Are We Experiencing an Ethics Bubble?

Verschoor, C. (2010). Are we experiencing an ethics bubble?. Strategic Finance, 91(7), 10-13. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database. Persistent link to this record (Permalink): http://waterfield.murraystate.edu.ezproxy.waterfield.murraystate.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=buh&AN=47266074&loginpage=Login.asp&site=ehost-live

This article reports the results of the 2009 National Business Ethics Survey (NBES), which was conducted by Washington-based Ethics Resource Center (ERC). The study was titled Ethics in a Recession and showed that ethical behavior improved during the recent recessionary times as compared to a pre-recession study done in 2007. Although there were fewer instances of misconduct observed in the 2009 study, the survey showed that there were a higher percentage of the observed instances of misconduct reported to management. Also important for managers to know is that there is a strong association between rising awareness in ethics and a strong ethical culture within a firm. Additionally, when employees felt there was a decline in the ethical culture of the firm, there is an increased likelihood of misconduct from the employees. This study can be very beneficial to managers because it shows that as the current economy continues to improve, the likelihood of ethical misconduct may increase and that it is important to have a strong ethics and compliance policy in place and that these policies and well promulgated and understood by the firm’s employees.