recognition technology, organizations face an increasing number of ethical dilemmas. While innovation can aid business growth, it can also create opportunities for potential abuse.

“The long-term impacts of a new technology—both positive and negative—may not become apparent until years after it’s introduced,” says Harvard Business School Professor Nien-hê Hsieh in the online course Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability . “For example, the impact of social media on children and teenagers didn’t become evident until we watched it play out over time.”

If you’re a current or prospective leader concerned about navigating difficult situations, here's an overview of business ethics, why they're important, and how to ensure ethical behavior in your organization.

Access your free e-book today.

What Are Business Ethics?

Business ethics are principles that guide decision-making . As a leader, you’ll face many challenges in the workplace because of different interpretations of what's ethical. Situations often require navigating the “gray area,” where it’s unclear what’s right and wrong.

When making decisions, your experiences, opinions, and perspectives can influence what you believe to be ethical, making it vital to:

Be transparent.
Invite feedback.
Consider impacts on employees, stakeholders, and society.
Reflect on past experiences to learn what you could have done better.

“The way to think about ethics, in my view, is: What are the externalities that your business creates, both positive and negative?” says Harvard Business School Professor Vikram Gandhi in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability . “And, therefore, how do you actually increase the positive element of externalities? And how do you decrease the negative?”

Related: Why Managers Should Involve Their Team in the Decision-Making Process

Ethical Responsibilities to Society

Promoting ethical conduct can benefit both your company and society long term.

“I'm a strong believer that a long-term focus is what creates long-term value,” Gandhi says in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability . “So you should get shareholders in your company that have that same perspective.”

Prioritizing the triple bottom line is an effective way for your business to fulfill its environmental responsibilities and create long-term value. It focuses on three factors:

Profit: The financial return your company generates for shareholders
People: How your company affects customers, employees, and stakeholders
Planet: Your company’s impact on the planet and environment

Check out the video below to learn more about the triple bottom line, and subscribe to our YouTube channel for more explainer content!

Ethical and corporate social responsibility (CSR) considerations can go a long way toward creating value, especially since an increasing number of customers, employees, and investors expect organizations to prioritize CSR. According to the Conscious Consumer Spending Index , 67 percent of customers prefer buying from socially responsible companies.

To prevent costly employee turnover and satisfy customers, strive to fulfill your ethical responsibilities to society.

Ethical Responsibilities to Customers

As a leader, you must ensure you don’t mislead your customers. Doing so can backfire, negatively impacting your organization’s credibility and profits.

Actions to avoid include:

Greenwashing : Taking advantage of customers’ CSR preferences by claiming your business practices are sustainable when they aren't.
False advertising : Making unverified or untrue claims in advertisements or promotional material.
Making false promises : Lying to make a sale.

These unethical practices can result in multi-million dollar lawsuits, as well as highly dissatisfied customers.

Ethical Responsibilities to Employees

You also have ethical responsibilities to your employees—from the beginning to the end of their employment.

One area of business ethics that receives a lot of attention is employee termination. According to Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability , letting an employee go requires an individualized approach that ensures fairness.

Not only can wrongful termination cost your company upwards of $100,000 in legal expenses , it can also negatively impact other employees’ morale and how they perceive your leadership.

Ethical business practices have additional benefits, such as attracting and retaining talented employees willing to take a pay cut to work for a socially responsible company. Approximately 40 percent of millennials say they would switch jobs to work for a company that emphasizes sustainability.

Ultimately, it's critical to do your best to treat employees fairly.

“Fairness is not only an ethical response to power asymmetries in the work environment,” Hsieh says in the course. “Fairness—and having a successful organizational culture–can benefit the organization economically and legally.”

Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability | Develop a toolkit for making tough leadership decisions| Learn More

Why Are Business Ethics Important?

Failure to understand and apply business ethics can result in moral disengagement .

“Moral disengagement refers to ways in which we convince ourselves that what we’re doing is not wrong,” Hsieh says in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability . “It can upset the balance of judgment—causing us to prioritize our personal commitments over shared beliefs, rules, and principles—or it can skew our logic to make unethical behaviors appear less harmful or not wrong.”

Moral disengagement can also lead to questionable decisions, such as insider trading .

“In the U.S., insider trading is defined in common, federal, and state laws regulating the opportunity for insiders to benefit from material, non-public information, or MNPI,” Hsieh explains.

This type of unethical behavior can carry severe legal consequences and negatively impact your company's bottom line.

“If you create a certain amount of harm to a society, your customers, or employees over a period of time, that’s going to have a negative impact on your economic value,” Gandhi says in the course.

This is reflected in over half of the top 10 largest bankruptcies between 1980 and 2013 that resulted from unethical behavior. As a business leader, strive to make ethical decisions and fulfill your responsibilities to stakeholders.

How to Implement Business Ethics

To become a more ethical leader, it's crucial to have a balanced, long-term focus.

“It's very important to balance the fact that, even if you're focused on the long term, you have to perform in the short term as well and have a very clear, articulated strategy around that,” Gandhi says in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability .

Making ethical decisions requires reflective leadership.

“Reflecting on complex, gray-area decisions is a key part of what it means to be human, as well as an effective leader,” Hsieh says. “You have agency. You must choose how to act. And with that agency comes responsibility.”

Related: Why Are Ethics Important in Engineering?

