A booklet written and assembled with the entire group\'s effort to summarize the Ethics Immersive Learning team\'s work as of Spring 2009 for a presentation to the Ball State University Miller College of Business Board of Directors.

1. Spring 2009
Miller College of Business
Immersive Learning Ethics Project
Student Ethics
Project Results

2. Page Title Goes Here

3. From the Group
W hen we first came together, charged
with setting in motion the events
needed to change the culture of both student
of new experiences and trials for everyone
involved and as a team, we have grown
tremendously as our vision has focused.
and business ethics within the Miller College The steps taken this semester have laid
of Business, we did not know where to begin. a solid foundation for achieving the goal of
As students ourselves, we were vaguely aware this experience—changing attitudes about
of how other students felt about ethical ethics—and are a step in the right direction
behavior in an academic context, but nothing toward an engaging product. This project has
could have prepared us for discovering what truly been Immersive Learning at its best, and
students really believe. we look forward to the opportunity to make
Our group is comprised of a wide variety a positive difference in the lives of students at
of backgrounds: from Business students of all Ball State University in coming semesters.
types, to Journalism, and even a Physics major.
This semester has consistently seen all kinds – Spring 2009 Ethics Team
Marc Pendel, sphr, Faculty Mentor
Degrees: B.S. - Industrial Marc has been teaching at the college level for
nearly 20 years, the majority of which were spent
Psychology, Kent State University as an adjunct faculty member at Ball State before
becoming a full-time Instructor six years ago.
M.B.A. - Organization Development
He left the business community after 35 years of
& Finance, Ohio University experience in human resources and operations
management; before coming to Indiana, he
Position: Instructor of Management taught in Dayton, OH. Marc is a U.S. Navy
veteran and has been in Muncie since 1982. He
Hometown: Farrell, PA is married with three children, two step-children,
and seven grandchildren.
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4. Spring 2009 Team
Jennifer Durbin, Senior Andrew Magee, Freshman
Major: Business Administration, Major: Undecided (Journalism/TCOM)
Minor: Hospitality Management Hometown: Huber Heights, OH
Hometown: Kendallville, IN Activities and Organizations
Activities and Organizations NHS, Business Professionals of America, Inter-
national Thespian Society, Class Cabinet, Im-
Student Council, Cadet Teaching, NHS, Show pressions Literary Magazine, Naturalist Outdoor
Choir, Manager at Cardinal Lanes Education, Freshman Mentoring, Drama Club,
Band, National Society of Collegiate Scholars
During high school, I was highly involved and learning came easy to me; my time at Growing up in a close, loving family positively impacted who I am as a person and what I
Ball State has been focused mainly on work and school. I have been blessed to have two stand for. Maintaining a healthy relationship with my parents and my sister taught me the
internships that taught me the value of independence, hard work, organization, teamwork, value of trust, teamwork, and responsibility. It is my top priority in school to always do
and motivation. After graduation, I plan on moving to Philadelphia to find a job that will my best and put forth maximum effort even when no one else will. This ethics immersive
enhance my knowledge about the hospitality industry and the business side of companies. project interested me because I saw the opportunity to act on my strong belief in moral
My goal in five years is to be working with a successful and exciting event planning firm. responsibility. In whatever career I choose, ethical practices will be my first concern.
David Martin, Senior Kenneth Moorhead, Senior
Major: HR Management, Major: Physics
Hospitality and Food Management Minor: Astronomy
Hometown: Warren, IN Hometown: New Palestine, IN
Activities and Organizations Activities and Organizations
Society for Human Resource Management,
Research Assistant—Extrasolar Planetary Transit
Hospitality and Food Management Association,
Search, Teaching Assistant—Department of
Volunteer at Ball Memorial Hospital,
Physics and Astronomy, Jazz Band
Volunteer at the Harvest Soup Kitchen
I am from Warren, a small community in Northeast Indiana. I graduated from Huntington After deciding to enroll at Ball State as a junior in high school, I was able to enjoy my senior
North High School and am now a double major. I expect to graduate in Spring ‘09 and year as a leading performer with my school’s jazz band. Since then, I have enthusiastically
then continue in the fall to finish my second degree. In addition to school, I work at the tackled both BSU’s Honors curriculum alongside my major in physics. My desire for cross-
Heritage Pointe Retirement Community in Warren and at Ball State University in Dining disciplinary study made this immersive learning opportunity very attractive to me; it has
Services (Studebaker West and Noyer complex). In my free time, I volunteer and like to been a joy to take a break from my astronomy research to be a part of this team and I am
participate in and watch sports, as well as spend time with family and friends. sincerely glad to have had the experience during my last semester at Ball State.
