Examining CEOs’ Moral Reasoning in the Automotive Industry

Beatriz García-Ortega, Blanca de-Miguel-Molina and Javier Galán-Cubillo
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Beatriz García-Ortega: Department of Management, Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera s/n, Building 7D, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Blanca de-Miguel-Molina: Department of Management, Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera s/n, Building 7D, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Javier Galán-Cubillo: Doctoral Program in Business Management, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 21, 1-24

Abstract: This paper examines the moral reasoning trends of CEOs (chief executive officers) in the automotive industry, gauging their relations to ethical behaviors and scandals as well as analyzing the influence of scandals and other factors on their moral reasoning. For such a purpose, we carried out a moral reasoning categorization for the top 15 automotive companies in vehicle production in 2017 by applying Weber’s method to letters written by CEOs for the period 2013–2018. A positive global trend was observed, with some CEOs reaching high levels, although the evolution was uneven without clear patterns and, in the light of facts, not sufficient, at least in the short term. We also found evidence linking the moral reasoning stages with the ethical performance of companies and introduced the concept “tone ‘into’ the top”, reflecting how CEO moral reasoning can be shaped by the company and external factors. This paper stresses the importance of considering the moral tone at the top in relation to company ethical behaviors and the interest of education in business ethics. The outcome is useful for CEOs and other managers seeking to improve corporate social responsibility (CSR) and company ethical performance and to anticipate conflicts as well as to leverage for future research.

Keywords: moral tone; moral reasoning; discourse analyze; CEO letter; CEO; automotive industry; CSR (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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