Hsieh advises asking the following questions:

Are you using the “greater good” to justify unethical behavior?
Are you downplaying your actions to feel better?

“Asking these and similar questions at regular intervals can help you notice when you or others may be approaching the line between making a tough but ethical call and justifying problematic actions,” Hsieh says.

How to Become a More Effective Leader | Access Your Free E-Book | Download Now

Become a More Ethical Leader

Learning from past successes and mistakes can enable you to improve your ethical decision-making.

“As a leader, when trying to determine what to do, it can be helpful to start by simply asking in any given situation, ‘What can we do?’ and ‘What would be wrong to do?’” Hsieh says.

Many times, the answers come from experience.

Gain insights from others’ ethical decisions, too. One way to do so is by taking an online course, such as Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability , which includes case studies that immerse you in real-world business situations, as well as a reflective leadership model to inform your decision-making.

Ready to become a better leader? Enroll in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability —one of our online leadership and management courses —and download our free e-book on how to be a more effective leader.

About the Author

Business Ethics

(9 reviews)

OpenStax College

ISBN 13: 9781947172579

Publisher: OpenStax

Language: English

Formats Available

Conditions of use.

Learn more about reviews.

Reviewed by Ingrid Greene, Clinical Assistant Professor, Loyola Marymount University on 6/6/23

Comprehensiveness rating: 3 see less

I think that the subjects that are covered are thorough and they use great examples. But, I also feel that the textbook is missing a lot of key topics such as the role of technology and a deeper dive into the role of governments and non-profits. I understand that it is important to include a lot about philosophy, but I think that there is a lot of room for improvement with a deeper dive of some other key parts of the curriculum. The philosophy part has many sources outside of a traditional textbook since this topic is has been studied for thousands of years, and doesn't need to be covered as thoroughly here. More time could be spend on other topics like non-profits and governance. I think that it is missing key parts about the role of a Board of Directors, how they are elected, and their responsibilities.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

Everything looked accurate and detailed properly.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

Yes, updates will be possible, and they link to relevant articles or cases that are very up-to-date. Again, I would just add more about technology and the role of non-profits.

Clarity rating: 4

I like the book, but the slides could be more clear and complete. Many of the slides have only a small photo and very limited text. They do not include much of the text material. I needed to create my own slides, and/or skip much of the material.

Consistency rating: 5

The book is very professional, and easy to read. There are key diagrams, and highlighting of key ideas. The slides, again, could use some help to coordinate better with the book.

Modularity rating: 5

It is very easy to read. I assigned the book to an 8th grader, and she was able to move through it easily and it engaged her interest. I took this as a good sign that it is good as an introduction to ethics for someone who is not familiar with the topic.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The topics are well organized, but I would add a lot more about the world of non-profits. The external references to HBR cases is great. The frequent cases are also great.

Interface rating: 5

This is great. No problem with viewing it on multiple devices and computers.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

Since this book centers a lot around culture, it would be hard to not give it a 5.

As I mentioned, it is important to have slides that really include much of the text, and I found the teacher resources for this very weak. I am hopeful that this could be improved. I did not have a chance to test the integration with our CMS, but I am hopeful that it could be helpful. I like that they include quizzes since this too can be time consuming for students. Lastly, I very much recommend that they include the work of non-profits in the discussion with business since this is a key player when we talk about doing things ethically, and getting input from key stakeholders.

Reviewed by Alysa D Lambert, Professor of HRM, Indiana University - Southeast (New Albany) on 2/21/23

The text covers a wide breadth of ethics and addresses all major and then some secondary topics in ethics. It also provides some of the history of ethical frameworks and their origins. It provides brief cases and critical thinking questions for... read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

Content Accuracy rating: 4

I saw very few errors. The tone of the book reads as unbiased and covers all major theories of ethics.

Updates will be required but only as related to current ethical issues in business. As technology and business change, globalization continues to grow then the ethical issues will change and need to be updated. The ethical frameworks and the history of ethics will not change very much.

The book was clearly written with understandable examples. The resources are clear, relevant and recent.

Consistency rating: 4

The framework, format and vocabulary used were consistent and did not require extra explanation. For example, the "Link to Learning" boxes were great for giving students the chance to learn more about a topic. These will have to be checked frequently to ensure they are still live links which relates to the how relevant the book is in the future.

Modularity rating: 3

This could be improved. More headings, more sub-headings and more short case examples would increase the modularity of the text. Have short ethical dilemmas as conversation starters would also be a great addition.

I saw no issues with the organization of the material. My only suggestion would be to consider changing the "epilogue" chapter. It is titled, "Why ethics still matters?" I would hope after reading some much about ethics that much of this discussion would be obvious so breaking these points out and including them throughout may be one way to keep the relevance of studying ethics at the forefront of the course.

I did not see anything of concern here.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

Culture has a prominent place in the book. I selected a 4 rating because there is always room for growth, but I believe the text does a really good job of reminding students of the cultural implications related to ethics. More examples could be added on LGBTQ+ issues, in particular the ethical implications related to inclusion and protecting those in the workplace who are in transition or who have transitioned.

