Deck 8: Conflicts of Interest: When Is It Permissible to Influence the Actions of Others

Question 1

When does a gift become a bribe? Explain.

Answer 1

No Answer.

Question 2

Must a virtue ethicist always avoids conflicts of interests? Explain.

Answer 2

No Answer.

Question 3

Is it morally wrong to make extortion payments in foreign countries in which such payments are very common? Explain.

Answer 3

No Answer.

Question 4

"When in Rome do as the Romans do." Discuss!

Question 5

Does the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act square well with our considered moral intuitions? Explain.

Question 6

A prosecutor attempting to prove a public official is guilty of bribery must show which of the following about the acceptance of a gift or money?

A) The acceptance of the gift by the public official created a conflict of interest between his or her public duties and the interest of the donor.
B) The gift was not officially reported.
C) There is a direct connection between the giving of the bribe and some specific past or future action by the official.
D) The voting record of the official aligns with the political views of the one giving the money.

Question 7

Why might it be unethical for a public official to accept a gift of a discounted trip to Paris from a company that his agency regulates?

A) A reasonable person would conclude that there had been a quid pro quo.
B) It is wrong to enjoy luxurious vacations.
C) No one could go on such a trip and not be permanently biased in favor of the giver.
D) A neutral observer could reasonably doubt that the official's treatment of all airlines is fair and without preference.

Question 8

Which of the following is one condition the NSPE holds for acting as a faithful trustee or agent?

A) Engineers shall not accept compensation, financial or otherwise, from more than one party for services on the same project.
B) Engineers shall never accept gifts of any kind, even of a value less than $20 from an interested party.
C) Engineers shall disclose all known or potential conflicts of interest that could influence or appear to influence their judgment or quality of services.
D) Engineers shall not solicit or accept financial or other valuable consideration from other engineers.

Question 9

A manager assessing the work performance of her spouse would be

A) an apparent conflict of interest.
B) a potential conflict of interest.
C) an actual conflict of interest.
D) not a conflict of interest.

Question 10

When a conflict of interest arises, an engineer must

A) trust his or her conscience.
B) make a cost-benefit analysis.
C) disclose and resolve it.
D) None of the above

Question 11

Why might rule utilitarians have difficulty justifying Schindler's embracing of a conflict of interest to save Jews?

A) Rule utilitarians justify policies according to consequences of general obedience, not consequences specific to situation.
B) It is not clear which moral rule is the most salient in this situation.
C) Extraordinary situations cannot be captured by rules.
D) None of the above

Question 12

Kantians might determine that conflicts of interests are to be avoided by recognizing that

A) there is a contradiction in conception when we try to universalize the maxim that embraces conflicts of interest.
B) there is a contradiction between the purpose of engineering contracts and accepting conflicts of interest.
C) we could never will a world where people consistently and universally embraced conflicts of interest.
D) None of the above

Question 13

A virtue ethicist might determine conflicts of interest are to be avoided by considering all the following virtues except

A) fidelity.
B) justice.
C) prudence.
D) generosity.

Question 14

How does the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act distinguishes between bribes and extortion payments?

A) Both bribes and extortion payments are fine so long as they are legal in the foreign country.
B) Both bribes and extortion payments are illegal in a foreign country so long as they would be illegal by American law.
C) While both are illegal even if legal in the foreign country, bribes are a felony and extortion payments are not.
D) Paying for access to business is a bribe and illegal; paying to avoid loss of something one has a prior right to is an extortion payment and not illegal.

Question 15

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) makes it unlawful for US citizens (and certain other groups of legal entities) to make payments to foreign officials to assist in obtaining or retaining business

A) if such payments are illegal in the country in which they are made.
B) if such payments are illegal in the country in which they are made, and they violate the NSPE Code of Ethics.
C) irrespective of whether such payments are illegal in the country in which they are made.
D) irrespective of whether such payments are illegal in the country in which they are made, but only if they violate the NSPE Code of Ethics.

