1. The term "corporate social responsibility" is today best defined in the U.S. by:

Federal statutory incorporation law.

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Rule 10b(5)

Kant's ethical writings condemning the corporate form of business for being selfish, greedy, and immoral

Current definitions in business of the term which indicate that a company should be socially responsible and thus contribute to charities and civic organizations, but in a prudent and smart manner.

 

2. How would the Sophists best treat the value of social responsibility?

Ignore it since nothing is real anyway.

Adhere to it since God commands it as in the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Use it instrumentally as a tool to empower yourself and your company.

Adhere to it since it is an intrinsic moral truth to help others.

 

3. Which of the following is a correct statement regarding the definition of the term "social responsibility" in a business context?

A socially responsible business person believes that the formal legal law is inferior to universal moral and ethical principles that can be determined by intuition.

Social responsibility is the branch of philosophy that focuses on morally right and wrong behavior.

Social responsibility is based on current societal views as to how and the extent a business should contribute to charities and civic organizations and be involved in helping the community.

A business cannot adhere to social responsibility principles and the doctrine of ethical egoism since both are always mutually exclusive.

 

4. Today, critics of the corporation argue for various corporate governance reform proposals to improve the legal, moral, and socially responsible behavior of the corporation. Which of the following is the most convincing argument AGAINST these proposals?

These proposals are inadvisable because corporate managers should never have any duty other than to maximize profits for the shareholders

These proposals are unnecessary because market forces invariably operate to deter any corporate misbehavior

These proposals are unnecessary because existing law already establishes clear standards for what is and is not moral corporate behavior globally

These proposals are inadvisable because they will reduce corporate ability to respond quickly to changing business conditions and therefore will create allocational inefficiency.