Dr. David Krantz, from Columbia University, will give a guest lecture titled, “The Role of Ethical Standards in Individual and Group Decisions” at 6:00 PM on Thursday, November 8, 2012. The lecture is free and open to all interested individuals. It will take place in Burnett Hall, room 115.

He will discuss work that he and colleagues have done to analyze ethical standards in the framework of a multiple-goal theory of decision making. In that framework, adherence to a standard can be viewed either as a goal or as a constraint. Standards originate from affiliations, social goals, and self-identity. Both positive and negative reciprocity generates many social goals.

In addition, his talk will address the question of why people breach ethical standards. It will also explore the role that ethical standards play in the behavior of groups. Examples will be provided from both business and environmental contexts.