Question 16

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) makes it unlawful for US citizens (and certain other groups of legal entities) to

A) bribe foreign government officials, but grease payments are sometimes permissible.
B) bribe foreign government officials, but extortion payments are sometimes permissible.
C) make grease payments to foreign government officials, but extortion payments are sometimes permissible.
D) make extortion payments to foreign government officials, but grease payments are sometimes permissible.

Question 17

TeliaSonera claims that when it acquired a small Gibraltar-based company for the purpose of gaining access to telecom licenses in Uzbekistan, it did nothing wrong. What about the company might indicate corruption?

A) The company had no employees or assets or holdings other than it held the licenses to phone frequencies in Uzbekistan.
B) The company was owned by Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of Uzbekistan's ruler.
C) A US company that had declined business dealings with Karimova found its frequency jammed by the Uzbek government.
D) All of the above

Question 18

Does the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act permit a US citizen to bribe foreign officials in country X, if doing so in legal in country X?

A) Yes, if the bribe is worth less than $1000.
B) Yes, if the bribe is reported to the IRS.
C) No, never.
D) No, to pay bribes is illegal, although it is sometimes permitted to pay "grease money" to a foreign official if that helps one to obtain something to which one is entitled.

Question 19

One of the acceptable "customs" in Country X is for consultants to give substantial gifts to public officials in connection with the awarding of public works contracts. Engineer A recognizes that the giving of such gifts may be a violation of US law, although they may not technically be a violation of the law in Country A.

A) Engineer A does not violate any US law by giving the gift, because country X is outside US jurisdiction.
B) The Foreign Corrupt Practices Acts is applicable to this case, but as long as the value of the gift is declared to the IRS it is legal to give the gift.
C) The Foreign Corrupt Practices Acts is applicable to this case: It would not be legal for Engineer A to give the gift.
D) The Foreign Corrupt Practices Acts is applicable to this case: it is legal for Engineer A to give the gift only if it is distributed via a non-US courier.

Question 20

Alice and Bob are utilitarian engineers working in the oil and gas industry in Houston. They are currently seeking permission to drill for gas in Siberia, Russia. The only way to obtain all the required permissions, to which they are not entitled, is to bribe the Mayor of Krasnovgorod. Would it be ethically and legally permissible to do so?

A) While it would certainly be illegal to bribe foreign government officials, this might still be the morally right thing to do, if the total consequences for everyone concerned would be optimal.
B) It would certainly be illegal to bribe foreign government officials, and according to all versions of the utilitarian theory, this would also be morally wrong.
C) The legal status of this act is unclear, but it would certainly be morally right to pay the bribe.
D) None of the above (All answers are incorrect.)

Question 21

What is the difference between bribery and extortion?

A) Extortion refers to payments made in exchange for something one is not entitled to; a bribe is a payment made to obtain something one is entitled to.
B) A bribe is a payment made in exchange for something one is not entitled to; extortion refers to payments made to obtain something one is entitled to.
C) While some types of bribes are legally permitted under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, extortion is always prohibited.
D) There is no difference between bribery and extortion.

Question 22

Which of the following gives the FCPA jurisdiction over a bribe paid in a foreign country?

A) An agreement exists with the foreign country.
B) The bribe must have been paid by a US citizen.
C) The transaction was wired through US banks.
D) None of the above

Question 23

Oskar Schindler's behavior toward his client illustrates

A) that what often are taken to be universal rules may be subject to exceptions.
B) that duty always requires disclosing conflicts of interest.
C) the failure of utilitarian accounts.
D) the necessity of the FCPA.

Question 24

Acceptance of the right for a client to be informed about a conflict of interest on grounds that this rule leads to optimal consequences over time is consistent with

A) rule utilitarianism.
B) social constructivism.
C) consequentialism.
D) All of the above

Question 25

How can the TeliaSonera case can be used to criticize the FCPA?

A) The jurisdiction is too large because the agent committing the crime need only have a minor connection to the United States.
B) It amounts to the United States imposing corruption laws on the world.
C) The fines paid are not paid to the true victims but to the United States.
D) All of the above