According to famous British Sociologist, Anthony Giddens, the scope of sociology is extremely wide, ranging from analysis of a passing encounter between individuals on the street to investigations of global social processes (4).
Sociologists’ research and findings are useful for determining how society may react to new laws, family and personal situations, education and employment changes, group situations, and various topics that deal with a person’s daily life and activities. Sociology plays a crucial role in contemporary intellectual culture and is the central foundation of social sciences.
Sociology demonstrates a need to further examine who we are, and why we behave as we do. The manners in which individuals live their lives are significantly influenced by historical and social influences, which Sociologists comprehensively analyze. Sociology also is beneficial in the aspect it can provide a greater understanding of cultural differences and specific problems of others. Another benefit of Sociology is the understanding of consequences of actions to support in better evaluation of current policies and formation of more effective policies.
The greatest benefit of Sociology is self-enlightenment. Our social backgrounds have a major influence on what choices we feel are the most appropriate, which is also parallel to personal morals and ethics. Ethics is an abstract concept that is a set of principals of acceptable conduct. Ethics is much broader than analyzing right from wrong. The central concept of ethics is life worth living that is personally satisfying. Each set of principals varies between individuals. Ethics is studied to improve our lives which the main focus is on human well-being.
The Essay on Business Political And Social Life In America
Business, Political and Social Life in America Fear, power and control are the three forces that have a tremendous influence on social, political and business life in America. Although there are a lot of examples to be found, one of the current examples is the possibility of war with Iraq. Its influence on the aforementioned areas of American life are profound and various, and both three elements ...
The determinants of an individual’s Ethics are based upon their background, family, social, religious, educational, employment and lifestyle (Lako).
Dr. Lako argues there is a difference in the Ethics of individuals that possess greed from those that do not, which I believe is the main attributing factor in corporate crimes. An individual can live by a set of principals that offer the greatest personal well-being without victimizing others, yet if greed is involved only the well-being of one’s self is deemed as important.
With the recent decline in ethics, employers have created a code of ethics in the work place that could hold legal disciplinary action. The legal system encourages change in our societies. It helps change social behavior by deeming certain acts as illegal. The law prohibits acts that are often viewed as destructive to society and punishes certain unethical acts committed by corporations. The legal system helps promote acceptable behavior. A society is shaped by is principles and customs so maintaining the social environment is a necessity.
According to Legal and Ethical Environments in Business and E-commerce, in the business world, Law refers to a code of conduct that defines the behavioral boundaries for business activity (5).
Corporations often devise an internal code of conduct that combines actual Law and Ethics for their employees to adhere to. A Code of conduct must be actively monitored and enforced to be successful. Possessing a strong code of conduct program can actually have great benefits to a company that is facing legal problems.
According to the Department of Justice, the existence of a corporate compliance program is the determining factor of the agency’s decision to prosecute an organization or recommend a leniency (Meiners, Ringleb, and Edwards 17).
The Essay on Business Ethics – Enron
When Jeff Skilling took the major energy company Enron over, he contributed to the hiring and development of an entire corporation with a crooked staff whom were corrupt all the way from the bottom employees to the top executives. Top executives “cooked the books” through a certain structured finance including accounting ambiguities, special purpose entities, and poor financial reporting. They ...
According to a poll conducted in 1966, Americans had a “great deal of confidence” in American business executive. In recent years, this number declined to roughly 20 percent (Meiners, Ringleb, and Edwards 15).
The majority of people believe that companies do not disclose proper information about their corporations and have little faith in corporate executives.
During the past ten years, multiple giant corporations such as Enron, Tyco, Global crossing, and Adelphia were very successful companies that had gained their advantage by utilizing illicit unethical practices. These companies are an example of what the general public has based their distrust upon. Enron, once one of the largest electricity and natural gas traders in the world and employed nearly 22,000 people, collapsed due to fraudulent practices. At the end of 2001, it was discovered that their financial position was created by systematic accounting fraud, which involved Accounting firm Arthur Andersen.
The backlash resulted in a $60 billion loss to the investors (Booth-Thomas).
The head executives displayed actions which sociologists call Deviance. Deviance is non-conformity to a set of norms (Giddens 790-798).
