Importance of ethics in the business world is superlative and global. New trends and
issues arise on a daily basis which may create an important burden to organizations and end-consumers.
Nowadays, the need for proper ethical behavior within organizations has become
crucial to avoid possible lawsuits. The public scandals of corporate malfeasance and misleading
practices, have affected the public perception of many organizations (e. g., Enron, Arthur
Andersen, WorldCom etc.). It is widely known that advertising does not promote the
advancement of human moral sensibility. Lasch’s contention (1978: 1) that modern advertising
“Seeks to create needs, not to fulfill them: to generate new anxieties instead of allaying old ones. .
. It addresses itself to the spiritual desolation of modern life and proposes consumption as the
cure” seems to still be true.
The recent expansion of global business and fall of trade barriers worldwide have further
underlined the interest in the topics of ethical behavior and social responsibility (See among
others, Jones, 1991: 366-395). In addition, as many scholars believe, human rights and
environmental conservation are gaining increasing more recognition in both academic and
commercial settings.