Undergraduate Attitudes Toward Business Ethics: A Cross-Cultural Comparison

Abstract

This study builds on prior work on the effect of demographic variables on undergraduate attitudes towards business ethics and examines differences between US and Japanese students sampled in 2011. The samples comprised 89 US and 147 Japanese undergraduate students (n-236). Respondents completed the Attitude Towards Business Ethics (ATBEQ) questionnaire and demographic questions. Data were analyzed with SPSS ANOVA, post-hoc t-tests and with non-parametric tests. Significant Japanese and US student samples differed significantly (p < 0.05) on at least fifty percent of ATBEQ statements. The Japanese students expressed significantly stronger agreement with seven Machiavellian and three Social Darwinism statements whereas the US students expressed significantly stronger agreement with only two Machiavellian and one Social Darwinism statements.