Blind Spots Chapter 5 Flashcards

Questions and Answers

What are blind spots?

Ethical gaps between intended and actual ethical behavior (correct)

Clear understanding of ethical behavior

Awareness of all actions taken

Knowledge of the consequences of decisions

What is motivated blindness?

The common failure of people to notice others' unethical behavior when seeing that behavior would harm the observer.

What does indirect blindness refer to?

Engaging in indirect actions under predictable circumstances, allowing decision-makers to escape responsibility for their actions.

The slippery slope describes a scenario where one small unethical act leads to larger unethical acts.

True Signup and view all the answers

What is the difference between outcomes and process in ethical decision-making?

People often judge the ethicality of actions based on the outcomes rather than the ethicality of the actions themselves. Signup and view all the answers

What is the identifiable victim effect?

The tendency for people to show more concern and sympathy for identifiable victims than for statistical victims. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Blind Spots Overview

Blind spots refer to the ethical gaps that exist between what individuals intend and how they actually behave, often due to distractions from ethical considerations.

Motivated Blindness

Motivated blindness occurs when individuals fail to recognize unethical actions of others, especially when recognizing such actions could negatively impact themselves.
Example: Employees may ignore unethical behaviors of their employer to protect their own job security.

Indirect Blindness

Indirect blindness happens when decision-makers engage in actions expected to lead to unethical behavior, but they evade responsibility as observers see no direct harm.
Example: A supervisor instructs subordinates to "do whatever it takes" knowing it may pressure them into unethical decisions, yet denies direct complicity.

Slippery Slope

The slippery slope phenomenon describes how minor ethical violations can lead to a cycle of increasingly serious infractions over time.
This mindset justifies the initial small ethical lapse, which then leads to larger compromises.

Outcomes vs. Process (Means/Ends)

People often evaluate the ethical nature of actions based on outcomes, deciding if harm occurred, rather than considering the morality of the decision process itself.
This focus on results ignores the ethical implications of the choices made along the way.

Identifiable Victim Effect

The identifiable victim effect indicates that individuals express greater empathy and concern for specific, identifiable victims rather than for abstract or statistical victims.
This bias leads to enhanced sympathy for real people compared to faceless numbers in a broader context.

Description

This quiz covers key terms from Chapter 5 of 'Blind Spots', focusing on ethical concepts like 'blind spots' and 'motivated blindness'. Test your understanding of how these ethical gaps can affect decision-making and behavior in various situations.