Reviewed by Elizabeth Collier, Christopher Chair in Business Ethics, Dominican University on 5/2/22

This book includes the standard theories covered in most business ethics textbooks, along with a few additional frameworks that include cross-cultural opportunities for discussion and a broadening of what students may consider as they develop their understanding of ethics. It covers a wide range of topics and cases and could be used in a general undergraduate course to cover a lot of ground. The many opportunities for critical thinking and the deeper discussion questions allow for this to be used at a general graduate level MBA course as well. If used in an MBA course, additional materials or lectures would need to be added because book moves at a quick clip and has just the basics on each topic, while covering many different topics.

The materials are accurate and there are many critical thinking questions provided that allow for deeper engagement with the frameworks and cases through assignments and discussions.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The content includes traditional cases that all students should be aware of and also many recent cases that explore issues not covered in the past. The ability for sections of these types of books to be updated semi-regularly means that the book should not be obsolete any time soon and could be augmented/updated very easily in the future with new cases that have arisen.

Clarity rating: 5

The book is well written, clear, very concise, and includes references and a glossary for each chapter.

The book maintains consistency throughout in format, cases, questions, glossary, photos, videos and opportunities for engagement.

In addition to the book being easily broken up by week into a quarter or semester, there are optional Canvas and Blackboard downloads that are comprehensive, along with resources for assignments aiding an instructor in maintaining the modularity, clarity and organization.

The book has a clear organization that it maintains throughout.

Interface rating: 4

There is an "errata" function on the OpenStax site that explains all issues related to this category and the book seems to be updated every spring to address issues with links, quiz questions and other minor corrections.

I did not find any grammatical errors.

This book does make use of examples that are inclusive of a variety of races, ethnicities and other aspects of diversity in the workplace.

This is an excellent option for those looking to include OER materials into the business classroom. Many people from a wide range of academic disciplines contributed to or reviewed the text. There are very few resources for OER business ethics texts, so the comprehensiveness of this text, along with the many supplemental resources for faculty, are really a great resource at this time.

Reviewed by Rebeca Book, Professor, Pittsburg State University on 4/19/22

The textbook is very comprehensive and covers many areas. Good background in providing the foundation and history of ethics and the different perspectives. Thought the different links to current stories and interviews also was beneficial. Was very comprehensive in that with the OpenStax and this particular textbook, the instructor has access to importing information (to me it was the Canvas Learning Management System) such as tests, powerpoints, etc. This additional information could also be downloaded and separate from a Learning Management System if needed.

Content was accurate and did not find any errors. Felt some areas might be a little biased, but in ethics this can easily happen and information was discussed in a relevant and thoughtful manner.

Interesting to think if it would become obsolete because I could relate to some of the interviews and stories, but later in a few years they might become obsolete but not the actual content or purpose of the information. Student might not relate as well to the stories later if they don't recognize the names or companies. Since the textbook is OpenStax I would think that the authors and audiences that use the textbook might update or bring in discussions to bring more current stories to the textbook.

The text is very lucid and easy to understand and read. Information is clearly explained and there are even portions of each area with key terms, summary and assessment. The textbook even has outlined expected outcomes for each chapter.

The text is consistent in terminology and framework.

The text can be divided into different reading sections easily. For my own purposes I do not devote a whole semester to ethics, so because there is so much good content and thought provoking insights, it will be hard to decide what to assign or use. But if the textbook were to be used entirely for a course, everything is well laid out.

I do believe the text is laid out in a logical and clear fashion.

I did not find the text itself to have interface problems. Was pleasantly surprised that I could even download the textbook onto my Kindle! The only problems that I had were using it with Canvas, but the problems were on my end and not with the textbook itself. I wonder in the future if there could be problems with links if they are discontinued or websites change, but hopefully there won't be any issues.. I didn't have any problems with the links when I used them in going through and reading the textbook.

The book, being on ethics, is very careful of cultures. It attempts in a very thoughtful way to help navigate and be sensitive to different races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.

Reviewed by Elissa Magnant, Visiting Instructor, University of Massachusetts Lowell on 6/29/20

This textbook is comprehensive. In fact, it provides more than enough information for either an undergraduate course in Business Ethics or a more in-depth analysis for seminar or graduate students if the video case studies are utilized fully. Because of the depth of content, for undergraduates the text might be best assigned by specific page numbers to cover specific topics, instead of full chapters all at once.

The text is well researched by astute world renown faculty who use peer reviewed materials.

One reason to use this book is that it is up to date. It covers more recent business ethics dilemmas than print or print/digital texts because by virtue of being open source and fully digital, it is kept more up to date than other textbooks I have used.

This book is well written and easy for the student to comprehend. It also provides instructor support material of a test bank which is also well designed.

This book is compatible with the humanistic ethics framework, including a focus on dignity, fairness and collaboration.

This textbook implements short case studies called "Cases from the Real World," opportunities for students to think and reflect on ethics questions as well as multiple headings/sub-headings for ease of division and assignment.

I like the organization of this textbook as it starts with the basic philosophical frameworks and moves to modern day real business ethics challenges so that the student progresses through stages, understanding how topics build upon each other as the book evolves.

Students really enjoy the option of buying a paper version of this book, which is made available on our campus for under $20. They also enjoyed the easily downloadable version of the text with clickable links, especially because they can download it or view it from any device. It makes it very easy to ask them to read and then evaluate their ethical considerations of the material in class or online.

I am unaware of any grammatical errors in this text.

