ABSTRACT

This chapter examines how an organization's "ethical orientation" influences its crisis management behavior and performance. It identifies two styles of crisis management and reviews the literature on ethics. The chapter argues that one of these crisis management approaches may lead to a better organizational crisis management performance. It suggests that "bounded morality" is another determinant of effective crisis management. The chapter also argues that moral and ethical values may explain partly why some organizations prefer a proactive approach to crisis management, while others prefer a reactive approach. Three questionnaires on crisis management were sent to the Fortune 1000 corporations before, after, and one year after 9/11. After 9/11, the chapter hypothesized that proactive and reactive organizations would respond differently. The first questionnaire was sent out in February 2001. The second questionnaire was sent out in November 2001. The third questionnaire was sent out in August 2002.