Teaching business ethics in UK higher education: progress and prospects

A large proportion of students in UK higher education now study business and management. Although universities might be expected to aim to produce well-rounded graduates, there has been a perception that business schools have tended to take a narrow view of business studies, paying little attention to ethical issues. However, recently there have been some signs of change. A survey was therefore conducted to investigate the teaching of business ethics at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels in the UK. Although provision is still on a limited scale, signs of growth are evident, with a significant proportion of institutions offering at least some business ethics teaching, either within a``mainstream'' subject or as a separate module. This provision was reported as being well received by students, but several challenges for the future were identified, including the supply of suitably qualified lecturers and the availability of non-US case study material. The findings provide a baseline for tracking the future development of business ethics in the UK. Several suggestions for further research are also made.