This text does an exceptional job of providing students with a balanced understanding of ethical globalization. It is liberal toward US government ethics and could perhaps provide more balanced nuances when addressing those topics.

I used two other popular Business Ethics textbooks prior to making the change to this textbook. I am so happy I did. It provides a no-cost option to those who use it digitally, a low-cost option to those who want to also have access to a professionally printed version, and it covers more up-to-date business ethics topics than either of the previous texts I used. I look forward to the updates as they help to keep the class relevant and challenging for all.

Reviewed by Kerry Dolan, Accounting/Business Department Chair, TRAILS on 11/22/19

The content is of the book is more than enough to support a full semester 200-level business ethics course and it does a good job of covering the basic ethics principles as well as specific examples that are relevant to the contemporary business... read more

I'm not an expert in the field of business ethics, but given my background in general business and accounting, I did not encounter any information in the textbook that appeared to be inaccurate.

Relevance is always an issue with business-related textbooks because real-world examples quickly become outdated. However, this issue does not appear to be more pervasive with this text, nor would it be difficult to update or supplement any outdated examples. The basic concepts presented are not subject to obsolescence.

The text is very clear and understandable for lower-level college students that are encountering the basics of business ethics for the first time.

Text appeared to be consistent throughout. Clear organization and presentation.

I really liked how the book was organized with chapters and sections making it easy to assign partial chapters and/or specific sections and a manageable number of chapters and sections.

The text starts with broad concepts and moves to specific applications in business. The organization makes the presentation of the information clear to those who are being exposed to this discipline for the first time with this textbook.

Interface rating: 3

When reading this on a Kindle device, there were some areas where it was hard to decipher a picture caption from the string of text as as a result of digital page breaks and adjusted text sized, but once you got through the first chapter and were more familiar with the organization of each chapter it was not a distracting issue.

I didn't notice any grammatical errors.

The textbook did not appear to go out of its way to make sure that all races, ethnicities, and backgrounds were included, but there was a range of diverse images and examples. I did not see any culturally insensitive or offensive examples or images from my perspective.

Reviewed by Lou Cartier, Adjunct Instructor, Business and Management, Aims Community College on 8/1/19

At 367 pages, with 10 integrated, substantive chapters, constructive “end notes” and assessments on the evolution of ethical reasoning, leadership, and the challenges of “becoming an ethical professional” and “making a difference in the business world,” this is a comprehensive text, suitable for undergraduate business students and instructors not necessarily trained in philosophy. It is a great fit for single semester course, whether offered in conventional blocks of 15 weeks, 10 or eight. Topical case studies, video links, “what would you do” scenarios and assessments, chapter glossaries, and a helpful index reflect a breadth of industry, organizational, and cultural perspectives. The Preface, outlining the book’s purpose, architecture, contributing authors and student and instructor resources (i.e., “Getting Started” guide, test bank and PPts) appears responsive to both a student’s critical eye and an instructor’s operational check list. Moreover, the test banks (10) appear solid, with multiple choice and short essay answer questions linked to the Bloom’s Taxonomy grid (plus instructor’s answer guide). Power Point slides (15-25 per unit) offer critical thinking and discussion prompts. Collectively, these components illuminate the principles, practices, and historical seeds of business ethics and corporate social responsibility in a compelling presentation.

I encountered no obvious error or mischaracterization. The authors evidently have taken pains to document their content, including graphic and video links. In citations, I appreciate both the hard information and informal context provided. In Ch. 6, for example, minimum wages in every state rely upon 2017 data from “the National Conference of State Legislatures, U.S. Dept. of Labor and state websites” (Fig. 6.9), while in the next (Fig. 6.10), under the colorful graphic, we have this: “Right-to-work states have typically been clustered in the South and Southeast, where unions have been traditionally less prevalent.” That attribution references “Copyright Rice University, Open Stax, under CC BY 4.0 license,” sufficient for “educational use,” it would seem. Faculty also will appreciate the ease of flagging and correcting three kinds of errata: factual, typo, broken links.

As other reviewers have noted, this text – like most in “applied ethics” – relies on contemporary examples of business practice, including articles and video segments drawn from the business press and government oversight venues that may grow less compelling in another five years or so (think Enron and its accounting partner, Arthur Andersen, 2000-era exemplars of white collar crime not referenced here). Yet this text does a serviceable job of setting cases as old as Ford Motor Company’s fraught introduction of the Edsel (1958) and the “Chicago Tylenol Murders (1982) and as fresh as United Airlines forced removable of a ticketed passenger from a seat needed by an airlines employee (2017) amid sufficient historical, theoretical, and organizational context to grasp the key lessons of Unit 3.2: “Weighing Stakeholder Claims.” There is little danger of obsolescence, particularly since the open textbook network makes it so easy to correct errors and substitute current examples for the somewhat dated.

