Exploration study of leaders motives when faced with ethical decision dilemma in the mining industry

Abstract

Ethical dilemmas are complex situations that leaders often face on a regular basis. These dilemmas arise as a result of conflicting interest and desires by different stakeholders; however leaders are expected to manage them accordingly. There have been a number of scandals resulting from inappropriate means of handling ethical dilemmas in the last decade. The purpose of the study was to establish motives of leaders when faced with ethical dilemma in the mining industry. Ten ethical dilemma cases were developed and tested using middle management in one of the coal mines as the population sample. Motives and factors that are influencing decision making processes were explored. Findings from the study indicated that social and normative motives are the key drivers of decisions which are equally influenced by individual, situational and organisational factors. There were slight differences in how young managers approach ethical dilemmas as opposed to older managers. The implication for businesses is mainly to invest in ethical education for their leaders as ethical behaviour requires an ability to identify issues and understanding means of dealing with dilemmas.