Office Hours: Lyon 321

MWF: 8:00-8:50 a.m.; 10:00-10:50 a.m.; 1:30-2:30 p.m.

TTh:  8:00 a.m.-9:20 a.m.

or by appointment

Phone: 698-4351

E-mail: pcbube@lyon.edu

 Nature and Purpose of the Course:

This is a course in Applied Ethics, that is, a course which examines how ethical theories can be applied to concrete situations and issues.  As a course in the Religion and Philosophy Department, this class will emphasize critical reasoning and analysis in the study of ethical theory and issues.  The aim of this course is to introduce students to basic concepts and theories in philosophical ethics and to apply those concepts and theories to concrete issues and cases in the areas of business.  Students who are concentrating in Environmental Studies will have opportunities to explore issues in environmental ethics.  Since many of the issues of environmental ethics are intimately related to business and economic interests, the overlap between business and environmental ethics  will be an ongoing topic of discussion throughout the course.

Course Objectives:

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to

1. Define key terms associated with business and environmental ethics;

2. Analyze and evaluate various ethical theories as they relate to business and environmental issues;

3. Apply ethical theories and concepts to concrete issues and cases in the areas of business and environmental concern;

4. Research and take a stand on an issue and support that stand using facts relevant to the ethical approaches used. 

Text:

Business Ethics Concepts and Cases (Sixth Edition) by Manuel Velasquez

Classic Cases in Medical Ethics (Fourth Edition) by Gregory Pence

Supporting Website: http://www.prenhall.com/velasquez/ (This site is supposed to be updated to the 6th edition by the beginning of September.)

Requirements:

Grades will be based upon 3-4 exams; weekly contributions to a threaded discussion on Educator; several case analyses presentations (done with a partner), a 10-15 page social responsibility analysis of a Fortune 500 company.  [All written work should be printed double-spaced, 12 pt. font, with one-inch margins.  I do not mind students going over the  suggested page limit as long as what they write is pertinent to the assignment.]

Attendance	5%
Exam#1	5%
Exam#2	5%
Exam#3	10%
Exam#4	10%
Exam#5	10%
Threaded Discussions	15%
Case Analyses/Presentations	20%
Social Responsibility Analysis or Bio-ethics Issue Analysis and Presentation (Serves as Final)	20%

Grading Scale: A=90-100; B=80-89; C=70-79; D=60-69; F=0-59

Collaboration: One's ethical reflection about real life issues does not usually occur in isolation from others.  If we are facing dilemmas at our job, in our personal life, or in our social setting, we generally talk about these dilemmas with others.  For that reason, I would hope that students would collaborate with each other as they study for exams and prepare written work and projects for the course. In many cases collaboration will be required in an assigned presentation.  However, I do expect that each student will write his or her own final drafts of essays and threaded discussions, as well as take his or her own exams.  For example, talking together about how to approach an essay, exchanging ideas, etc., is encouraged, but each student will write his or her own work in his or her own words and pledge them in accordance with the Lyon College Honor Pledge.  

Threaded Discussions: Weekly threaded discussion entries consist of writing approximately 3 paragraphs on the ethical issues raised by a field trip (at least one is planned to Future Fuels) and in articles from  major current publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Business Week, Forbes, Journal of the American Medical Association, New England Journal of Medicine, or any business or medical ethics journal found in the library (please check with me first.) This is a rather open-ended assignment, but your posting should do at least the following: summarize the article in your own words; address what ethical issue(s) is (are) raised in the article; talk about how you think concepts from the book and class discussions relate to the issue(s) raised; and give your opinion about the issue(s) in light of the above. In addition to posting on an article, students should also respond to at least one posting by another student in 1-2 paragraphs. Please note: once a student has posted comments about an article, other students must choose a different article to post comments on. We will go over how to make a posting to a threaded discussion in class. The first posting for all students begins the week of Aug. 29. Postings must be made by Thursday noon of each week or be graded down 5 points for each day late. (No posting is required the week of Thanksgiving break.)

Case Analyses/Presentations involve two-three students working together on an assigned case study. Each analysis should explain to the rest of the class the important ethical issues raised by the case in light of the chapter that the case is related to. Students are encouraged to find updated information pertaining to the case (all the cases in the text are actual). The presentation should take approximately 45 minutes, including time for interaction with the rest of the class. There is no one set format--students may want to provide a pro/con debate on issues raised by the case, provide a straightforward explanation of what the case entails ethically, or perhaps dramatize an aspect of the case in order to explicate key ethical issues and concepts. See the Guidelines for Case Analysis/Presentation at http://www.lyon.edu/webdata/groups/rph/rph270/caseanalysis.htm .

The essay analyzing the social responsibility of a Fortune 500 company is also fairly open-ended. However, students should read a sample Annual Report from the Ben & Jerry's website at http://www.benjerry.com/our_company/research_library/fin/annuals.html in order to get an idea of what a social responsibility analysis might look like. In addition, ethical issues raised by practices, investments, etc., of one's chosen company, should be related to relevant concepts and discussions from our book and the class. Students may want to choose which Fortune 500 company early, since when a company is chosen, no one else may do her/his analysis on that company. If the student chooses to analyze a significant bioethics issue, she/he needs to negotiate the topic with me. Whatever topic a student chooses -- business or bioethical -- students must clear the topic with the professor no later than fall break.

Attendance Policy: Every student is expected to attend all classes and turn in all assignments on time. Good attendance is worth 5% of the course grade (Good attendance is having no unexcused absences. Normally, an absence is excused only in advance of the absence, and always at the professor's discretion.) Good attendance will, of course, also enhance the student's ability to succeed in the course, whereas multiple absences will almost always cause a student to do poorly on exams. Late assignments will be graded down five points for each day late.

Please note: Students seeking reasonable accommodations based on documented learning disabilities should contact the Office of Academic Services at 698-4332.

 

 

COURSE SCHEDULE

(Readings should be completed before the first date they are assigned.)

What is Professional Ethics?

Aug. 24-26  Introductory sessions; overview of class and the nature of ethics and the nature of professions [click here for class slides]

Ethics and Business

Aug. 29 Read pp. 1-55 in Velasquez

Aug. 31 Continued Discussion of Chapter One

Sept. 2  Discussion of Enron

        First Threaded Discussion Due by Sept.1.

Ethical Principles in Business

Sept. 5  Read pp. 57-122 in Velasquez [click here for class slides]

 

Second Threaded Discussion Due by Sept.8

 

Sept. 7-12 Continued Discussion of Chapter Two

Sept. 14 Read pp.  301-329 in Pence

Third Threaded Discussion Due by Sept.15

Sept. 16 Continued Discussion of Ch. 12 in Pence

Sept. 18: First Exam due by 11:59 p.m. (log on to Educator between Sept. 16-18 to take the exam; students should study the terminology found in the glossaries and be prepared to discuss cases)