The clarity and quality of writing is superb, likely a reflection of lead collaborators Stephen Byars, who teaches “oral and written communication” as well as business ethics, and Kurt Stanberry, whose “legal and leadership” credentials are exercised in his continuing education seminars with CPA’s, attorneys, and business execs … nice fits for this subject. Students still ln high school, or in the growing cadre of “co-enrolled” in community college may struggle with this text, yet the publisher’s clear attention to content “building blocks” may comfort even the less mature and experienced student. For example, in any given chapter, readers 1) begin with an outline, learning objectives, and 500 – 1,000 word introduction, 2) encounter “cases from the real world” and “what would you do” tests of comprehension, and 3) close with a narrative summary, glossary of key terms, and short set of “assessment” questions. “Links to learning” include such clever questions as whether Coca-Cola’s soft pedaling of its huge demands for water in arid climates amounts to “greenwashing” (Ch. 3) or whether certain animals ought to be off limits for human consumption because of “sentience,” their ability to think and/or feel pain, (Peter Singer, Ch. 8). In addition “key terms” for every chapter are short and clear, i.e. “Integrity … because there is unity between what we say and what we do.”

Like two previous reviewers, I found the prose and organization to be coherent and consistent. Depth, attention to detail, terminology, and overall framework are consistent, linked by “key terms” and succinct introductions and summary reviews of each chapter. In the main cases, scenarios, and references to events are compelling, current or sufficiently grounded in context to be evergreen. Videos, on the other hand, come in all types, lengths, and flavors, from five minutes to more than an hour, from sit-down interview to taped panel discussion to challenging presentation in front of a group. The resourceful or determined instructor might guide students to a time code? This is not necessarily a weakness, though uneven production values should be expected.

Yes, this material lends itself to modularity, this despite a carefully constructed progression from “why this subject matters” to “how our forebears have grappled with responsibility” to “who has a stake in these decisions” to “what we owe each other” in specific manifestations of corporate and professional enterprise. It appears that in every chapter, its major units could be assigned separately, within an instructor’s unique unifying paradigm. Individual “features” could backstop of enrich discussions in class or online. There are no “enormous blocks of text” to impede easy snipping, and thoughtful subheadings appear to break up the challenge to comprehension and endurance.

The inherent logic of this text is apparent. Authors move from a philosophical foundation (“Why ethics matters?” and approaches to “intention v. outcomes” over time) to exploration of the stakeholder theory to close examination of ethical issues in business, the professions, and organizations in the voluntary and public sectors. A unifying feature is the Introduction, key terms, “assessment questions” and “end notes” for each chapter. Personal interviews or video clips from business owners and other stakeholders, supplemented by relevant documents such as ethics policies, training materials, and previews of business development … such as New Belgium CEO Kim Jordan’s (and “contemporary thought leader”) rationale for an east coast brewery in Asheville NC (opened May 2016) help cement understanding of such integral topics in corporate social responsibility as “sustainability.”

This textbook is available online, in pdf or web view, and in print (presumably suitable for loose leaf binder for nominal cost, which instructors may facilitate through campus bookstores, if appropriate). While some are not fond of “text boxes interspersed with the main text” my students using other similar e-texts have not reported problems. That said, I did not experience the online version of this text on Kindle or my phone, which might be instructive. On the other hand, while not “distorted” I found some of the power points unhelpful, to the point of distracting or annoying the viewer. Some seem busy, with narrative text blocks under anecdotal photos or graphics in print too small for comfortable display in class. Moreover, the “what would you do?” questions in this mode seem to me presumptive, less helpful than, say, bullet references to facts, principles, or events. Instructors and overseers of “access and accessibility” may care to note that not all videos are followed by transcriptions. Overall, the heading and body styles are consistent. Selection of fonts (style and size) maximize on screen legibility. Text blocks are in contrasting color to distinguish it from background, with minimal highlighting that does not appear arbitrary. On the whole, I found layout and design mechanically sound, with pages and links numbered and labelled consistently and - to the extent sampled -- no broken links.

None observed.

There is plenty to commend on this criteria. For one thing, Ch. 5, “The Impact of Culture and Time,” engages fundamental faith beliefs globally as well as the authority of religion tradition, and challenges students to explore the “universality “of values in business ethics. For instance this text does not shrink from illustrations of both “honor and shame” in business. In Appendix C, “A Succinct Theory of Business Ethics, the authors plainly and forcefully state their underlying thesis: that business ethics ought be grounded in deontology more than in utilitarianism, that “ends” are insufficient justification for questionable “means” in formulating and executing business strategy. Illustrations of demographic and behavioral diversity and inclusion – including animal rights and the implications for research and recreation – are plentiful, addressed in Ch. 8, “Recognizing and Respecting the Rights of All,” as well as the succeeding chapter on various professions.

This is an excellent “open educational resource” for business ethics and corporate social responsibility, one I intend to tap personally. The “closing parts” especially – including “Succinct Themes in Business Ethics” – are attractive guides to curriculum development and standalone discussion prompts in the classroom or online. “Lives of Ethical Philosophers (500 to 1,000 word summaries), and “Profiles in Business Ethics: Contemporary Thought Leaders,” adds a valuable philosophical heft that, for community and junior colleges especially, our accrediting and articulation partners will be pleased to see. I further value the selection of relevant supplemental material from independent consultants that range from the very basic, i.e., “Five Questions to Identify Key Stakeholders” to those that verge on the proprietary. These include descriptions of systems to monitor and “manage” customer and other stakeholder involvement, corporate codes of conduct … even a link to free personality test (Sec. 7.3), for which “bonus” I am grateful to Steve Custer of Oakland City University for pointing out.

