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Mini Case Assignment – Ethics (8%) Crowd Funding (Case located in Content Section of D2L)
Objective:
Students will read a case study that illustrates a potential ethical dilemma and will be asked to evaluate it by writing an essay. The objective of this assignment is two-fold. First is to evaluate a student's writing ability early on during the semester. Second is to evaluate a student's understanding of ethics, particularly as it relates to business and management. In your writing reflect on your own values and apply various ethical business perspectives as described in case.
Assignment description:
Ethical reasoning pertains to right and wrong human conduct. It requires students to be able to assess their own ethical values in the social context of problems, recognize ethical issues in a variety of settings, think about how different ethical perspectives might be applied to ethical dilemmas, and consider the ramifications of alternative actions. Students' ethical "self-identity" evolves as they practice ethical decision-making skills and learn how to describe and analyze positions on ethical issues.
For this assignment, students are asked to read a case study, Crowd funding: A case study at the intersection of social Media and Business Ethics (Padgett, Rolston 2014) that describes a series of ethical dilemmas for the founders of Kickstarter. Students will write an essay based on the dilemmas in the case, from the perspective of three philosophical views of ethical behavior: the utilitarian, rights and justice perspectives.
Student deliverables (based on Ethical Reasoning Rubric):
Your written paper must be five (5) to seven (7) pages in length, double-spaced, Times New Roman 12-point font, and in APA format.
Descriptions of each section that you should include in your paper is outlined below. These deliverables correspond to the grading rubric, so please read these instructions carefully.
Core ethical beliefs.
Student should discuss, with great depth and clarity, your personal core beliefs, as well as the origins of your core beliefs. Core ethical beliefs are fundamental principles that consciously or unconsciously influence your ethical conduct and ethical thinking. They shape your ethical responses and may reflect your environment, religion, culture or training. In a few paragraphs, please tell the reader about your core ethical beliefs, and the origins of these beliefs.
Ethical issues recognition.
Student should demonstrate mastery recognizing the ethical issues found in the Crowdfunding case study. In other words, this is a summary, in your own words, of the ethical dilemmas found at the end of the case study. There are several ethical dilemmas in this case study, so in order to receive full points on this section, you must be able to discuss two of the ethical issues, and why you believe these are ethical issues (for the founders of Kickstarter, and for others discussed in the case study).
Understanding different ethical perspectives.
Student should identify and explain the three philosophical views of ethical behavior identified above, with significant detail and elaboration (utilitarian view, justice view, and rights view). You should begin with the definition in the table on p. 470 for each view (with appropriate citations according to APA rules) and then explain what each of these means, in your own words.
Application of ethical perspectives.
Student should apply all three philosophical views of ethical behavior, with significant detail and elaboration (utilitarian view, justice view, and rights view) to one of the ethical issues described in section 2. Meaning, what argument could be made for each philosophical view in helping Strickler, Adler and Chen make an appropriate ethical decision? For example, "according to the utilitarian view, the founders would consider these xx factors and would make these xx decisions based on this philosophical viewpoint."
Evaluation of different ethical perspectives to guide actions.
Students should state their own position on the chosen ethical dilemma (meaning, what you would do, if you were one of the founders) and you must also state the ethical perspective you used to inform your choice (utilitarian view, justice view, or rights view). Students should also evaluate, with highly detailed analysis and clarity, the assumptions and implications of your decision (meaning, what might happen to Kickstarter if they choose this path, and what the risks and benefits would be to Kickstarter, the founders, and others, if they choose to use your advice).
Example paper outline (using centered, bolded sub-headings):
Section 1: Core Ethical Beliefs
Section 2: Ethical Issues Recognition
Section 3: Understanding Different Ethical Perspectives
Section 4: Application of Ethical Perspectives
Section 5: Evaluation of Different Ethical Perspectives to Guide Actions
Section 6: References
Proper APA formatting:
It is critical that you use proper APA 6th edition formatting for writing this essay. Points will be deducted for papers not in APA format. This includes (in order):
A title page (does not get included in the total page count).
A running head and page numbers (an abstract is not necessary for this assignment).
