Case Analysis

Your ethical analysis of the Penn State scandal (not of Sandusky’s conduct itself,which was obviously worse than merely unethical and for which he will likely spend the rest of his life in prison) is your opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge of, and ability to apply, ethical concepts to arguably one of the most egregious individual and institutional ethical failures ever seen in the sports industry.

Your paper should respond and support your responses to the following:

1. Do we really know all the relevant facts? What important facts are still in dispute? Do the established facts support the inferences in the Freeh Report? Assuming the Freeh Report is substantially correct in its findings that the principal actors realized early on Sandusky was sexually abusing boys, what ethical decision-making models do you think they used (either consciously or subconsciously) to determine their conduct? What kind of ethical decision-making tools might have helped these people make the right decisions in this situation (see TREVINO & NELSON Chapter 2)? Why were others (e.g., the principal and coaches from Central Mountain High School) able to do the “right thing” in 2009? Did they simply have more and more specific information on which to act?

2. How do concepts of ethical awareness and cognitive barriers apply? What levels of cognitive moral development do you think each of the individuals who (1) actually observed Sandusky’s behavior or (2) were informed of his behavior had reached when they made their decisions about what to do (see TREVINO & NELSON at pp. 76-83)? What barriers to good ethical judgment affected these individuals? See generally TREVINO & NELSON Chapter 3.

3. How would you create a culture that would support speaking up (see TREVINO &NELSON Chapter 5, especially pp. 189-95 [A Cultural Approach to Changing Organizational Ethics])?

4. What psychological and situational concepts apply here, such as multiple ethical selves, obedience to authority, etc. (see TREVINO & NELSON Chapter 7)?

5. If the governance–reform measure proposed in 2004 to Penn State’s Board of Trustees had been in place in 1998 or 2001, would it have made a difference? If the recommendations of the Freeh Report are implemented, is Penn State likely to succeed in changing for the better its ethical systems and culture? Why or why not?