A Study of Business Ethical Practices in Australian Organisations: A Multiple Case Study Using Critical Incidence to Measure how Ethical Decisions are Made

In view of the latest corporate collapses globally and the current financial crises, the purpose of this thesis is an attempt to investigate and to theorise how managers make decisions when faced with an ethical dilemma. Philosophers over the years have proposed different moral theories without success. Based on the literature review, research questions were developed. The research methodology is qualitative, based on the realism paradigm using a case research design (Yin 1994). Face to face interviews were conducted using critical incidents and the findings were triangulated using a semi- structured focus group. The findings indicate that a person¿s ethical behaviour changes when his/her self-interest is affected. Whilst participants believed that business and ethics can be reconciled, most agreed that they can only be reconciled if the individual¿s interest or business profit is not affected. Based on the findings, a new model is proposed in an attempt to theorise an individual¿s business ethical behaviour and his/her ethical decision making process.