The hard problems of management : gaining the ethics edge /

``Ethical self-defense for managers'' would be a more descriptive subtitle for this book. Pastin's stated purpose is to provide an ``ethical toolbox'' for practicing managers on the grounds that consideration of the ethical ramifications of any business decision leads to actions that make good business sense as well. He discusses several models of ethical reasoning that permit managers to justify, on ethical grounds, behavior that is often considered to be unethical or exploitative (e.g., bribes to foreign governments by multinational corporations or inflated pricing of commode seats by defense contractors). Pastin chooses to invent jargon for concepts that already have generally accepted meanings and to rely on anecdotes (the point of which is not always clear) rather than evidence to support his sweeping generalizations and assertions. Because he frequently fails to identify or distinguish between some of the very basic philosophical concepts on which his argument depends, the book seems to lack a conceptual structure that would help the reader connect its ideas and recommendations. Poor organization creates further confusion, as key concepts are introduced and defined, illustrated by an anecdote or two, and then picked up again many chapters later, when the reader has forgotten both the definition and the story that accompanied it. Better books on the possible relationships between management and ethics are available: Richard C. Chewning's Business Ethics in a Changing Culture (1983), James R. Glenn's Ethics in Decision Making (1986), and Patrician H. Werhane's Persons, Rights, and Corporations (1985).-M.S. Myers, Carnegie-Mellon University