Recently, society has grown to outstanding numbers of individuals the desire to become rich and successful. These growing numbers can lead to various kinds of deviance. The actions that the Enron executives displayed were positively “Ethics with greed”. The sociological influence apparently had no bearing on the unethical actions of Enron. Lives of the employees were ruined on the account of their superior’s scheme to gain success.
Clifford Baxter, the Vice chairmen, committed suicide after the FBI commenced their federal investigation of the corporation. Once the implications of his actions were realized, it is hard to foresee if he was either impacted by his actions or if he merely wanted to escape punishment. There is also the possibility that the head executives and chairmen of Enron were under the assumption that only the corporation could be held liable. Although, the principal (Enron) is held liable for the actions of the agent (employees), should the agent be found guilty in a court of law, they can be personally sued under Ultra Vires Doctrine (Lako).
The Essay on Legal Reserve System
The economic challenges that we face in today’s world have become second only to the great depression. The recent collapses of banks and large corporations in our country have made people scramble for a place that has security. We are asked often, “Where can we place assets that provide safety and security in uncertain times”? One place that should be considered is life insurance ...
In other words, this doctrine states that if an agent commits a tort during his/her employment, the company can not defend. Legal consequences did not seem to impact the Enron executive’s unethical decisions. These were intelligent executives that knew their actions could be punishable by law, yet the desire for wealth took precedence over ethics and the legal system. According to Anthony Giddens, corporate crimes are largely invisible and the domain of relatively socially powerful ( 798).
Enron was not the only company involved in white-collared crimes.
With the numerous companies involved in such crimes, an Act was passed called the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002. This Act was intended to prevent future corporate and accounting scandals. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that the CEO and CFO verifying the financial statements of a firm to assume personal and legal responsibility. The establishment of this law exhibits the flexibility of the legal system to encourage ethical social behavior. Since the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was passed in 2002, companies are taking internal code of ethics seriously. Companies have begun to utilize internal auditing and various alternatives for detecting fraud.
In a recent survey, 77 percent of companies say they use internal controls as their chief means of uncovering fraud, compared to 51 percent five years ago (Schwartz).
It is apparent that social attitudes and ethics have changed due to pressures felt by the legal system. In summary, Sociology is a scientific study of human interaction and behaviors. It is more than just an interpretation of one’s actions. It is a study of individuals’ historical, social, and background which influence their behaviors, decisions, and reactions. Sociology is beneficial to provide cultural awareness, sensitivity to consequences of actions, and self-enlightenment.
Ethics is a set of principal which individuals live their lives based with the central focus of personal well-being. It is an abstract concept which aids in right from wrong decision making. It is much broader than simply right and wrong; it gives insight on principals that are socially accepted. Society is formed by our values and traditions. The law plays an important role in maintaining those values. The legal system has many laws that protect our well-being and maintains businesses’ integrity. Acts that are not considered as acceptable behavior in society are often illegal such as: stealing, vandalizing, assault, and murder.
The Essay on Legal Framework – Employement Act
The company complained that Encik Pokok’s application for leave was only received by Encik Bunga on the 26th November 1996. The leave application was not approved because it was not following the company procedure and secondly, reasonable excuse was not given. Encik Pokok was dismissed without internal inquiry done. Encik Pokok claimed that he had submitted his leave application on the 23rd ...
The legal system is flexible and can change as our values change. Years ago, people would be prosecuted for the consumption and/or sale of alcohol, but times have changed and so have our laws. Enron, the major electricity and gas trader corporation, was involved in an accounting scandal that caused the company to go bankrupt. Additionally, the scandal cost many people their jobs and imprisoned their top executives. The sociological aspects did not impact the executives’ decisions. Their actions were highly unethical no matter from what point of view this is observed.
The executives cost the investor’s $60 billion, which was not considered as a possible outcome as their unethical acts of self-indulgence were taking their company to the top. The legal system did not impact Enron’s conduct until the scandal was realized. It is possible that had Enron been aware of the severity of the consequences prior, ethical and legal decisions may have been utilized. The legal system has definitely responded to these types of conduct by major corporations by passing new laws to deter illegal practices and promote ethical working environments.
