Abstract

This dissertation measures the dominant personal value orientations exhibited by corporate managers and explores whether there is a link between the managers' personal value orientation and stage of moral reasoning. ;Milton Rokeach's value theory and Value Survey, modified to a rating scale method, are used to measure the managers' personal values. The theory of moral development and Standard Issues Scoring method developed by Lawrence Kohlberg and his associates are used to measure the managers stages of moral reasoning. An abbreviated scoring guide is developed to simplify the scoring method. ;As predicted, the findings indicate that the dominant personal value orientation for corporate managers emphasizes personal and competence values. None of the four proposed hypotheses linking personal value orientations to stages of moral reasoning is statistically supported. However, the findings suggest that some relationships do exist. ;The behavioral implications of the managers' personal value orientations and stages of moral reasoning are considered. The relationships discovered between these two traits also are discussed. The dissertation's theoretical and methodological contributions are presented, and implications for future research are discussed