Reviewed by Debra Sulai, Instructor, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania on 3/12/19

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the key elements of ethical theory (Aristotelian virtue, Kantian deontology, utilitarianism, Rawls' theory of justice); the social, political, and cultural contexts of business; and the importance of ethics to business, while going into greater philosophical depth than comparable textbooks. It addresses most of the key topical areas of business ethics but avoids the listicle approach of other business ethics textbooks in which every topic under the sun is stitched together with little overarching context. It also includes things like a discussion of ethics and organized labor, which other books overlook. I would, however, like to see more dedicated attention to the ethical issues raised by technology, perhaps by engaging with a philosopher of technology.

The index at the back and the detailed table of contents will make information easy to find. Each chapter's glossary will be helpful to students who are new to the subject. I particularly like the profiles of the four philosophers in the appendix: so often, ethics is taught in a disembodied and ahistorical manner, which makes it harder for students to see the relevance of the ideas being taught. These supplementary contextual elements would make this a good textbook for an instructor whose primary training was not in philosophy.

As an added advantage, the number of chapters does not exceed the number of weeks in a standard semester, and at 10 chapters plus an epilogue could also fit within a quarter system.

As far as I can tell, the content is accurate and clear. It was reviewed by dozens of faculty from a wide variety of institutions.

The book's use of contemporary examples means that it will date, but no more than any other textbook in applied ethics. As many of the examples are set out in textboxes or as links to external resources, it would be a relatively simple matter for an instructor to substitute recent examples when necessary. Chapter 10 on changing work environments and future trends is the chapter most likely to date quickly. The other applied sections will probably last 5-10 years; the ethical theory sections will remain relevant for a longer period of time.

I think this is appropriate for a general-education course in business ethics. I found it to be clear, although a student new to the subject or to philosophy may find that concepts are introduced at a quick pace. It does not suffer from unnecessary jargon; it is, as Aristotle said, as clear as the subject matter allows.

The prose and organization is consistent; it could have been single-authored.

Modularity rating: 4

It would be possible to use some portions of the text and not others, but it is not fully modular in that it was carefully constructed to provide the necessary philosophical and social context for business ethics prior to considering particular applied topics in business ethics. As it presents a sustained argument about business ethics (and this is a strength; philosophy is, after all, largely about making good arguments), it isn't the sort of thing that one could simply cut up and reassemble willy-nilly. However, I can easily see how an instructor could use various chapters to supplement or introduce other material. Chapters are internally divided into sections that could be read, assigned, or discussed separately.

Many business ethics textbooks combine three or four different courses in one: a book about ethics, a book about management and stakeholder theory, and a book about work and vocation, and give the impression of fairly disparate topics somewhat awkwardly and haphazardly stitched together. This book is logically organized to take students from basic moral theory through the application of those theories to key issues in business ethics, before circling back again to ethics in the epilogue.

Rather than being organized into chapters according to common areas of ethical problems in business (finance, accounting, affirmative action, greed, advertising and marketing, sexual harassment, sustainability, stakeholder theory, etc.) with few connections made between, this book addresses those issues under a relatively small number of chapter headings, and presents them through an ethical and social framework that is developed in the early chapters. I find this to be a more cohesive approach to the subject than is present in other textbooks.

I experienced no problems with the interface. The book is professionally produced. I personally do not like the use of text boxes interspersed with the main text, but I recognize that this is a common textbook feature.

I saw no grammatical issues. This book has been professionally edited.

This book includes a Confucian look at virtue ethics and attends to the cultural context in which the philosophers worked. It also contains a chapter on business ethics across time, place, culture and religion, a more comprehensive approach than the usual "business in a global context" topical chapter of other books. A chapter on respecting the rights of all addresses disability, gender inclusivity, religious diversity, animal ethics, and income inequality. In the following chapter there is a section on the business of health care, which I have not seen in any other similar text.

This is an outstanding introductory text in business ethics, with a level of philosophical sophistication and organizational coherence that exceeds most comparable texts. The chapter summaries, glossaries, and review quizzes are helpful aids to student learning, and the embedded links to interviews, videos, and case studies make it easy to adapt to active learning or on-line instruction. The amount of philosophical context makes it a particularly good choice for instructors of business ethics whose primary training is in business, management, law, or a related field, rather than in ethics or philosophy, or for a philosopher whose primary area of expertise is outside business ethics.

It does read as though it is a written version of excellent lectures in business ethics, which is not necessarily a weakness. The most significant drawback to this text, in my view, is that it includes no primary sources. As a philosopher teaching applied ethics, I know that business ethics may be the only course in philosophy that my students take. I also know this may be my students' primary or sole opportunity to read the classics of the western tradition. Therefore, I think this book could be enhanced by presenting some primary source readings. These could be added as an appendix or at the beginning or end of each chapter, or taken from other sources by the instructor.

I currently use an Oxford anthology for my business ethics course. However, if I were to assign a traditional textbook, I would switch to this book without reservation, and I am very likely to try this book in future courses.

Reviewed by Steve Custer, Associate Professor, Oakland City University on 2/25/19

The Business Ethics textbook is comprehensive in that it covers a broad range of ethical issues as well as delving into the history of ethics. The online format enhances the easy of use for the index. read more

I found the textbook to be accurate. I did not find any outstanding errors in the book. It is very well written and easy to understand.

From Toyota to Samsung and Starbucks, excellent examples of business ethics abound. Additionally, this textbook is quite effective in bringing to life many current events.

