The Warhead Cable Test Dilemma Stanton Wong

• What stage of moral development do you think Stanton Wong is at? What about Harry Jackson? Why do you think so?

According to Kohlberg’s moral development theory, Stanton Wong is at post-conventional level. At this level, right action comes to be defined in terms of moral principles chosen because of their logical comprehensiveness, universality and consistency. It is because he is concerned with the well being of the innocent civilians and the military personnel if a missile misfired. Furthermore, he also thought how he can resolve this problem so that everyone is cared for equally that not harmed by the missile misfired. For Harry Jackson, he is at pre-conventional level. It is because he does not cares of others except if it benefits himself and how senior management can reward him.

• What do you think Stanton should do now, and why? Use one or more of the methods of ethical reasoning presented in the chapter to support your view.

I think Stanton should ask the source inspector, Jane Conway to check the warhead cable and also report to Jane Conway about the failed samples first. If Harry Jackson still ignores to solve the problem then Stanton should report to senior management. Besides, he also can try getting someone in the parent company to get help. One of the methods of ethical reasoning is logic. I think it is logical for Stanton to report the mistakes to authorities as he cares for the civilians and the military personnel. The other method of ethical reasoning is consistency. I think the behavior of Stanton is consistent with his caring attitude and always think that what he can do to solve the problem.

•  Should Stanton blow the whistle on his company? Why or why not?

I think Stanton should inform senior management and should not become an external whistle-blower because the media should not be involved. He should try to solve the problem internally first before involving outside parties. Furthermore, he was respected by factory workers and management colleagues and he should not destroy his reputation by himself. Besides that, he also should not destroy the company’s image because he himself is an employee of the company.

•  What steps could the company take to prevent a situation like this from occurring in the future?

To prevent a situation like this from occurring in the future, the company should have an established set of testing rules and if a certain number of tests fail out of another certain number then something needs to be done to fix the problem immediately. This rule should be strictly implemented. Secondly, if there any serious disagreement between vice president and supervisor, the matter should directly report to top management. Besides that, the company should take actions on Harry Jackson such as issue him a warning letter or punishment so that he will not repeat the mistake in future.