COMM 486C - Corporate Responsibility and Business Ethics

COMM 486C prepares you for the ethical challenges that you will face when you enter the workplace. This course adds a unique perspective on leadership over and above the traditional focus on practical leadership and the normal levers of influence. We will discuss (1) the basic psychological mechanisms and biases with which people make ethical decisions, (2) the ethical issues involved in leadership processes, and (3) how to address social responsibility issues as a decision maker of a corporation.

This course starts by introducing some philosophical discussions around the issue of ethics. We will then proceed to discuss the cognitive bases of moral judgment and examine factors such as moral emotions, moral disengagement, moral identity, and moral cleansing. Thirdly, we will discuss CSR in specific domains and in much greater details, highlighting the presence of CSR in everyday corporate activities.

Learning objectives

Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

• understand some key philosophies and psychological theories behind people’s moral judgment.
• have developed a diverse toolbox that will help them to tackle the various ethics and social responsibility issues in the corporate world.

Note: COMM 486C will not be offered in 2023W.