The book exceeds expectations in clarity. The key terms and assessment questions at the end of each chapter give extra help to those seeking to know the material in depth.

The dictionary defines consistency as a "condition of adhering together." I feel that this textbook accomplished that purpose. Moreover, it brought together principles of business ethics in a well-developed manner.

The online format enhances this textbook's modularity. The online links to learning are a welcome addition and add a nice touch.

The book is organized very well, and the online format makes keyword searches very easy to navigate.

The Business Ethics textbook is easy to navigate and understand. Nothing is wasted that takes away from the material.

I found the Business Ethics textbook to be free of any outstanding grammatical errors.

There are many examples this book gives on cultural relevance: #metoo, transgender ethics, environmental ethics, animal ethics, and diversity and inclusion.

I really enjoyed the link to the free personality test. That was a great bonus feature. "It is nice to be important, but more important to be nice." What a powerful sentiment and an appropriate quote to be included! This is a great textbook and I plan to utilize it in an upcoming business ethics course.

Chapter 1: Why Ethics Matter

1.1 Being a Professional of Integrity
1.2 Ethics and Profitability
1.3 Multiple versus Single Ethical Standards

Chapter 2: Ethics from Antiquity to the Present

2.1 The Concept of Ethical Business in Ancient Athens
2.2 Ethical Advice for Nobles and Civil Servants in Ancient China
2.3 Comparing the Virtue Ethics of East and West
2.4 Utilitarianism: The Greatest Good for the Greatest Number
2.5 Deontology: Ethics as Duty
2.6 A Theory of Justice

Chapter 3: Defining and Prioritizing Stakeholders

3.1 Adopting a Stakeholder Orientation
3.2 Weighing Stakeholder Claims
3.3 Ethical Decision-Making and Prioritizing Stakeholders
3.4 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

Chapter 4: Three Special Stakeholders: Society, the Environment, and Government

4.1 Corporate Law and Corporate Responsibility
4.2 Sustainability: Business and the Environment
4.3 Government and the Private Sector

Chapter 5: The Impact of Culture and Time on Business Ethics

5.1 The Relationship between Business Ethics and Culture
5.2 Business Ethics over Time
5.3 The Influence of Geography and Religion
5.4 Are the Values Central to Business Ethics Universal?

Chapter 6: What Employers Owe Employees

6.1 The Workplace Environment and Working Conditions
6.2 What Constitutes a Fair Wage?
6.3 An Organized Workforce
6.4 Privacy in the Workplace

Chapter 7: What Employees Owe Employers

7.1 Loyalty to the Company
7.2 Loyalty to the Brand and to Customers
7.3 Contributing to a Positive Work Atmosphere
7.4 Financial Intergrity
7.5 Criticism of the Company and Whistleblowing

Chapter 8: Recognizing and Respecting the Rights of All

8.1 Diversity and Inclusion in the Workforce
8.2 Accommodating Different Abilities and Faiths
8.3 Sexual Identification and Orientation
8.4 Income Inequalities
8.5 Animal Rights and the Implications for Business

Chapter 9: Professions under the Microscope

9.1 Entrepreneurship and Start-Up Culture
9.2 The Influence of Advertising
9.3 The Insurance Industry
9.4 Ethical Issues in the Provision of Health Care

Chapter 10: Changing Work Environment and Future Trends

10.1 More Telecommuting or Less?
10.2 Workplace Campuses
10.3 Alternatives to Traditional Patterns of Work
10.4 Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, and the Workplace of the Future

Chapter 11: Epilogue: Why Ethics Still Matter

11.1 Business Ethics in an Evolving Environment
11.2 Committing to an Ethical View
11.3 Becoming an Ethical Professional
11.4 Making a Difference in the Business World

Ancillary Material

About the book.

Business Ethics is designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of the single-semester business ethics course. This title includes innovative features designed to enhance student learning, including case studies, application scenarios, and links to video interviews with executives, all of which help instill in students a sense of ethical awareness and responsibility.

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Published by Owen Ingram at January 4th, 2023 , Revised On August 15, 2023

