When standards for pollution, discrimination, and salary schedules are lower in an offshore host country than they are in the home country, should multinational corporations insist on home country standards? Would using home standards imply a failure to respect cultural diversity and national integrity? What obligations, if any, do multinationals have to the people they affect indirectly? In this study, business ethicist Thomas Donaldson offers three concepts for interpreting international business ethics: a social contract between productive organizations and society, the notion of a fundamental international right, promulgated by ten specific international rights, and a moral "algorithm" to help multinational managers make tradeoffs between conflicting norms in home and host countries. He then employs these concepts in the analysis of specific problems such as the distribution of hazardous technology and South African divestment. A timely and important text for courses in
international business or business ethics.
Industry Reviews
"[A] classic in the field....one of the few book-length treatments of moral issues in international business...for the international manager who wants a basic framework for resolving ethical issues, Donaldson provides an in-depth understanding."--Ethical Management
"Very helpful and in-depth look at the complexities of international business."--Scott B. Rae, Talbot School of Theology
"An excellent overview of an area of ethics which is emerging as one of the most vital concerns of our era. It is a welcome addition to the literature."--Albert A. Anderson, Babson College
"Perfectly suitable for my course and the only one that I have found of its kind."--Joseph M. Bearson, Eckerd College
"Maximizes the possibilities of social contract theory to locate corporations in a context of moral discourse....An appropriate blend of analytic and prescriptive moral reasoning."--Ronald Stone, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary
"Recommended for all my students and particularly for international business and business policy courses. Students need to integrate business ethics into their management frame of reference, and this book helps to do that!--Louis L. Moon, Eastern Oregon State College
"Accessible to an audience possessing little familiarity with contemporary moral theory, but it is also worth the time of moral philosophers....Provides a valuable opportunity to think about the normative impmlications of relativism."--Ethics
"Very helpful in thinking through the complex world of international business practices and cultures."--Walter D. Scott, Kellogg Graduate School of Management
"Very useful."--Robert S. Inglis, Palm Beach Atlantic College
"Well-written, very good."--Rotgert E. Drive, Houston Baptist University
"There has been no book-length effort to deal with the big picture of conducting business across national borders. This is precisely the aim of Donaldson's book. It is thus a welcome arrival for those who deal with the topic....An important contribution in an emerging field, a must-read."--Journal of International Business Studies
"Well-written, well-reasoned, timely and a valuable supplementary text in any international business course."--Tagi Sagafi-nejad, Loyola College
"The first monograph-length work on its subject....Highly rewarding."--Choice
"The best thinking about the role of ethics in business.... Integrates the teaching and practice of management with ethics and the humanities."--Ethics Digest
"It provides a clear framework and an excellent selection of examples. Also, it is a wonderful piece of interdisciplinary work."--Maria Armington, Independence Community College