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5. Spring 2009 Team
Emily Muzzy, Junior Ashley Paetz, Senior
Major: Marketing Major: Marketing
Hometown: Hamilton, IN Hometown: Noblesville, IN
Activities and Organizations Activities and Organizations
President of Pi Sigma Epsilon, ADP Scholar & Alpha Phi Alumni, Vice President of Human
College Representative, Sales Student Advisory Resources of Pi Sigma Epsilon
Board, Sales Team, Pi Sigma Epsilon Scholar,
APC, Volunteer at Animal Rescue Fund (ARF)
I grew up in a very small town (the main intersection is a 4-way stop) and I often ran late I changed my major twice before deciding on a marketing degree, and I am very excited
to school whenever I was caught driving behind Amish buggys. Although I could not wait about a future career in sales. I am learning as much as I can in both school and the
to come to Ball State, I still find myself missing that small town atmosphere. I would not be workplace. In high school, I started out as cheerleader, but decided that I enjoyed dancing
the person I am today without my family; they have always seen the potential in me and have much more – so I joined a competition dance team. I also held a job as a receptionist and
pushed me to stay involved. I hope to make them very proud someday when I land a spot on was a member of my high school’s choir. I have played the piano since age eight and still
the marketing team for the The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. enjoy it. Ball State was my first choice for college, and I have been very happy here.
Riley Paulsen, Junior Brandon White, Senior
Major: Journalism Graphics, Major: Human Resource Manage-
Graphic Arts Management ment, Operations Management
Minor: Business Administration Hometown: Osgood, IN
Hometown: Alexandria, IN Activities and Organizations
Activities and Organizations Community Service Chair of Society for Human
Resource Management, Public Relations Chair
Digital Corps, Society for News Design, Graphic of The Association for Operations Management,
Arts Unlimited, Kappa Tau Alpha, NHS, Band Volunteer at Ball Memorial Hospital
My fields essentially require nonstop learning, so I try to see the potential opportunities I am a non-traditional student that returned to school after working in operations
in everything that I do. I am currently editing a short documentary about a class project, management for nearly five years. In Fall ‘09, I participated in a Lilly Endowment Business
and this summer, I will be building an enterprise e-commerce website with the journalism Fellow Project focused on helping the city of Muncie become “greener.” I also worked with
department. In my spare time, I am teaching myself a programming language for creating Motivate Our Minds (MOMs) in Muncie as part of an immersive learning project. MOMs
interactive media projects - including ones much like the Ethics Project will eventually turn seeks to help underprivileged children by providing after-school activities and tutoring. My
out to be. On the side, I am a pianist and love to listen and relax to jazz and world music. team helped MOMs develop a performance appraisal system for their staff and volunteers.
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6. Introduction
Why This is Needed hOW iT Will help Our GOals
This project was needed not only We are dedicated to finding a solu- This program is made by students,
because ethics is essential in today’s tion to combat this serious problem. for students. Our current plans
business world, but also to attempt We feel that our project can help include making sure the finished
to combat the high rates of cheating, change the mindset of the academic form of this project reaches each
plagiarism, and other unethical aca- community: we as students and pro- and every Miller College of Business
demic activities taking place within fessors can make a difference in the student.
the Miller College of Business at ethical behavior of both present and
Ball State University, and likely at future students. Of course, this may require a tran-
the rest of the country’s academic sitional phase, but we recommend
institutions. Our project will guide business that participation become a require-
students through a multi-faceted, ment of the Advanced Profession-
We have taken on the responsibil- interactive website that will educate alism Certificate (APC) program.
ity to uncover why and how these and evaluate students in their un- Overall, the underlying goal of
unethical issues are able to occur, derstanding of academic and topical this project is to assist students in
and to develop a strategy to start the ethical issues related to business. We making proper ethical choices after
Miller College of Business on the will promote the idea of taking an graduation by teaching and expos-
path to inform the leaders of tomor- action-oriented approach, as op- ing them to the skills that will be
row about the areas of ethics and the posed to being solely theoretically needed throughout job searches and
consequences of unethical behavior. oriented. career development.
