Deck 4: Diversity, Discrimination and Harassment in the Workplace

Question 1

As highlighted by Sterba, affirmative-action is less appropriate in the workplace for Hispanics who hold a comparable percentage of management positions as white males.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

In "Sexual Harassment and Solidarity" Larry May argues that the central moral wrong that is committed in cases of sexual harassment is the displeasure it creates in violation of the utilitarian greatest happiness principle.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Under the Intimidation Model, Larry May suggests sexual harassment is embodied by the transgressor being in a more powerful position than the victim.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Under Larry May's characterization, a group of men posting inappropriate pictures of women in a work break room would never fit the definition of a "hostile work environment".

Question 5

According to Beauchamp, diversity in the workplace can be associated with positive work outcomes.

Question 6

In "Sexual Harassment and Solidarity" Larry May specifies that in order for a claim of sexual harassment to be taken seriously the event must have affected the employee's psychological well-being and must have detracted from the employee's job performance.

Question 7

According to James P. Sterba in "A Defense of Diversity Affirmative Action" what is/are the potential goal(s)of affirmative action programs a. To put an end to existing discriminatory practices b. To compensate for past discrimination and its effects c. To promote diversity in pursuit of its educational benefits and its ability to create a more effective workforce d. All of the above

Question 8

Which of these statements regarding corporate affirmative action policies would Tom L. Beauchamp most agree with in "Affirmative Action Goals in Hiring and Promotion" a. Corporate affirmative action policies should be voluntary since it is outside the scope of government control to dictate hiring policies by corporations outside of clearly egregious cases of discrimination. b. There is reason to believe that corporate affirmative action policies may be in line with best hiring strategies since there is evidence to suggest hidden or unconscious discrimination may prevent companies from hiring the best candidates. c. The government should dictate corporate affirmative action policies for all corporations employing more than a certain number of employees to ensure fairness. d. Discrimination plays such a minor role in corporate hiring that corporate affirmative action policies are no longer required.

Question 9

As stated by Sterba, affirmative action is unnecessary since we live in a color and gender-blind society.

Question 10

In "A defense of Diversity Affirmative Action", Sterba highlighted a number of U.S. Supreme Court cases that support affirmative action processes in one way or another.

Question 11

As highlighted by Beauchamp, persons or groups can be guilty of discrimination through acts of thoughtlessness and indifference.

Question 12

In their conclusion Jaimie Leeser and William O'Donohue in "Normative Issues in Defining Sexual Harassment", contend that it is a violation of which of these moral principles that underlies the moral wrong involved in sexual harassment a. A violation of the utilitarian greatest happiness principle b. A violation of the principle of justice as fairness c. A violation of Kant's second formulation of the Categorical Imperative, the principle of respect for persons d. All of the above

Question 13

In "Normative Issues in Defining Sexual Harassment" by Jaimie Leeser and William O'Donohue, it is the coercive violation of individual autonomy that is the central moral objection against "quid pro quo" sexual harassment.

Question 14

Beauchamp, in "Affirmative Action Goals in Hiring and Promotion", mentions that empirical studies have reported diversity in the workforce being correlated with which of the following: a. Customer satisfaction (positive correlation) b. Higher-quality employees (positive correlation) c. Less turnover (negative correlation) d. All of the above

Question 15

As highlighted by Sterba, American-born white males make up 41% of the U.S. population and make up a similar percentage of all management positions in the U.S.

Question 16

In "Sexual Harassment and Solidarity" Larry May argues that sexual discrimination is wrong on which of these accounts a. Women are degraded b. Women are treated unfairly c. Women are denied a certain amount of autonomy over their lives d. All of the above

Question 17

In "Affirmative Action Goals in Hiring and Promotion" Tom L. Beauchamp believes that preferential selection policies need to be permanently instantiated in order to compensate for past injustices.

Question 18

In "Diversity", George Sher argues that forward-looking justifications of affirmative action avoid the difficulties inherent in backward-looking justifications which believe that affirmative action is justified as retribution for past injustices.

Question 19

Affirmative Action policies can legally only apply to racial and ethnic minorities.

Question 20

In "Diversity", Sher argues that under a justice model of diversity, a lack of racial, sexual, and ethnic diversity is problematic because it shows that opportunities remain unequal.

Question 21

Illegal discrimination occurs whenever one group is arbitrarily and adversely treated differently from another.

Question 22

In "A Defense of Diversity Affirmative Action", James Sterba argues that preferential treatment of minority groups is justified through appeal to both the goal of diversity in education and the goal of remedying the effects of societal discrimination, a constitutionally permissible appeal. Do you believe that rectifying past injustices is an appropriate goal of government legislation. Why or why not

Question 23

Freedom of speech and expression are fundamental human rights that are protected under the U.S. constitution. Commonly, defenses of these rights are grounded in appeals to autonomy (in order to act autonomously we must have the freedom to express ourselves). Thus, restrictions on our freedom of expression correlate to restrictions on our autonomy. However, several authors in this chapter recognize that sexual harassment can have a detrimental effect on autonomy. On the surface there seems to be a tension between appeals to autonomy in defense of freedom of speech and expression and appeals to autonomy in order to justify restrictions on freedom of speech and expression which may result in sexual harassment. Do you believe that there is a conflict between these two positions. Evaluate the feasibility of balancing such a tension.

Question 24

Leeser and O'Donohue specify that the Kantian perspective necessitates a certain level of respect for all people that disallows treatment of humans as simply a means to an end.

Question 25

According to Leeser and O'Donohue, the feminist conception of sexual harassment is incomplete as a woman in a position of power could not sexually harass a man in a lesser position because this does not harm the group of men.

Question 26

In contemplating sexual harassment as an abuse of power, the moral abuse that occurs is coercion of a person with lesser power.

Question 27

None of the justifications by Leeser and O'Donohue are adequate to include discrimination of a person on religious grounds.

Question 28

According to Beauchamp, many corporations have replaced "Affirmative action" with what phrase/word

Question 29

In your own words, define affirmative according to Beauchamp in "Affirmative Action and Diversity Goals in Hiring and Promotion".

Question 30

Which ethical theory seems to most centrally play a role in May's objections to sexual harassment. Does an examination of this ethical theory shed any light on the moral wrongdoing committed by sexual harassment

Question 31

This chapter has several articles which argue either for or against affirmative action. Choose at least one article on each side of the debate. First, provide the best possible defense you can for one side of the debate. Second, provide the best possible defense you can for the other side of the debate. Finally, state your own position. Which side do you believe has the strongest arguments. Feel free to expand beyond the arguments made in the articles you have chosen.

Question 32

According to Sher in "Diversity", what is one of the problems surrounding justification for affirmative action based upon rectification for past harms

Question 33

Using the articles in the chapter discussing sexual harassment what do you believe to be the primary moral wrong committed by sexual harassment. Do you believe that there is a single moral wrong that undergirds sexual harassment or are there several. Be sure to defend your interpretation of the moral foundations of objections against sexual harassment against other interpretations.

Question 34

Give an example of a hostile or abusive work environment as described by Larry May in "Sexual Harassment and Solidarity".

Question 35

Beauchamp himself implicitly recognizes the moral wrongs in preferential policies surrounding affirmative action. As a result, the argument being made is that practices of preferential treatment are often the lesser of two evils in the pursuit of the goals of affirmative action. How does Beauchamp imply that the goals of affirmative action are sufficient to justify the potential harms caused by employing preferential practices.What are the moral foundations that are used to defend and justify preferential treatment for disadvantaged groups as a part of affirmative action policies