Final answer:
Taking credit for others' ideas or work or not fulfilling mutual commitments concerns personal integrity, as it breaches honesty and accountability. Organizations use codes of ethics to guide member behavior, highlighting the importance of social responsibility and the social contract in maintaining ethical business practices.
Step-by-step explanation:
Taking credit for others' ideas or work or not meeting one's commitments in a mutual agreement are ethical issues concerning personal integrity. These actions violate the principles of honesty and accountability, which are core to one's ethical conduct within any professional or organizational relationship. In the sphere of business ethics, such behavior can severely undermine trust and cooperation among team members and partners.
Professional organizations, such as those in the fields of science and technology, often establish codes of ethics to guide the behavior of their members. For instance, the IEEE Computer Society's Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice prescribes ethical obligations for software engineers to ensure their work does not harm the public or the environment.
Furthermore, building on the social contract theory, we understand that individuals have moral obligations to society. This philosophy underlies the importance of social responsibility and balancing individual rights with the collective good. This balance is evident in decisions where individuals often consider both their own interests and those of others.
Key Concepts of Ethical Behavior
- Professional integrity
- Corporate and social responsibility
- Communitarianism