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7. Project Brief
plaNs fOr The prOjecT
Our plans for the final result of this project have never stopped growing.
iNTervieWs
A short documentary about ethics will be compiled
from footage gathered during interviews.
iNTeracTive videO sceNariOs
Students will be able to choose what ethical decisions they
think are correct by watching videos with variable outcomes.
sTudeNT eThics survey
A wide range of data was collected from current Miller College of
Business students to evaluate trends and indicate problem areas.
While the results of this survey are concerning in many respects,
it is important to note that more research is needed to see the full
picture. The data collected from this first survey was valuable,
but preliminary. A better breakdown of demographics and more
targeted questioning is needed to clearly gain a perspective on
exactly how many students “cheat,” and how frequently they are
doing it. In subsequent surveys, the team can refine the questions
and prompts to gather a clearer picture of the overall culture within
the Miller College of Business.
chaNGiNG The culTure
The final efforts of the project will be focused on
changing attitudes surrounding ethics in both a
university and business settings.
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8. Interviews
T o gain real world insight
into the results of the ethics
survey, we focused on gathering
scandal; Don Dumoulin, Chairman
of the MCOB Executive Advisory
Board; Betsy Mills, a former SGA
richard culp
Accounting Professor,
Former Arthur
Anderson Employee
information via interviews with President and now a graduate
people who have encountered a student who teaches in the
wide variety of ethical dilemmas. Communications Department; Kelli don dumoulin
These videos will familiarize student Conrad, the BSU Board of Trustee’s MCOB Advisory
Board Member
viewers with stories of real life student member; and Ebony Strong,
ethical situations, how the interview a former SGA Secretary. We asked
subjects dealt with these situations, each person various ethics-related
Betsy Mills
and will gather a range of general questions and incorporated some
Former SGA
opinions about ethical behavior. of the results of our survey into the President, Graduate
We chose to conduct interviews questions. Student
with various members of the As the project continues, plans
Ball State community. So far, we are to expand our interviews to Kellie conrad
have talked with Richard Culp, include many other students as well BSU Board of
an accounting professor in the as local business leaders, CEO’s, the Trustees Student
Member
Miller College of Business and Provost, other BSU administrators
an employee of Arthur Anderson and professors, and possibly
during the time of the Enron government officials. ebony strong
Former SGA
Secretary
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9. Interactive Videos
T he final product of this
Immersive Learning project
will be an interactive website
ethical situations that present
themselves through the use of
video. The student will have the
Using an online distribution
method will allow students’
progress through the site to be
that will showcase and expose to opportunity to choose what they tracked, giving the college a way
students different types of ethics would do, and their choice will to ensure that students engage
scenarios and dilemmas. affect the outcome of the scenario. in a majority of the learning
As a part of our research for These videos will be innovative opportunities before they receive
this project, we gathered opinions and different from other ethical credit for participation.
about how the final product training methods in that they The project will utilize the
would best get through to and will take place from the users’ latest interactive multimedia
engage students. The results were perspectives. This project will technology, including streaming
unanimous in requesting some essentially let students actively video. The structure will be built
form of interactive video content. participate in making ethical or to ensure that the project is easily
We have developed a plan to unethical decisions. updatable and customizable for
fulfill this request while informing Beginning work on these future changes and additions.
students about ethical problems videos will expand the project’s
that may arise in their futures. multidisciplinary reach across
We plan to create a series of campus, bringing together Theater
interactive videos that will allow and Telecommunications majors
students to make decisions about to move the project forward.
