The Moral Metacognition Scale: Development and Validation

Scholars have advocated for the inclusion of metacognition (i.e., the extent to which one thinks about one’s thinking) in our understanding of the ethical decision making process and in support of moral learning. An instrument to measure metacognition as a domain-specific capacity related to ethical decision making (i.e. moral metacognition) is not found in the current literature. This research describes the development and validation of the 20-item Moral Metacognition Scale (MMS). Psychometric properties of the scale were assessed by exploration (Study 1) and confirmation (Study 2) of the factor structure, and the demonstration of convergent (Studies 3 and 4), discriminant (Studies 3 and 4), and predictive (Study 4) validity. Moral metacognition, as measured by the MMS, was significantly correlated with ethical awareness and ethical judgment. Limitations of our research, suggestions for future exploration, and practical implications are discussed.     

An Examination of the Effects of Sport Involvement on Ethical Judgments in Sport and Business

Popular press headlines frequently reveal unethical or illegal activity in business and sports. Given these parallel ethical lapses in business and sport, our study examines potential relationships between student sport involvement (active and passive) and ethical judgments regarding issues in sport and business. Our results, based on a sample of 202 undergraduates in an upper-division management class, indicate a significant negative relationship between high passive sport involvement and ethical judgments about sport issues as well as a consistent significant positive relationship between female gender and ethical judgments about sport and business issues.     

Recovered Memories of Abuse Among Therapy Patients: A National Survey

This research explored the ethical decision-making process of civilians in response to real-world military dilemmas. Results revealed the complexity of these dilemmas, with about equal proportions of civilians choosing each of two response options. The moral intensity dimension of social consensus significantly predicted moral judgment in both dilemmas, whereas that of magnitude of consequences did so in only one dilemma, partially supporting our hypothesis. Both dimensions were significant predictors of moral intent in both dilemmas as was moral judgment, also supporting our hypotheses. We conclude with suggestions for future research questions in this compelling area.     

Moral Stress in International Humanitarian Aid and Rescue Operations: A Grounded Theory Study

Humanitarian aid professionals frequently encounter situations in which one is conscious of the morally appropriate action but cannot take it because of institutional obstacles. Dilemmas like this are likely to result in a specific kind of stress reaction at the individual level, labeled as moral stress. In our study, 16 individuals working with international humanitarian aid and rescue operations participated in semistructured interviews, analyzed in accordance with a grounded theory approach. A theoretical model of ethical decision making from a moral stress perspective was developed. The practical implications of the study are discussed.     

A Qualitative Analysis of Power Differentials in Ethical Situations in Academia

Power and organizational hierarchies are ubiquitous to social institutions that form the foundation of modern society. Power differentials may act to constrain or enhance people’s ability to make good ethical decisions. However, little scholarly work has examined perceptions of this important topic. The present effort seeks to address this issue by interviewing academics about hypothetical ethical problems that involve power differences among those involved. Academics discussed what they would do in these scenarios, often drawing on their own experiences. Using a think-aloud protocol, participants were prompted to discuss their reasoning and thinking behind their ethical decisions. These interview data were content analyzed using a semantic analysis program that identified a number of distinct ways that academics think about power differences and abuses in ethical situations. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

Teaching Ethical Decision Making: Designing a Personal Value Portrait to Ignite Creativity and Promote Personal Engagement in Case Method Analysis

The case method approach to introducing ethical issues is a traditional tool for applying critical thinking skills to a specific dilemma (Beauchamp &; Childress, 2001 Beauchamp, T. L. and Childress, J. F. 2001. Principles of biomedical ethics, 5th, New York: Oxford University Press.  [Google Scholar]). It allows for personal reflection and clarification of an individual's conceptual framework for deciding what is and is not ethical behavior. However, it also affords the student distance from the story line and may, through providing a retrospective critique, prevent sufficient challenge to the student to articulate and defend personal value assessments in addressing the ethical dynamics reflected in the case. Providing teaching exercises that encourage the creation of language to form that conceptual framework and a comfort in using that language allows the student to not only identify ethical issues but also recognize and more effectively communicate the struggles with molding a personal values portrait to apply to such cases.     

