Ethics Learning Changmai Corporation the

Ethics Learning Changmai Corporation The in-class discussion regarding the corruption in the Chagmai Corportion case was very revealing regarding the ways in which different people from different backgrounds view not only the issues of corruption at the heart of the case, but also how they perceive other individual's perceptions on these issues.

It was somewhat startling to here from some members of the class that this behavior was considered standard or normative where they were from, and the degree o personal resistance but general acceptance that they seemed to have towards this corruption.

Branka's belief that opening a country to trade would automatically lead to an adjustment of values that would then limit the corrupt practices that have become so entrenched in certain developing nations struck me as especially naive, but at the same time it had major implications for individuals such as myself that come from more "developed" countries with longer histories of codified rules and practices.

Essentially, the misunderstandings that occur in the developing world regarding the supposed lack of corruption in the developed world is the fault of the media produced by developed countries; we attempt to whitewash the goings-on in our businesses and politics to the point that many in class seemed to believe that this type of corruption simply couldn't take place in their own countries.

In my own native France, I am well aware that there are large amounts of corruption likely taking place behind closed doors, and am not naive enough to think that money has no effect in politics or that all business practices are entirely above-board. I find it hard to believe that other individuals truly feel that their own countries are free from the dangers of such corruption, but from the class discussions this actually seems likely.

In order to truly put an end to corruption -- or rather, to put truly strict limits on corruption, though it will almost certainly never be fully eradicated -- people need to be honest with themselves regarding the corruption and potential corruption they perceive.

It is through secrecy and the aura of disbelief that corrupt practices are able to continue, and neither the simple acceptance nor the nonchalant denials of corruption that were exhibited as the primary strains of thought during the discussion promise to truly bring issues of corruption to light. There must be a full honesty and openness regarding corruption if it is actually to be ended, and this is something that cannot happen when people refuse to recognize what occurs in the world around them.

Giving Voice to Values The class discussion on giving voice to values touched on many different topics of great interest, not the least of which were the many different systems of values that exist.

I have always found myself caught between ethical theories that emphasize intentions and those that emphasize effects, and I truly feel that different situations call for different understandings of right and wrong -- some situations might be best determined by a consideration of intentions, while others must be judged on the ultimate effects of a given action or set of actions. Determining which situation deserves which application of ethics is obviously highly subjective, and this was definitely highlighted in the class discussion.

A large number of individual and cultural values were brought up that point out different features of specific cases or derive differing interpretations from an agreed upon set of circumstances to a degree that I found surprising. As a French native and a member of the Western world that has largely created and maintained the value system in international business for several centuries, the reminder that other value systems and ethical emphases exists in varying cultures is highly valuable.

It is easy to dismiss certain actions or conclusions as unethical when one does not consider the true source of these actions and conclusions, but a truly multicultural perspective must necessarily examine the underlying values of any action or decision before.