Academic Summary Essay

In the article, How unethical are you? , Banaji et al. (2003) investigate four factors that result in unethical decision taken by managers: Implicit forms of prejudice, bias that favours one’s own group, a tendency to over claim credit, and conflict of interest. The authors believe that the implicit prejudice is an unconscious judgment which originates from unintentional tendency to create relationships in the past. The implicit bias brings about social and economic effects which may eliminate capable people from doing the right job. Another reason is a tendency that benefits members of a group. This happens when those in minority are treated differently and less supported by the larger group only because they are a small group. Unaware exaggeration of their own talents is another influencing factor in which individuals rate themselves highly competent and exaggerate one’s own cooperation in the group. Wide ranging opinions is the next factor stated by the authors which can also distort coming to a fair decision. See more: Homeless satire essay A bias in which there is tendency toward people with the same or similar idea causes disagreements and lead to unintentional immoral attitudes. Banaji et. al claim that by putting the conscious mind into use and paying more careful attention, managers would be able to confine the power of their conscious mind. They propose collecting data, shaping the environment, and broadening the decision making as the three main solutions to formulate conscious techniques. Banaji et. al point out that one way to decrease unintentional tendency is gathering information and making organized decisions. Moreover, they believe that implicit tendencies can be created by key signs in the environment. In order to reshape the existing bias, the person can put himself in an opposite situation in which the typical bias is being doubted. Expanding decision-making is another solution proposed by the authors which is achieved by disregarding your own identity when making decisions that may benefit specific groups of people more than others. Finally the authors state that managers who believe that they are unbiased must question the hypothesis that they are objective.