Business Case Studies & Business Publications

Moral Disengagement in Decision-Making

Martin, Sean

Technical Note

Moral Disengagement in Decision-Making

Martin, Sean

OB-1464 | Published July 24, 2024 | 5 pages Technical Note

Collection: Darden School of Business

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Product Details

This technical note describes an important rationalization process called moral disengagement that helps explain why and how people make decisions that stray away from the values they claim to hold. This reading explains what moral disengagement is, how to identify it in the words and rationales people provide to explain their choices, and why it is such a pernicious problem facing leaders. At the Darden School of Business, this technical note has been taught in the second-year "Defining Moments" course, as well as many executive education formats. It would also be suitable for class discussion about making values-driven decisions.