Main body of paper, with section headers (bolded and centered) as per the example outline provided above. These are the only pages are included in your page count. Remember this papers should be between 5 and 7 pages.
A references page (does not get included in page count). Make sure it is in proper APA format, and lists the articles about the ethical perspectives and the ethics case study as well as any other outside sources (if you use any).
Written Communications Grading Rubric:
The grading rubrics being used for this assignment are standard across all Metropolitan State's College of Management courses and are adapted from the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AACU). In addition to the Ethical Reasoning Rubric, students are also being evaluated on writing ability, via the Written Communications Grading Rubric. Tips on creating an excellent written paper are described below.
Criterion 1: Purpose of the paper
An excellent paper will demonstrate a thorough understanding of the assignment purpose, the outcomes desired, and the audience targeted. Details that will help you create an excellent paper are below:
The assignment purpose of this ethics essay is to demonstrate mastery in identifying the ethical issues and dilemmas found in this case study, and evaluating these ethical issues from three philosophical viewpoints. The outcomes desired are to describe to your instructor, in great detail, your responses to the five sections requested in this assignment. The targeted audience is your instructor, who is trained to read essays with a critical eye. Instructors are looking for essays that demonstrate careful thought and considerable attention to detail. A paper "thrown together" at the last minute is easy to spot, so please allow yourself enough time to turn in a high-quality essay. Metropolitan State University has a Writing Center available to all students, with tutors who can help you with your writing ability. They can be reached via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or 651-793-1460 to schedule an appointment.
Criterion 2: Structure and organization
An excellent paper will have a structure that is logical and sequential. Each paragraph should begin with a strong topic sentence that is thoroughly developed and supported in the remaining sentences. The transitions between paragraphs and sentences should be smooth. Details that will help you create an excellent paper are described below:
Please do not submit one big block of text; use subheadings to identify each section of your paper. Be sure that each paragraph begins with a strong topic sentence, and that you thoroughly develop and support your topic sentence in the remaining sentences. Be deliberate when structuring your paragraphs, so that the reader (the instructor) can easily follow along with your organized paper. Also, be careful not to add unnecessary page breaks or large gaps in your essay. All essays should be double-spaced, Times New Roman 12-point font. Extra spacing makes the document look messy, and instructors will not be favorable to extra spacing that looks as though it has been added to make your paper look longer.
Criterion 3: Content
An excellent paper contains a clear statement of the central issue(s). It uses appropriate, relevant and compelling content to convey ideas and demonstrate mastery of the subject matter. It also consistently demonstrates critical thinking and thoughtful analysis. Details that will help you create an excellent paper are described below:
Critical thinking means making reasoned judgments based on evidence. Simply creating a list of facts and figures does not indicate critical thinking or thoughtful analysis. You must spend significant time structuring your paper so that your content is thoughtful and deliberate, and that you are responding to each of the five sections with significant detail and elaboration.
Criterion 4: Writing Mechanics
An excellent paper is formatted appropriately. It is free of punctuation, spelling, grammatical and capitalization errors. The word choice is strong, varied and appropriate for the subject matter. Sections are separated by headings. Details that will help you create an excellent paper are described below:
Documents follow APA 6th edition formatting rules including a proper cover sheet, running head, page numbers, sub-headings, in-text citations, and an appropriately formatted references section. Please use spellcheck and also be sure that you have all names and details written correctly. Sentences also need to have correct punctuation and capitalization.
Criterion 5: Sources, evidence and support
In an excellent paper all sources are correctly cited, referenced, and formatted to the requirements of the assignment. Also, all sources are credible, authoritative, timely, and relevant to support the main thesis. Details that will help you create an excellent paper are described below: When discussing details from the referenced articles, be sure that these are correctly cited per APA formatting rules. For example, if you explain the philosophical viewpoint of the utilitarian view, follow the sentence with an in-text citation (White and Taft, 2004, p. xyz). Every reference must have matching in-text citation(s) and vice versa. If you use outside sources, follow the same APA rules for in-text citations and the references page. Please read the definition of plagiarism in the Student Handbook and become familiar with the policy on plagiarism.
