Please note the following credit values:

BSc Course: 4.5 ECTS*

BSc Seminar Course: 9 ECTS

MSc Course: 5 ECTS

MBA Course: 3 ECTS

MBA Workshop: 1 ECTS

Language course: 5 ECTS

*The following BSc courses have a different credit value:

Business Communication: Theory & Practice: 3 ECTS

Managing your personal performance holistically: 3 ECTS

Harmonizing Leadership with Personal Development: 3 ECTS

Mental Health First Aid: 1,5 ECTS

Understanding your personal performance base: 1,5 ECTS

Workshop Body Language for Women: 1,5 ECTS

Intercultural Competence - Fit for International Collaboration: 1,5 ECTS

Perform Yourself! Media and Presentation Coaching: Personal Presence!: 1,5 ECTS

Ethics: Behavioral Ethics - Q3

Participation Prerequisites

none.

Course Content

This course is designed to empower students to recognize, analyze, and address ethical challenges in business with clarity and confidence. The central aim is to develop your ability to think, judge, and organize ethically in complex organizational settings—equipping you with practical frameworks for ethical decision-making that are grounded in both philosophical theory and empirical research.

We begin by thinking ethically, exploring foundational moral theories such as utilitarianism, deontology, and virtue ethics. These normative approaches provide a lens for evaluating right and wrong, justice and duty, in real-world business dilemmas—from sustainability to stakeholder conflict.

Next, we turn to judging ethically, drawing on behavioral business ethics to understand how people actually make moral decisions. Here, we examine why well-intentioned individuals and organizations sometimes act unethically and how psychological, social, and organizational forces shape ethical awareness, reasoning, and behavior.

Finally, we focus on organizing ethically, addressing how values and responsibilities are embedded in corporate systems and culture. Topics include corporate social responsibility, stakeholder theory, compliance management, and whistleblowing. Through the Giving Voice to Values (GVV) approach, we explore how individuals can act effectively on their values within organizational constraints.

Through a blend of classic texts, contemporary research, and interactive case studies, you will learn to identify ethical blind spots, navigate conflicting interests, and make principled choices in the face of ambiguity. By the end of the course, you will be better prepared to act with integrity and contribute to responsible business practices throughout your career.

Intended Learning Outcomes and Competencies

Students will be able to apply major ethical theories and frameworks to analyze and resolve complex business dilemmas.
Students will be able to evaluate real-world organizational behavior and decision-making using concepts from behavioral business ethics.
Students will be able to assess and recommend strategies for embedding ethical values and compliance systems within corporate culture and practice.

Instruction Type

Interactive Lecture.

Form of Examination

The form of examination in this course is a 90-minute written final exam.

Literature

I will announce during the lecture which readings are required and which are recommended for further understanding.

Block 1: Thinking Ethically: Normative Approaches

Hinman, L. (2007). The ethics of consequences. In Ethics: A pluralistic approach to moral theory (pp. 129-165). Wadsworth.
Sinnott-Armstrong, W. (2023). Consequentialism. In E. N. Zalta & U. Nodelman (Eds.), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2023 edition). Read online
Sandel, M. (2010). The greatest happiness principle. In Justice (pp. 31-57). Penguin Books.
Harvard University. (2009, September 8). Justice: What’s the right thing to do? Episode 02: “Putting a Price Tag on Life” [Video]. YouTube. Watch here
Hinman, L. (2007). The ethics of duty. In Ethics: A pluralistic approach to moral theory (pp. 166-194). Wadsworth.
Alexander, L., & Moore, M. (2021). Deontological ethics. In E. N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2021 edition). Read online
Sandel, M. (2010). What matters is the motive. In Justice (pp. 103-139). Penguin Books.
Harvard University. (2009, September 9). Justice: What’s the right thing to do? Episode 06: “Mind Your Motive” [Video]. YouTube. Watch here
Hinman, L. (2007). The ethics of character. In Ethics: A pluralistic approach to moral theory (pp. 259-293). Wadsworth.
Hursthouse, R., & Pettigrove, G. (2023). Virtue ethics. In E. N. Zalta & U. Nodelman (Eds.), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2023 edition). Read online
Sandel, M. (2010). Who deserves what? In Justice (pp. 184-207). Penguin Books.
Harvard University. (2009, September 9). Justice: What’s the right thing to do? Episode 10: “The Good Citizen” [Video]. YouTube. Watch here

