Ethics Seminar: University of Colorado at Denver

Thursday Feb 12, 2004

 Business ethics: Poses two very important moral questions:

The Question of Action: –How should I act?

The Question of Character: –What kind of person should I be?

Our concern here is with the question of character, which is supposed to come from within when as adults we conceive morality.

So when is it justified to break the rules?

Why is it that so many smart people do such dumb things? Below are eight Critical Thinking Errors  by Patrick J. Kuhse Patrick J Kuhse – a Speaker  & Consultant on Business Ethics and also an ex convicted felon.

MOLLIFICATION:  Lifestyle criminals seek to play down the seriousness of past criminal conduct and current interpersonal conflicts by blaming problems on external circumstances, making excuses for their behavior, pointing out unfairness in the world, or de-valuing their victims.

CUTOFF:  With practice, the lifestyle criminal eliminates normal feelings, which deter criminal action through a simple phrase (“forget-it”), image, or musical theme. In some cases the offender will use drugs or alcohol to cutoff fear, anxiety, guilt, or other common deterrents to criminal activity.

ENTITLEMENT:  The lifestyle criminal believes that he is entitled to violate the laws of society and the rights of others by way of an expressed attitude of ownership (“it’s mine”), privilege (“I’m above the law”), or by labeling wants as needs (“I needed a new car, expensive clothing, a trip to Cabo, etc.”)

POWER ORIENTATION: Choosing power and external control over self-discipline and internal control, lifestyle criminals attempt to exert power and control over others. Consequently, they feel weak and helpless (zero state) when not in control of a situation. They attempt to alleviate this feeling by manipulating, intimidating, or physically assaulting others (power thrusts)

SENTIMENTALITY: Like most people, the lifestyle criminal has an interest in being viewed as a “nice guy”. However, this creates a serious dilemma, given the level of interpersonally intrusive activity they have engaged in. Consequently, they may perform various “good deeds” with the intent of cultivating a “heck-of-a-guy” or “Robin Hood” image.

SUPER OPTIMISM: Experience has taught lifestyle criminals that they get away with most of their crimes. This leads to a growing sense of overconfidence in which they believe they are invulnerable, indomitable, and unbeatable. Ironically, this belief leads to their eventual downfall.

COGNITIVE INDOLENCE (MENTAL LAZINESS): As lazy in thought as in behavior, lifestyle criminals take short-cuts which inevitably lead to failure, low self-evaluation, and poor critical reasoning skills.

DISCONTINUITY:  Lifestyle criminals have difficulty maintaining focus over time because of being easily influenced by events and situations occurring around them. As a result, they have difficulty following through on initially good intentions.

In addition to these thinking errors, specific criminal acts are affected by motives such as fear, anger/rebellion, power/control, excitement/pleasure, and greed/laziness. These motivations sometimes combine with criminal thinking patterns and produce a variety of maladaptive behaviors.

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