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10. Business Students Ethics Survey
B efore it was possible to explore
how to change the culture sur-
rounding ethics, it was very important
questions about business-related ethics
to pre-business students; logically, these
students should be freshmen and soph-
classes that had been put off. Unfor-
tunately, this created an imbalance in
the class standing distribution of the
to understand the target audience: omores. To reach these students, the results. In hopes of receiving answers
students that are members of the Miller survey was distributed to courses that from a larger amount of underclass-
College of Business. The most effective are prerequisites for acceptance into the men, more surveys were distributed.
way to find out this information was College of Business. With these extra responses, the survey
to create and distribute an anonymous After having students from five differ- reached 11 sections of various courses,
survey given to as many business stu- ent courses participate in the survey, the with a total of nearly 300 students hav-
dents as possible. team noticed that majority of the stu- ing been surveyed.
The first stage of the project focused dents were upperclassmen (juniors and
on academic ethics; it makes sense that seniors). A conclusion was reached that
this issue would be more relevant than upperclassmen were simply completing
The survey was deMOGraphics
class
freshman sophomore junior senior
developed in order
to investigate three 32% 18% 34% 16%
different, broad topics.
Sampled areas include: 18-19 20-21 22-23 24-25 26+
aGe
• Demographics and
background information 32% 50% 14% 2% 2%
• Feelings about ethics in
both educational and
GeNder
business environments female Male prefer Not to answer
5 43% 50% 7%
• An ethical history of
students’ actions during
their time at college

11. Institutional Review Board (IRB)
D uring this project, our team had a out the process. The PI designed and
respecT fOr persONs
TeNeTs Of eThical research
chance to understand and experi- submitted all of the forms necessary to
ence the process of conducting behavioral gain IRB authorization, including the • Individuals should be treated as
autonomous agents
research on human subjects. Because the protocol document, which is a descrip- • Persons with diminished au-
project’s focus concerned ethics, when tive narrative outlining, in detail, each tonomy are entitled to additional
protections
we decided to conduct a survey, we made step of the research process. Because our
efforts to collect the data in the most research was conducted anonymously BeNeficeNce
ethical manner possible. Even though and involved little risk to participants, a • Do no harm
• Maximize possible benefits and
our survey was informal, it met all of the consent form was not needed. However,
minimize possible harms
ethical standards set by the Institutional the PI did design an introduction letter
Review Board (IRB). The IRB is an inde- for participants to outline their participa- jusTice
pendent ethics committee that approves, tion and inform them of their rights. • Treat individuals and groups fairly
and equitably in terms of bear-
monitors, and reviews research involving Because our team took the time and ing the burdens and receiving the
humans with the aim to protect the rights effort to register our survey with the IRB, benefits of research
and welfare of the research subjects. all of the results are eligible for publica- http://www.bsu.edu/irb
In order to meet all of the standards, tion. Even though this survey was con-
every team member had to complete and ducted to gain a clearer focus for the
pass the National Institutes of Health’s design of the final program, some of the
tutorial on “protecting human research results are intriguing and could be used
participants.” This tutorial has seven sec- to develop subsequent surveys and help
tions that focus on everything from the with the further development of this
history of research involving humans to project. It would also be interesting and
current codes and regulations. Addition- useful to compare these results to future
ally, one team member was chosen to be surveys or similar research conducted at
the Principal Investigator (PI) through- other universities.
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12. Findings
Q: Q:
Have you cheated on Have you ever allowed one of your
tests, homework, etc. friends to copy from your homework
since being at BSU? or a test while in college?
81%
66% 69%
A: A:
55% 58% 60%
45% 45%
YES Freshmen Sophomores Juniors Seniors YES Freshmen Sophomores Juniors Seniors
Q:
If you have cheated on a Looking at Someone’s Paper 68%
quiz/test, or know
someone who has, how Word of Mouth 30%
did you/they do it?
Unauthorized Note Cards 22%
A:
Mobile Device 14%
Advanced Copy of the Exam/Homework 13%
Q: Q:
Would you turn in someone who has Can a college student change
cheated on a test, quiz, paper, their ethical beliefs?
project, or homework?
