Whether it's business or politics. Hardly a week seems to go by without us hearing about new scandals, intrigues and embezzlements.
We want to know: who is responsible for these scandals? So the search for the black sheep begins. The idea: only people without morals knowingly violate the law and social norms. The solution: find the heads and remove these "black sheep". Is that really enough? Are big scandals caused by a few? Can 11 million cars be tampered with and only a few know about it? What about all the other people in the organizations? Did they really know nothing? Or are many violations in business, politics and society based on a system? Can each of us become part of these immoral events?
Moral blindness
The answer is yes. The fact is: it is not only people without morals who act immorally. Despite good intentions, each of us is at risk of becoming a black sheep. Our environment, and therefore the structure of organizations, influences our perception. We base our interpretation, evaluation and behavior on situational factors. We only perceive that part of our environment that is in the focus of our attention. Everything else remains hidden from us. In this way, we reduce the complexity of our external world and are able to act.
Important: situational factors control the focus of our attention and thus influence how we perceive the external world and what behavior we consider appropriate. If a situation directs our attention away from moral aspects, moral blindness arises. We do not take moral considerations into account in our decisions. We are not aware of this at the moment of decision. Often we only realize in retrospect which social norms and rules we have violated.
Connect the nine points with a maximum of four straight lines without lifting the pen. (You will find the solution below.)
Situational factors of moral blindness
In addition to the structures created in society and in organizations, factors such as gradual change, dynamics, innovation and routine can make us a black sheep.
Shifting Baselines
Can you say when your body has changed and how? This usually happens in small changes that we hardly notice. A wrinkle here, a gray hair there. Only when we compare photos do we see the extent of the change. Moral blindness is also not a sudden situational state, but a creeping phenomenon over a longer period of time. Moral values and demands shift slowly, in units that are barely noticeable to us. At first we only "cheated" a little. Next time we'll do a little more. As long as things go well, we'll stay on this path and overlook the overall shift. Perhaps VW only installed the software in one model at first. Step by step, in over 11 million cars.
Dynamism and innovation
In past decades, tradition, role models and social structures formed clear moral boundaries. Today, these boundaries and structures are blurred. Different models exist in parallel and social rules are subject to rapid change.
Whole organizations and industries are undergoing upheaval. In phases of high dynamism, familiar patterns of thinking and acting are lost, and uncertainty increases. In this climate, moral aspects can quickly fade into the background. Actions are based on a few factors such as market share, increasing sales and maximizing profits.
A good example is the New Economy phase. There was a spirit of optimism and the attitude of "anything goes" shaped entrepreneurial thinking. The rules of the Old Economy were considered outdated. Regulation and state supervision were seen as a hindrance and disadvantageous.
International competition, pressure on margins and increasing demands in terms of reducing emissions and fuel consumption. Perhaps the cocktail that drew the attention of VW managers to market share and less to moral aspects.
Slave to routine
The smoother processes function, the less critically we view them. But what was successful yesterday is good enough today and may not be enough tomorrow. Unquestioned processes pose risks from both an economic and moral point of view. At Volkswagen, too, the software in question had been integrated into the production process for some time. Was it still being discussed or was its installation already routine?
Change of perspective
What can each of us do to prevent moral blindness?
The solution to the nine-dot problem lies outside the conceptual boundaries of the field.
The point example shows the solution: The usual way of looking at things must be changed in order to solve the problem. In order to prevent moral blindness, it is important to recognize the current perspective and to explore and exceed boundaries. Specific questions can help:
What assumptions underlie my perception?
What speaks against these assumptions?
How else could the situation be viewed?
How would person X proceed?
What morality underlies the current decision?
In addition to these factors, social aspects such as group pressure and obedience to authority, as well as the structure and culture of organizations, lead to immoral behavior. The main culprits in organizations are bonus systems, the way performance is measured and the diffusion of responsibility.
Not the black sheep
Prevention of immoral business developments is therefore not achieved by identifying and eliminating black sheep. Rather, it requires a conscious design of the organizational structure. Classic compliance systems are based on the model of the black sheep. They try to prevent rule violations through control and punishment. As the recent series of business scandals shows, with moderate success. A real counter strategy is to critically examine one's own organizational culture and structure. Conditions that encourage moral blindness can be identified and usually easily remedied.
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Your decision.
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