The Ethical Professor A Practical Guide to Research, Teaching and Professional Life

The purpose of The Ethical Professor is to provide a road map to some of the ethical dilemmas that doctoral students and newer faculty members are likely to face as they enter a career in academia (the Academy). Academic career paths appear to be quite standard, transparent, and achievable with dedicated and hard work. Argued in this book, however, is that the road map to a successful academic career is not so easy. There are ethical pitfalls along the way, starting with entry into academia as a new PhD student. These ethical dilemmas remain equally opaque as faculty progress in their careers.

The ethical pitfalls that plague each of the steps along the academic career path are often not visible to doctoral students and young faculty members; nor are they well prepared to spot them. Ethical issues are seldom discussed and little training is provided on how to spot and handle these potential road blocks to a successful career in the academy.

Based on extant research and collective years of academic experience, The Ethical Professor seeks to shorten the learning curve around common ethical pitfalls and issues by defining them, sharing research and experiences about them, and offering a discussion framework for continued learning and reflection.

This innovative new volume will be key reading for doctoral students and junior faculty members in social science departments in colleges and universities, as well as managers undertaking an MBA. Due to the increasing complexity of managing academic institutions, more seasoned professors, administrators, and college deans and presidents, will also benefit from the research presented here.

List of Tables and Figures

Foreword

Preface

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: Ethical Dilemmas in Research

1. 20 Questions: Ethical Research Dilemmas and PhD Students
2. Pitfalls for the Unwary: New Entrants to the Academy
3. Scientists Behaving Badly: Insights from the Fraud Triangle
4. Slicing and Dicing: Ex Ante Approaches
5. Slicing and Dicing: Ex Post Approaches
6. Retraction: Mistake or Misconduct?
7. Double-Blind Review in the Age of Google and PowerPoint
8. Ethics in Research Scenarios: What Would You Do?
9. Thought Leader: Michael A. Hitt on Ethics in Research

Part 3: Ethical Dilemmas in Teaching

10. Beyond Course Content: Ethical Dilemmas in Teaching
11. Teaching and Ethics: A Critical Incident
12. Peer Pressure, Or, I Thought I Was Out of High School
13. Teaching Versus Preaching: Conversational Ethics in the Classroom
14. My Students Want to Friend Me! Boundaries and Relationships with Social Networks
15. What Do We do when Students Despair? Considering Pedagogical Caring
16. From Content to Relationship
17. It’s Not Just Rate My Professor Anymore! Ethical Issues with Student Evaluations of Teaching
18. Student Recommendations: To Give or Not to Give, That Is the Question
19. Thought Leader: Robert A. Giacalone on "Broken When Entering’"

Part 4: Ethical Dilemmas in Professional Life

20. Codes and Conflicts of Interest
21. When Is a Job Offer Really a Job Offer in Academia?
22. Attending Professional Meetings
23. Peer Reviewing
24. Managing University Service Work
25. Tribalism
26. Outside Appointments
27. Thought Leader: Andrew Ven H. Van De Ven on Ethics and Professional Life

Conclusion: Roadmap to Success in the Academy

References

Index

Lorraine Eden is the Gina and Anthony Bahr Professorship in Business in the Department of Management at Texas A&M University.

Kathy Lund Dean is the Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor of Leadership and Ethics at Gustavus Adolphus College.

Paul M. Vaaler is the John and Bruce Mooty Chair in Law and Business at the University of Minnesota's Law School and Carlson School of Management.