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Individual performance factors in SMEs
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80 Excellent Business Ethics Research Paper Topics
Interesting Business Ethics Topics on Social Responsibility. Making ethical decision making in big corporations. Understanding the concept of corporate responsibility. An inspiration for social responsibility in the workplace. Investing in corporate social responsibility. How CSR trends are evolving over time.
80+ Brilliant Business Ethics Topics For Research Papers
Topics in Accounting: Business Ethics Research Paper. The perception of tax evasion ethics. Acceptable ethical behavior in the accounting workplace. The history of ethics in accounting. How governments handle accounting ethics. A case study of philosophers who contributed to the ethics of accounting. Cultural and political situations leading to ...
Business Ethics Dissertation Topics & Titles
Business Ethics Dissertation Topics. Published by Owen Ingram at December 29th, 2022 , Revised On October 10, 2023. Many students find it difficult to choose an appropriate topic for their business ethics dissertation paper because the field is complex and contains interesting and contentious issues. Furthermore, the current issues keep ...
Business Ethics Research Paper Topics
Business research ethics- An evaluation of incentives and more profound objectives in business. Analyzing ethical decision-making when doing business online. Historical countdown of ethical decision-making in business. Exploration of ethic code in a company via the management perspective.
177 Best Ethics Paper Topics
Here is a list of ethical topics: The contemporary relevance of applied ethics. The psychological impacts of the proliferation of technology. A Case Study of the legality of weed. A multi-dimensional approach to the subject of marriage. An ethical approach to the killing of animals.
Free Business Ethics Essay Examples & Topic Ideas
Justice Theory: Business Ethics, Utilitarianism, Rights, Caring, and Virtue. 3.2. The foremost portion of business ethics understands the theory of rights as one of the core principles in the five-item ethical positions that deem essential in the understanding of moral business practices. Pages: 14.
Business Ethics Research and Research Ethics in Business ...
Following that introduction to ethics, there is a brief introduction to the interdisciplinary academic field which is captured by the title "business ethics." The chapter then addresses the growing field of business ethics research as well as the subject area of ethical issues in research conducted on topics related to business ethics.
Student's Guide to Writing Critical Essays in Business Ethics (and
The editors of the Business Ethics Journal Review hope that BEJR provides good examples of how to write a critical essay. Each of the Commentaries we publish is a short critical essay aimed at a single paper published in another scholarly journal. In each of the Responses we publish, the author whose work was critiqued…
Ethical Research in Business Ethics
In this editorial essay, we argue that business ethics research should be aware of the ethical implications of its own methodological choices, and that these implications include, but go beyond, mere compliance with standardized ethical norms. Methodological choices should be made specifically with reference to their effects on the world, both within and outside the academy. Awareness of these ...
PDF Business Ethics
The International Encyclopedia of Ethics. Edited by Hugh LaFollette, print pages 652-668. 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Published 2013 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. DOI: 10.1002/ 9781444367072.wbiee719. calling "business ethics in the broadest sense" today, even if most scholars of business ethics could be said to assume as a starting ...
Business Ethics Dissertation Topics Ideas & Examples
List of Business Ethics Dissertation Topics. An overview of some ideas for business ethics research papers follows. Health and Safety in the Workplace Studying safe working conditions to reduce the rise of "psychosocial risks" and work-related stress and mental health concerns.; Ethics in Accounting Practices Understanding the importance of accurate bookkeeping practices for small ...
Ethics: Articles, Research, & Case Studies on Ethics- HBS Working Knowledge
by Avery Forman. So many executives spend decades reaching the pinnacles of their careers only to find themselves unfulfilled at the top. In the book Build the Life You Want, Arthur Brooks and Oprah Winfrey offer high achievers a guide to becoming better leaders—of their lives. 10 Jul 2023.
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The History of Business Ethics. Words: 777 Pages: 3 7737. Introduction This paper is intended to review the history of business ethics, look at what it means, review some current ethics issues and what the future holds for business ethics. History The phrase "business ethics" has been used in a number of different ways.
(PDF) Business Ethics in International Business Contexts : A
This doctoral thesis aims to scrutinise and develop the understanding of (un)ethical practices of managers engaged in social interaction in business relationships and networks within the specific ...
Best Ethical Research Paper Topics [2024]
12 Tips for Choosing a Good Ethics Research Paper Topic. 12.1 First Tip. 12.2 Second Tip. 12.3 Third Tip. 12.4 Fourth Tip. 12.5 Fifth Tip. 13 Conclusion. Ethical research paper topics cover various human, animal, and environmental rights issues. Research ethics aim to protect the well-being and rights of participants and ensure that research is ...
178 Business Ethics Research Paper Topics
Here are some excellent ethics research paper topics for college students: Analyze the autonomy principle of ethics. Business ethics in the trade sector. Analyze personal business ethics. Discuss professional business ethics. Discuss the fidelity principle of ethics. Corporate business ethics: and in-depth analysis.
609 Ethics Essay Topics & Research Questions + Examples
609 Ethics Essay Topics & Examples. If you're searching for engaging ethics essay topics for your assignments, StudyCorgi is here to help you. On this page, you'll find plenty of medical, engineering, and business ethics research paper topics and questions for your presentation, research proposal, or essay. Read on to get inspired!
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Building a strong ethical culture is an integral part of strong business reputation and creating an environment of trusts among the stakeholders. (Khatri & Shrama, 2011). The objective of this essay is to examine how the notion of business ethics is important for management, work and organisations.
376 Ethical Topics & Questions for Research Papers, Essays, Debates
Here is a list of ethical environmental topics for research: Ethical responsibility for climate change for future generations. Sea dumping: legal and ethical issues. The role of environmental justice in urban planning. Ethical considerations in the use and disposal of plastics.
What Are Business Ethics & Their Importance?
Business ethics are principles that guide decision-making. As a leader, you'll face many challenges in the workplace because of different interpretations of what's ethical. Situations often require navigating the "gray area," where it's unclear what's right and wrong. When making decisions, your experiences, opinions, and perspectives ...
Business Ethics
Business Ethics is designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of the single-semester business ethics course. This title includes innovative features designed to enhance student learning, including case studies, application scenarios, and links to video interviews with executives, all of which help instill in students a sense of ethical awareness and responsibility.
30 Business Management Dissertation Topics
Business Ethics Dissertation Topics . The field of business ethics entails establishing the moral rules that govern an organisation's conduct or administration. Business Psychology Dissertation Topics . Business psychology improves job satisfaction and motivates employees to perform better. In simple terms, it is the study of how people and ...
Business Ethics Thesis Topics
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