JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
FALL 2009
COURSE SYLLABUS:
Business Ethics, 660.231.01
TIME & PLACE:
Tuesday, 6:15 p.m. - 8:50 p.m.
Whitehead 304 (subject to change)
INSTRUCTOR:
Douglas S. Sandhaus, Esquire
PO Box 3600
Baltimore, MD 21214
410-370-1525 (fax) 443-836-0341
Nightjar02@aol.com
Office Hours: 30 minutes before class and 30 minutes after class
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is designed as a workshop to introduce students to the ethical concepts that
are relevant to resolve moral issues in contemporary business and social settings; global and
local, as well as general and personal in nature. Students will learn the reasoning and analytical
skills needed to apply ethical concepts to their own decision-making, to identify moral issues
involved in the management of specific problem areas in business and society and to understand
the social and natural environments within which moral issues arise. The course focus is on
performance articulated by clear reasoning and effective verbal and written communication
concerning ethical issues in business and society.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
1.
To examine those moral doctrines and ethical theories that have most influenced the
values and morals of Western Culture.
2.
To examine our own sources of values and morality.
3.
To develop an objective and responsible decision-making process in our moral thinking.
4.
To work with others to try to find solutions to moral problems by expressing your own
moral point of view and by listening to the moral points of view of others openly and
fairly.
Required Text:
Business Ethics, 6th Edition, William H. Shaw; Wadsworth (2008)
ADDITIONAL EXTREMELY USEFUL TEXT: Nickel and Dimed, Barbara Ehrenreich,
Metropolitan Books (2001)
NOTE WELL:
Detailed information about team projects and case studies will be provided in class. Any
changes or additions to the Course Outline will be announced well in advance. It is the student’s
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responsibility to obtain this information if class is missed.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Complete all required textbook and case readings prior to class.
Successfully complete midterm examinations.
Successfully complete team project.
Successfully complete written case analysis for each problem or case assigned from text.
Actively participate in class discussions of assigned subject materials and case analysis.
This is an ESSENTIAL part of the successful completion of the course. Each student
must be prepared to take an active role in class.
ATTENDANCE IS MANDATORY. PLEASE BE PUNCTUAL FOR CLASS.
Many concepts, basic to this course, will be introduced in class or emerge from our
discussions. Frequent absences and/or tardiness will make it difficult for any student to do well.
A pattern of absenteeism and/or tardiness will be reflected in a student’s class participation grade
and final course grade.
WORK SUBMITTED LATE WILL BE DOWNGRADED
The structure of this course is such that late submission of papers causes serious problems
for the instructor and the student. For this reason, all late work will be penalized; the later the
submission, the greater the penalty. Only in the event of a genuine emergency, documented fully
by the student, will the instructor, in his complete discretion, make an exception.
Grading:
Midterm Examination
Case Analysis
Participation
Attendance
Team Project-A) verbal
B) written
Grading Standards:
93-100
Superior
90-92
Excellent
87-89
Commendable
84-86
Good
80-83
Conscientious
77-79
Satisfactory
A
AB+
B
BC+
10 + 10%
32%
10
13%
10% (individual grade)
15% (group grade)
= 100%
73-76
70-72
67-69
63-66
60-62
00-59
Average
Mediocre
Poor
Very Poor
Most Poor
Unacceptable
C
CD+
D
DF
HONOR CODE:
Students are on their own honor to neither give nor receive unauthorized aid in the
completion of assignments. This means that each student MUST acknowledge reliance on
outside sources, with appropriate documentation. This also means that each student is expected
to do his or her own work. Plagiarism consists of using another person’s ideas or expressions in
one’s own writing without acknowledging the source.
Instances of suspected academic dishonesty will be reported to the program director and
will result in the student receiving a failing grade for the course.
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COURSE OUTLINE
September
October
November
December
8
Introduction
Syllabus Review
Case Study: Sarah Goodwin
15
Chapter 1: The Nature of Morality
Chapter 2: Normative Theories of Ethics
22
Chapter 3: Justice and Economic Distribution
29
Chapter 4: The Nature of Capitalism
OUTLINE DUE
6
Chapter 5: Corporations
FIRST MIDTERM EXAMINATION DISTRIBUTED
13
Chapter 6: The Workplace: Basic Issues
FIRST MIDTERM EXAMINATION DUE
20
Chapter 7: The Workplace: Today’s Challenges
27
Chapter 8: Moral Choices Facing Employees
3
Chapter 9: Job Discrimination
SECOND MIDTERM EXAMINATION DISTRIBUTED
NICKEL AND DIMED
10
Chapter 9: and Chapter 10: Consumers
SECOND MIDTERM EXAMINATION DUE
17
Chapter 10: Consumers
24
Chapter 11: The Environment
1
Chapter 11: The Environment
15
Team Projects – Final Exam period
CASE STUDIES: DUE DATES
(Only last 8 count toward grade)
September
15
Case 2.2 Ford’s Pinto
22
Choose One: Case 3.1 OR Parable of Sadhu
29
Choose One: Case 4.1 or 4.4
October
6
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Choose One: Case 5.2 or 5.4
November
December
13
Choose One: Case 6.1, 6.2 or 6.3
20
Choose One: Case 7.1-7.4
27
Choose One: Case 8.2 or 8.3
3
Choose One: Case 9.1 - 9.4
17
Choose One: Case 10.1 - 10.4
1
Choose One: Case 11.1 or 11.3
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CASE STUDY WRITE-UPS
Your Name
Case Study Number/Name
Opening statement - summarize the issue in one or two sentences. Do not perform any
analysis or statement of opinion in this section.
Economic dilemmas
Legal dilemmas
Social dilemmas
Opinion - I believe/ think/ feel because . . . Make sure in your opinion section that you
demonstrate that you have critically analyzed the case study. “As Shaw states on page . . . . “,
“Chapter Concept” is “Concept Definition”. “This term is applicable to the case study . . . “ etc.
NOTE: The responses should be 1 page, double spaced, 12 point Times New Roman
font. Make sure you do NOT summarize the case studies. I have read them and do not need to
be reminded what each case study was about. In your opinion section be sure to demonstrate that
you have critically thought about the case study in some way. Be sure to demonstrate that you
have read the chapter and are able to apply it to the case study.
Proofread you paper – grammar and spelling counts! (1-2 errors is tolerable, but more
than 2 will cost you points.)
The sentence: “This term is applicable to the case study” is not acceptable. You need to
say how and why it is applicable. Do not start you paragraphs with: “There were
economic/legal/social dilemmas in this case”. I already know that. You have too little space to
be writing useless sentences.
In each paragraph for economic, legal, social, respectively, you must include AT LEAST
2 or 3 different dilemmas. You should try to think beyond the obvious.
These papers are not difficult, but they do require you to follow the directions. Be
concise. Ask for help if you need it.
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