Block 2: Judging Ethically: How People Actually Decide

Awad, E., Dzousa, S., Kim, R., Schulz, J., Henrich, J., Shariff, A., Bonnefon, J.-F., & Rahwan, I. (2018). The Moral Machine Experiment. Nature, 563, 59–64. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-018-0637-6
Greene, J., Sommerville, R., Nystrom, L., Darley, J., & Cohen, J. (2002). An fMRI Investigation of Emotional Engagement in Moral Judgment. Science, 293(5537), 2105–2108. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1062872
Haidt, J. (2001). The emotional dog and its rational tail: A social intuitionist approach to moral judgment. Psychological Review, 108(4), 814–834. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.108.4.814
Haidt, J. (2012). The righteous mind: Why good people are divided by politics and religion. Vintage.
Haidt, J., & Joseph, C. (2004). Intuitive ethics: How innately prepared intuitions generate culturally variable virtues. Daedalus, 133(4), 55–66. https://doi.org/10.1162/0011526042365555
Henrich, J., Heine, S. J., & Norenzayan, A. (2010). The weirdest people in the world? Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 33(2–3), 61–83. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X0999152X
Jones, T. M. (1991). Ethical Decision Making by Individuals in Organizations: An Issue-Contingent Model. Academy of Management Review, 16(2), 366–395. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1991.4278958
Kohlberg, J. (1963). The development of children’s orientation toward a moral order. Vita Humana, 6, 11–33.
Rest, J. R. (1986). Moral development: Advances in research and theory. Praeger.
Sunstein, C. R. (2005). Moral heuristics. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 28(4), 531–573. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X05000099
Trevino, L. K. (1986). Ethical decision making in organizations: A person-situation interactionist model. Academy of Management Review, 11, 601–617. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1986.4306235
Cohn, A., Fehr, E., & Maréchal, M. A. (2014). Business culture and dishonesty in the banking industry. Nature, 516(7529), 86–89. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13977
Epley, N., & Dunning, D. (2000). Feeling "holier than thou": Are self-serving assessments produced by errors in self- or social prediction? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79(6), 861–875. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.79.6.861
Mead, N. L., Baumeister, R. F., Gino, F., Schweitzer, M. E., & Ariely, D. (2009). Too tired to tell the truth: Self-control resource depletion and dishonesty. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 45(3), 594–597. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2009.02.004
Moore, C., & Gino, F. (2015). Approach, ability, aftermath: A psychological process framework of unethical behavior at work. Academy of Management Annals, 9(1), 235–289. https://doi.org/10.5465/19416520.2015.1011522
Sachdeva, S., Iliev, R., & Medin, D. L. (2009). Sinning saints and saintly sinners: The paradox of moral self-regulation. Psychological Science, 20(4), 523–528. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02326.x
Saucet, C., & Villeval, M. C. (2019). Motivated memory in dictator games. Games and Economic Behavior, 117, 250–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geb.2019.06.003
Schwitzgebel, E., & Rust, J. (2016). The behavior of ethicists. In J. Sytsma & W. Buckwalter (Eds.), A companion to experimental philosophy (pp. 225–233). Wiley.
https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118661666.ch16

Block 3 – Organizing Ethically: Corporate Conduct, Compliance, and Voice

Aßländer, M. (2011). Intentionalistischer Ansatz (Peter A. French). In M. Aßländer (Ed.), Handbuch Wirtschaftsethik. J.B. Metzler.
Aßländer, M., & Schenkel, M. (2011). Corporate Stewardship. In M. Aßländer (Ed.), Handbuch Wirtschaftsethik. J.B. Metzler.
Bénabou, R., & Tirole, J. (2010). Individual and corporate social responsibility. Economica, 77(305), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0335.2009.00843.x
Carroll, A. B. (1991). The pyramid of corporate social responsibility: Toward the moral management of organizational stakeholders. Business Horizons, 34(4), 39–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/0007-6813(91)90005-G
European Council. (2001). Europäische Rahmenbedingungen für die soziale Verantwortung der Unternehmen. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2001:0366:FIN:DE:PDF
European Council. (2011). Eine neue EU-Strategie (2011-14) für die soziale Verantwortung der Unternehmen (CSR). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/DE/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52011DC0681
Freeman, R. E. (1984). Strategic management: A stakeholder approach. Boston: Pitman-Ballinger.
Friedman, M. (1970, September 13). The social responsibility of business is to increase its profits. The New York Times Magazine.
Jubb, P. B. (1999). Whistleblowing: A restrictive definition and interpretation. Journal of Business Ethics, 21(1), 77–94. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005922701763
KPMG. (2014). Wirtschaftskriminalität in Deutschland. https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmg/pdf/2014/12/Wikri-Studie_2014_sec.pdf
Mellström, C., & Johannesson, M. (2008). Crowding out in blood donation: Was Titmuss right? Journal of the European Economic Association, 6(4), 845–863. https://doi.org/10.1162/JEEA.2008.6.4.845
Miceli, M. P., Near, J. P., & Dworkin, T. M. (2008). Whistleblowing in organizations. Routledge.
Porter, M. E., & Kramer, M. R. (2011). Creating shared value. Harvard Business Review, 89(1/2), 62–77.
Schrader, U. (2011). Corporate Citizenship. In M. Aßländer (Ed.), Handbuch Wirtschaftsethik. J.B. Metzler.
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. (2015). 2015 annual report to Congress on the Dodd-Frank whistleblower program. https://www.sec.gov/files/owb-annual-report-2015.pdf

Next events

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1/6	Lecture	Th, 22.01.2026	11:30 Uhr	15:15 Uhr	C-107 Hörsaal / Lecture Hall
2/6	Lecture	Th, 29.01.2026	15:30 Uhr	18:45 Uhr	C-107 Hörsaal / Lecture Hall
3/6	Lecture	Fr, 06.02.2026	11:30 Uhr	15:15 Uhr	C-107 Hörsaal / Lecture Hall
4/6	Lecture	Mo, 09.02.2026	11:30 Uhr	15:15 Uhr	C-107 Hörsaal / Lecture Hall
5/6	Lecture	We, 11.02.2026	11:30 Uhr	15:15 Uhr	C-107 Hörsaal / Lecture Hall
6/6	Lecture	Fr, 13.02.2026	08:00 Uhr	11:15 Uhr	C-107 Hörsaal / Lecture Hall

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Lecturers

Rilke, Rainer Michael

Lecturer

Indicative Student Workload

Self-Study	64 h
Contact Time	24 h
Examination	2 h