Skip to ContentGo to accessibility pageKeyboard shortcuts menu
OpenStax Logo
Business Ethics

Introduction

Business EthicsIntroduction

This image looks down the middle of an open road with clouds in the sky and open landscape on either side of the road.
Figure 11.1 Business ethics starts right where you are and leads you down the road of life with a set of standards and rules to follow. (credit: modification of “We're on the Road to Nowhere” by Marc Dalmulder/Flickr, CC BY 2.0)

Even though they are business decisions, the choices we make at work can be personal in that they begin with our use of conscience. Just as the human body requires nourishment and care, so the conscience needs attention. Developmental psychologists have long understood that the formation of conscience, and the emergence of an individual in whom being and doing are comfortably aligned, take place over time. There are no shortcuts. Imperfection, self-doubt, and mistakes are part of the process. But what counts in life—including our choice of profession as well as the way we live our personal lives—is the manner in which we apply wisdom, education, and experience in forming the decisions we make and in becoming the person we wish to be.

Facing the right direction may be difficult at first, but with each decision toward wholeness, the path becomes a little easier to tread. The reverse is also true. When we neglect or ignore our conscience, it becomes more difficult for us to turn around. This final chapter explores the process of becoming a professional with an unshakeable ethical stance in a changing world. Where do you stand on your own path in life, and more important, which direction are you facing (Figure 11.1)? In which direction will your choices regarding your work and career take you?

Order a print copy

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

Citation/Attribution

This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's permission.

Want to cite, share, or modify this book? This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution License and you must attribute OpenStax.

Attribution information
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a print format, then you must include on every physical page the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/business-ethics/pages/1-introduction
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a digital format, then you must include on every digital page view the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/business-ethics/pages/1-introduction
Citation information

© Mar 31, 2023 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License . The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.