Mapping Ethical Consumer Behavior: Integrating the Empirical Research and Identifying Future Directions

The concept of “ethical consumer behavior” has gained significant attention among practitioners and academic researchers, generating increasing but disjointed knowledge on the topic. By analyzing the empirical research on ethical consumer behavior, this article provides researchers with a map to guide future research. In total, we review 80 studies. The main contributions of the article include the identification of the main trends in the ethical consumer literature and the conceptualization of ethical consumer behavior. In addition, several areas for future research are proposed and discussed.     

Developing Moral Decision-Making Competence: A Quasi-Experimental Intervention Study in the Swiss Armed Forces

Moral development has become an integral part in military training and the importance of moral judgment and behavior in military operations can hardly be overestimated. Many armed forces have integrated military ethics and moral decision-making interventions in their training programs. However, little is known about the effectiveness of these interventions. This study examined the effectiveness of a 1-week training program in moral decision making in the Swiss Armed Forces. The program was based on a strategy-based interactional moral dilemma approach. Results of this quasi-experimental intervention study showed significant improvements in content-related (moral and instrumental awareness, quality of moral information processing, development of compensatory actions) as well as process-related (situational analysis, development and evaluation of alternative solutions, justification of decision) aspects in moral decision making. Results of a follow-up test indicated positive long-term effects with regard to moral and instrumental awareness and process-related aspects. Findings are discussed, and consequences for leadership development programs and further research are explored.     

A Broader Understanding of Moral Distress

On the traditional view, moral distress arises only in cases where an individual believes she knows the morally right thing to do but fails to perform that action due to various constraints. We seek to motivate a broader understanding of moral distress. We begin by presenting six types of distress that fall outside the bounds of the traditional definition and explaining why they should be recognized as forms of moral distress. We then propose and defend a new and more expansive definition of moral distress and examine how it can enable the development of a taxonomy of moral distress.     

Teaching Ethical Decision Making: Helping Students Reconcile Personal and Professional Values

Because conflicts between personal and professional values can interfere with ethical decision making, a goal of counselor education must be helping students reconcile such conflicts. This article describes one counselor educator's experience teaching ethical decision making and the effects on student learning. Growth was observed in increased tolerance for ambiguity, awareness of how values influenced decision making, use of multiple factors in decision making, and emphasis on the welfare of clients. Implications for teaching and future research directions are discussed.     

Ethical Judgments of Counselors: Results From a Turkish Sample

The present study examined the ethical judgements of Turkish counselors (N = 767) using a translation of the Gibson and Pope (1993) ethical judgements survey. Items predominantly judged as ethical and unethical, and group differences regarding gender, taking ethics as a course, professional affiliation, and level of academic degree, were investigated. Chi-square analysis, Fishers’s exact test, and Fisher–Freeman–Halton tests were used in statistical analysis. Results revealed that participants predominantly judged breach of confidentiality in cases of child abuse and potential harm toward oneself or others as ethical. Items concerning sexual dual relationships were predominantly perceived as unethical, and male participants were more likely to judge items regarding sexual and nonsexual dual relationships as ethical. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.     

Moral Orientation as a Component of Ethical Decision Making

Morals are foundational to professional and ethical counseling practice. Moral orientation may play an integral role in ethical decision making. The authors review the literature regarding moral orientation and discuss the connection to ethical decision making. Implications for counselor preparation and practice are addressed.     

