Moral Values

1. Introduction In 2013 the Garment factory Rana Plaza in Dhaka collapsed and thousands of workers lost their lives. Hence protests around the world arose about the bad working conditions and the low wages employees gain (Abrams & Sattar, 2017). Moreover, not only in developing countries like Bangladesh people have to work as captive employees. In the US the thirteenth Amendment even especially allows slavery as a punishment for a crime (Economist, 2017) and 61,000 US prisoners annually create goods worth 1bn dollars. This topic of captive labour is highly and perseveratively discussed. Various researcher have written about it with different opinions (Bowman, 2013; Michtom, 2004; Powell, 2008; Worstall, 2014) and touched upon the issue

However the question arises what moral behaviour actually is. According to economist Zsolnai (1997), moral responsible choices emerge when there is more than one choice and the choice the decision maker takes affects not only him/herself but also other parties for example the producer and the company. So the outcome of the choice is highly affecting others. However to act morally every human being needs moral values. How these values form is highly discussed. Some researchers argue that they differ from heritage and education. Others have the opinion that moral values are universal and that it is in humanity that people have a similar code of conduct which is put forward (Kinnier, Kernes, & Dautheribes, 2000). In this argumentation I will presume that moral values are universal and are an emotive mechanism which is needed to form positive and sustainable ethical decisions (Bagozzi, Sekerka, Hill, & Sguera,

It is the Model of responsible choice from Kenneth E. Goodpaster. He created it in 1983 and the main point of it being is that there is rationality and respect. Respect involves that the decision-maker is taking into account how the decision will influence other people around him. The meaning of rationality is that the decision-maker is proceeding in his/her decision but is also considering how to get there and which consequences can happen. This definition of rationality is significantly different to the standard economic idea as it does not mean to maximize the personal benefit regardless of the consequences. Economist Lászlo Zsolnai (1997) even highlights that due to the rareness of the character traits of empathy and social commitment decision-makers who have these qualities receive prizes and ethical awards. He also accentuates that in complex decisions multiple considerations including a variety of value dimensions are required to develop the optimal outcome. This explains the buying behaviour of consumers who consume mindful and are aware of that there consuming decision also influences other