| Chief Academic Officers (CAO) are leaders in institutions of higher education and have wide decision-making scope. Previous research has clearly demonstrated the need for leaders to engage in ethical decision-making. Moral judgments are an aspect of ethical decision-making, so it is important for CAOs to make moral judgments. This study examined moral judgments of CAOs and differences in judgments based on age, gender, level of education, and amount of perceived moral/ethical education using the Defining Issues Test-2 (DIT-2). Two indices of the DIT-2 were used: the P score and the N2 score. The P score and N2 score of 310 CAOs were analyzed. Participants in the study included 180 males and 126 females and the majority of the participants reported having a doctoral degree. Results showed that average P scores and N2 scores for CAOs were in the 40s. There were significant differences according to gender and level of education. No significant differences were found with regard to age or amount of perceived moral/ethical education. Most institutions will be recruiting a new CAO in the next ten 10 years; therefore, the current data may be useful in assisting institutions in the recruitment and selection process. Additionally, the current data may be useful in increasing retention of current CAOs. |
