BUSINESS STUDENTS AND MORAL DEVELOPMENT: FINDINGS FROM A CANADIAN STUDY

Mallika Das
Elsie Henderson
Mount Saint Vincent University

ABSTRACT

Moral development is a factor influencing ethical decision making yet there is evidence
students’ ethical standards are problematic. This should be of concern to businesses since
studies have shown that students who perform unethical acts in colleges and universities are
more likely to exercise poor ethical judgment in the work place. The defining issues test (DIT)
has been used to assess an individual’s moral development (Thoma & Dong, 2014). While there
are numerous studies in the United States (US) and a few in Canada related to this topic, none
have focused on universities in Atlantic Canada. Results of this study indicate that moral
development, as measured by the p score of participants, varied significantly by GPA while the
N2 scores of participants varied significantly by GPA and age. There were no significant
differences by gender, year of study, program of study, or whether completed an ethics course.
Other studies have had similar results.

Keywords: Defining issues test, DIT, moral development, post-conventional