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The Extension of Neutralization Theory to Business Ethics
Author(s) -
Polding Brian
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of leadership studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.219
H-Index - 14
eISSN - 1935-262X
pISSN - 1935-2611
DOI - 10.1002/jls.21529
Subject(s) - commit , extension (predicate logic) , neutralization , criminology , field (mathematics) , social learning theory , psychology , law and economics , social psychology , sociology , law , political science , computer science , virology , virus , mathematics , database , pure mathematics , biology , programming language
Many times those who commit an unethical act are not people we perceive as being unethical people. So how can they do something bad ? One explanation can be found in neutralization theory from the field of criminology. Neutralization theory, developed by Gresham Sykes and David Matza, and extended by Carl Klockars and William Minor, is a social learning model suggesting people learn deviant behavior much as they learn conventional behavior and develop specific techniques of neutralization. The current paper discusses each technique with examples of how each might be used to justify unethical business behavior, and provides ways an organization can inoculate itself against neutralizing attitudes.