70%
62% 58%
A: A:
55%
8% 15% 10% 11%
7 YES Freshmen Sophomores Juniors Seniors YES Freshmen Sophomores Juniors Seniors

13. Findings
Q:
Which do you feel was the Freshmen Sophomores Juniors Seniors
most in uential in developing 4% 5% 7%
your sense of ethics? 8% 12%
6%
Family 13%
A:
87% 71% 83% 81%
Friends
Religion 4%
1% 4% 12% 4% 5% 4%
Media/ 4% 2% 7%
Society
8% 4%
Teachers 13% 6%
Q: Q:
Do you have to compromise Do you have to compromise
your personal ethics to be your personal ethics to be
successful in college? successful in business?
6% 12%
Yes Yes
A: A:
33% 48%
Somewhat 61% Somewhat 40%
No No
Q:
I have I feel pressure to get better grades 38%
cheated or
plagiarized I’ve never cheated/plagiarized 38%
because:
I don’t have time 21%
A:
Other reasons than listed 17%
It’s no big deal/most students do it 16%
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14. What this Means
T he results of our survey give
great cause for concern over the
attitude surrounding student integrity cONclusiONs
in the Miller College of Business, but The following points may be inferred from the results of this survey.
also gives hope that the environment cheaTiNG
A significant portion of students from all class standings
and culture can be positively affected. do and will cheat.
To clarify expectations to students
Why?
and reinforce the importance of The largest factor prompting unethical behavior is
pressure to perform academically.
establishing patterns of ethical
behavior, it is up to the Business GOOd NeWs
Students believe values regarding ethics can be
College and the Advisory Board to influenced and changed at the college level.
support the continuation of this Bad NeWs
project in hopes of implementing a Students feel that they will be more pressured to
compromise their ethics in the business world than at
program to deal with these problems the college level.
swiftly. This is imperative toward This survey reveals much about the culture of student ethics
in the Miller College of Business.
ensuring that students carry on
ethical behaviors they learn at Ball Our findings confirmed what we suspected—cheating is
a major issue in our college, and perhaps throughout the
State as they move to a business entire university. Our work going forward will focus on
environment following graduation. improving student awareness of the consequences related to
unethical behavior as they transition from college to the real
world workplace.
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15. Where We Go from Here
O ur team has determined that
the issue of ethical behavior
clearly needs to be addressed in a
give our team a very good start to Semester of 2009, this would give
tying up the loose ends of the project us an entire new group of students,
before the Fall Semester of 2009. including a new group of college
more specific manner. We came to We plan to write the scripts that will freshman. We feel that our future
this conclusion very quickly after eventually be used for interactive plans for this project are very
receiving the results from the survey. video scenarios, on both the student attainable and we look forward to
To allow for a continued exploration, and business content sides of the the continuation of this project.
our team has decided that we need project. We also plan to continue
more time to complete the entire interviewing relevant persons to give
scope of the project. Continuing us room to expand the interview and
this project into future semesters commentary sections of the product,
would allow the team, including prepare a follow-up survey for the
new members, to elaborate in greater fall semester, and design and begin
depth about the issue of ethical work on the website.
behavior of college students. A new comprehensive survey
The team has prepared a plan will allow the team to further our
for the summer, which includes a investigation of ethical behavior
list of the tasks that we are ready to in college students. If the survey
accomplish. The summer plans will were implemented during the Fall
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16. Contact Information
Ray Montagno, Associate Dean
765-285-8195
rvmontagno@bsu.edu
Marc Pendel, Instructor of Management
765-285-5243
mapendel@bsu.edu
Jennifer Durbin, Senior
jadurbin@bsu.edu
Andrew Magee, Freshman
ammagee@bsu.edu
David Martin, Senior
damartin@bsu.edu
Kenneth Moorhead, Senior
kmmoorhead2@bsu.edu
Emily Muzzy, Junior
elmuzzy@bsu.edu
Ashley Paetz, Senior Special Thanks To:
alpaetz@bsu.edu Marchal Armstead, Kellie Conrad, Richard Culp,
Riley Paulsen, Junior Don Dumoulin, Tom Harris, Judy Lane, Margo
rapaulsen@bsu.edu Liming-Allen, Betsy Mills, Ray Montagno, William
Moser, Matt Stephenson, Ebony Strong
Brandon White, Senior
bjwhite@bsu.edu Digital Corps, University Teleplex
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