The Ethical Guardrails Model: A Tool for Understanding and Reducing Ethical Mistakes

N. L. Reinsch, Jr.; Vanda Pauwels; Clyde D. Neff

ORDER ARTICLE PERMISSIONS/REPRINTS/OFFPRINTS/

To order copies, and/or permissions to include this article in textbooks, edited volumes, course booklets, online/digital course packs, etc., and/or to order multiple individual hard copies for classroom use, please use the secure online payment, or the appropriate form available on the Order Forms page, or alternatively, contact the Publishing Editor, Peter Neilson, pneilson@neilsonjournals.com directly.

The Ethical Guardrails Model: A Tool for Understanding and Reducing Ethical Mistakes

N. L. Reinsch, Jr.

Georgetown University, USA

Vanda Pauwels

Texas Tech University, USA

Clyde D. Neff

Lubbock Christian University, USA

Volume 19: 2022 pp. 109-136: ABSTRACT

We build on the work of Moore and Gino (2015) and of Rest (1983, 1986) to develop the Ethical Guardrails Model (EGM). The EGM shows students how personal behaviors, relationships, and habits can help them to avoid ethical mistakes in the workplace. The EGM illustrates the components of ethical business behavior, incorporates a new deliberative component, specifies five ways in which ethical behavior may become derailed, and describes practices that can help a person to avoid derailment. We also describe our use of the EGM in the business ethics classroom.