| Ethical decision making in the fast food service industry was analyzed using a policy-capturing approach. Eighty-four undergraduates (nineteen of which had experience in the fast food industry) made fifty-five judgments on the likelihood of their committing an unethical act (e.g., stealing food, stealing money). The judgments were made based on the contents of fifty-five stories and ethical dilemmas. Situational cues were embedded in the contents of the stories. The cues (situational constraints, accountability for unethical actions, and competition) were hypothesized to influence the likelihood of committing the unethical act. Moral development was hypothesized to moderate the relationship between the cues and ethical decision making. The results indicate that there is no relationship between the cues, moral development and ethical decision making within organizations. Further research is needed to conclusively disprove a relationship between situational constraints, accountability for unethical actions, competition, and moral development and ethical decision making within organizations. |