移情在道德强度对企业道德决策影响中的作用

摘 要 本研究将一种重要的道德情绪--移情引入问题权变模型中,以探讨移情因素在道德强度对企业道德决策影响中的作用。本研究基于情景研究法,随机选取256名MBA学生为被试,要求被试基于所提供情景中假想参与者的行为,回答随后测量道德决策(道德识别、道德判断和道德意图)、移情反应、主观道德强度及移情特质的问题。结果发现,1）移情反应在道德强度对企业道德决策的影响中具有中介作用;2）移情关怀特质会通过影响主观道德强度和移情反应而作用于企业道德决策;3)结果大小、社会舆论和效应可能性对道德判断和道德意图的影响机制各有特点。     

临床护理人员的护理伦理知信行素养调查研究——以某三甲医院为例

为了解临床护理人员的护理伦理知识、信念、行为等素养的现状、存在的主要问题及其主要影响因素,问卷调查了某三级甲等医院的1147名护理人员,同时对16名资深护理人员和护理工作管理者进行深入访谈。调查结果显示,尽管多数护理人员在工作实践中能正确践行护理伦理行为,但护理人员的护理伦理知识欠缺,护理伦理教育有待加强;部分护理人员的基本护理（医学）伦理理念尚未建立;“重技术轻人文”的护理理念仍然是影响护理伦理践行的主要因素。临床护理人员普遍有接受有关护理伦理知识和技能培训的需求和愿望。

     

A Cognitive Tool for Ethical Decision Making: A Case for ACED IT

The present study examined two forms of a cognitive tool (ACED IT map), which is designed to facilitate ethical decision making, along with expressive writing. Results demonstrated that participants completing the original ACED IT were more likely to identify (a) more steps to implementing a solution, (b) more barriers to solution implementation, and (c) more solutions to those barriers than participants who completed the modified ACED IT, those who engaged in expressive writing, and those in the control group. These findings suggest that cognitive tools such as ACED IT may be of considerable value for individuals who are presented with ethical dilemmas.     

Impact of Selected Ethical Information Resources on Counselor Educators' Decision‐Making Regarding Boundary Crossings

A random sample of 207 counselor educators used 4 ethical information resources in the context of 16 boundary‐crossing scenarios. Burian and Slimp's (2000) social dual‐role relationship model was the only resource to change counselor educators' boundary‐crossing decision‐making in a manner that could mitigate boundary‐crossing concerns with students. Curiously, almost 60% of counselor educators stated that they would not use Burian and Slimp's model in the future when this was the only ethical decision‐making resource that made a difference in boundary‐crossing decision‐making for counselor educators.     

When Birds of a Feather Flock Together: The Role of Core-Self Evaluations and Moral Intensity in the Relationship Between Network Unethicality and Unethical Choice

Leveraging perspectives from social cognitive theory, the attention-based view, and social networks literatures, we tested the relationship between unethical choice and network unethicality, which we define as respondents’ perceptions of their peer advisors’ unethical choices. Although social cognitive theory predicts that perceptions of peer advisor unethical choice are positively associated with unethical choice, we theorize that the nature of this relationship depends on the personality of the actor (core self-evaluation) and the situation (moral intensity). Results from a lagged study suggest that individual and situational variables may act as key buffers to the adverse impact of unethical social influence on ethical choice. Strengths, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.     

Ethical Codes in Sports Organizations: An Empirical Study on Determinants of Effectiveness

Confronted with numerous scandals, sports organizations are turning to the adoption of ethical codes to attain more ethical behavior. However, the effectiveness of an ethical code as a means to increase ethical behavior remains debated; furthermore, the particular characteristics of a sports context have not yet been taken into account, nor have the different stages of code establishment been considered in evaluation. This article studies the effectiveness, as measured by the Ethical Climate Index, of ethical codes in sports organizations. Moreover, it investigates the effects of the presence, creation, content, implementation, and enforcement of ethical codes on ethical behavior in sports organizations. Our results shed a light on the conditions that need to be in place to install an effective ethical code in sports organizations: a genuine motivation to improve ethical behavior, the involvement of coaches, and the explicit targeting of the management.