Exam 1: Ethical Theory, Philosophical Foundations, Our Reasoning Flaws, and Types of Ethical Dilemmas

Under the Rights Theory, who holds the responsibility for protection of rights?

A physician conducting a study on a new prescription drug manufactured by a firm in which he is a 10% shareholder does not have a conflict of interest so long as his stock ownership is disclosed in his report on the drug.

Explain what ethics is. Give a definition here.

Paul Babcock gave the following advice to Standard Oil Company executives who were going to testify before Congress about the business practices of Standard Oil, "Parry every question with answers which, while perfectly truthful, are evasive of bottom facts." Apply ethical analysis to the advice and the statement.

It is plagiarism to rewrite the phrasing of another source and not use quotes or a footnote.

One of the questions in the Laura Nash model is whether the proposed conduct is legal.

Megyn Kelly, a Fox News Anchor, is interviewing a physician about the impact of Obamacare. The physician is a partner with Ms. Kelly's ex-husband.

The element of balance in the Blanchard/Peale ethical model requires an examination of the issue from the perspective of the affected party.

Dr. Phil Hayes has received an offer of full funding for his research on a new drug manufactured by Eli Mentin. The drug would be a competitor for Prozac without the questioned side-effects of possible violent behavior. Eli Mentin has, however, attached a condition to the funding. That condition is that Dr. Hayes may not publish his findings until Eli Mentin executives and its attorneys have had the opportunity to review them. List the ethical issues Dr. Hayes faces with this offer.

A real estate agent who recommends a management firm to an apartment complex buyer without disclosing that the agent owns 50% of the firm has committed an ethical violation.

Violation of company rules is not considered an ethical violation.

Matt Walsh, a golf pro from Hawaii, was a video operator for the New England Patriots from 1999-2002. Walsh says that he taped the Patriots' opponents' signals, information that he says was then used by the Patriots when they next met that team. If you know the signals, then you know what defense has planned. Offense is then a tad easier. Some quotes emerged from the situation: From Patriots' coach, Bill Belichick,   "I misinterpreted the rules." From Jacksonville Coach Jack Del Rio on the videotaping, " I think all teams do that. That's been going on forever." From Matt Walsh, "I had always been a big Patriots fan. I wasn't going to question what they wanted me to do." From Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter, "If you can cheat in the NFL, you can cheat in college, you can cheat in high school, you can cheat on your grade-school math test. There's no limit as to what you can do. I think they owe the public a lot more candor and a lot more credibility." What rationalization is the Jacksonville coach applying?

Giving preferential treatment in contract bidding to the daughter of a member of the company board is not a conflict of interest.

Which of the following categories does fraternity hazing fit into?

"It's a gray area," is an example of ethical analysis.

A professor for one of your courses has assigned reading materials from various publications. He tells you that the materials are on reserve and that each student should go and copy the materials individually. He notes that for him to copy the materials for students and then sell them or distribute them would be a violation of copyright law. The professor's conduct:

If I discover that a fellow employee is reporting falsely his overtime hours, it is best for me to say nothing and ignore the situation.

The UCLA Medical Center is facing sanctions from California's Department of Health because several of its employees viewed records of famous patients, patients with whom the employees had no contact or care responsibilities. The employees viewed the records of, among others, Maria Shriver (wife of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger), the late Farrah Fawcett, and Britney Spears. The unauthorized access to the records was uncovered when the story of the late Ms. Fawcett's recurrence of cancer was published in The National Enquirer before Ms. Fawcett had disclosed her health condition to family or friends. Ms. Fawcett's lawyers then notified the hospital of the only possible source of the information. Which category of an ethical breach applies to the conduct of the hospital employees?

What reason did Jimmy Dunne III of Sandler O'Neill give for dedicating his time and resources to helping the families of his employees who were killed in the World Trade Center attacks?

The city advertised in banners at the airport, "Pay for your parking in the convenient adjacent garage in advance and get a 40% discount." The rate per day is $25 for 24 hours. If you pay at the exit gate, you are charged $2.00 per hour, but charged the daily rate once you go over 12 hours. If you sign up for prepaid parking, you are charged for each day your car is in the garage; there is no hourly prorate. For example, if you parked in the garage from April 18 beginning at 8 PM until April 20 at 1:00 AM, you would be charged $35 at the gate. If you prepaid, you would be charged $45 (3 X $25 X .60). Many travelers signed up and paid for their parking in advance, believing it was cheaper. Unless they were aware of the hourly rate available at the parking exit, they would not understand the pricing differential. Which of the following categories applies to this situation?