Ethics Education Intervention Protocol Guidelines
Business content course instructors can successfully integrate ethical reasoning components into
their courses without sacrificing course content and without special instructor training in ethical
theory if the following techniques materials are used:

The most frequently used theories in Western ethics should be taught, i.e. deontology:
ethics as duty, the teleological or utilitarian approach, personal virtue theory, and
conventional moral rules and law. These theories are discussed in the furnished article,
“Ethical Reasoning for the Business Classroom: A Decision-Making Framework”
(Wilhelm, 2006a).

Students should complete assigned readings that present the above theories clearly and
concisely. The readings should also introduce a step-by-step ethical decision-making
framework that is logical, concise, and utilizes the evaluative components from the
ethical theories. This step-by-step discussion should provide a case dilemma that models
the use of the decision-making framework. The article “Ethical Reasoning for the
Business Classroom: A Decision-Making Framework Sample Case” (Wilhelm, 2006b)
provides such an explanation.

After students have completed the assigned readings, the ethical theories and decisionmaking framework should be further explained by the instructor in one or two class
sessions using lecture and modeling (with sample case) to clarify the ethical theories and
explicating proper use of the decision-making framework. Class discussion during and
after the lecture will help ensure student understanding. The PowerPoint lecture provided
in this research supports the instructor in presenting this lecture to further explain the
theories and model the decision-making framework.

Several case studies (more than two but less than six) containing robust ethical dilemmas
(versus simple right-wrong choices) related to the course content should be assigned for
students to analyze using the ethical decision-making framework. Small groups (three to
four students per group) versus larger groups were found to be helpful to students in
discussing the nuances of the cases and working through the steps in the decision-making
framework. Instructor facilitation is especially important during the initial group case
analysis. Use of the handout, “Ethical Decision-Making Steps,” during each case analysis
is helpful to keep students focused. Individual written reflective analysis is better for
developing the critical thinking skills in ethical reflective reasoning than group discussion
only.

While introduction of the ethical components described above into a course may take
only one or two class sessions, time for students to reflect upon the ethical concepts and
apply them to cases containing ethical dilemmas should extend throughout the semester
as much as possible. Students should be provided several opportunities to employ the
decision-making framework and to reflect upon their decision justifications. In other
words, the ethical reasoning component of the course should not be integrated as a
distinct “silo” in the course. Rather, ethical reasoning should be considered as an integral
part of all case analyses in the course, and should be undertaken whenever an ethical
dilemma is perceived to be present in a given situation.

Grades must be part of the strategy to integrate instruction in ethical reasoning into nonethics content courses. Grade-related assessments of students’ reflective justifications in
their written case analyses should be conducted. Additionally, a grade-related assessment
in the form of a test or quiz over the assigned readings and lecture about the ethical
concepts taught should be completed shortly after these components have been
introduced. The quiz provided for this research should not be appreciably abbreviated.
Further, grading for student written reflective analyses should be based on the breadth
and depth of analysis using the framework to justify a recommended course of action
versus the actual course of action chosen. Appropriate errors in logic and reasoning – as
well as creative solutions to ethical dilemmas – should also be pointed out when detected.
Total point values for the ethical component of the course should be of sufficient size so
as to ensure that students consider the ethical reasoning component to be a significant and
integral part of the course.

For the purposes of effectively analyzing this phase in the research, I will be asking you
for a detailed summary of the ways in which you utilized the instructional materials in
your course in return for the cash stipend that I will pay you. If you establish a routine of
journaling your methodology and reflections from the outset of the course, preparation of
the summarization at the completion of the course will be easily undertaken.
As demonstrated in the findings from previous iterations of this research (see “Integrating
Instruction in Ethical Reasoning into Undergraduate Business Courses,” Journal of Business
Ethics Education, Wilhelm, 2008) while professors need not be specialists in ethics in order to
elicit positive changes in levels of student moral reasoning in the business classroom, they must
dedicate considerable effort and attention to case analyses employing an ethical decision-making
framework.
References
Wilhelm, W. J. (2006a). Ethical reasoning for the business classroom: A decision-making
framework, Journal of Applied Research for Business Education, 4(2), pp. 1-7.
Wilhelm, W. J. (2006b). Ethical reasoning for the business classroom: A decision-making
framework sample case, Journal of Applied Research for Business Education, 4(3), pp. 16.
Wilhelm, W. J. (2008). Integrating instruction in ethical reasoning into undergraduate business
courses, Journal of Business Ethics Education, 5, 1-30.
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