Rebecca C. Ruehle

Title of Dissertation:
Nudging in Business Ethics

Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Philipp Schreck
University: Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg
Scholarship: KSG Scholarship
Cohort: 3. Cohort, 2016-2019

For updated information, please have a look at Rebecca’s profile here:
https://research.vu.nl/en/persons/dr-rebecca-c-ruehle

• Short Abstract

  
  My PhD investigates whether the instrument of nudging can and should be applied in business ethics in order to increase moral decision making of employees within the firm.

  Introduction to nudging: In 2008 Thaler and Sunstein introduced nudging as a “liberal” instrument for governments to positively alter the behaviour of citizens without limiting their actual choices. Since then, nudging has been widely discussed and it remains a topic of intense discourse in political theory. Ideally, nudges do not affect the amount of available options, nor set strong (monetary) incentives or impose high costs on the nudgee; alias the person who has been nudged. With the help of psychological knowledge (cf. the persistence of default options, framing effects, the sunk cost fallacy, etc.) the decision-making architecture is designed in a way which makes it highly probable that the “preferred” outcome is chosen by the nudgee.

  Ethical inquiry: The philosophical discussion on the ethics of nudging has so far mainly focused on political institutions. Corporations have been neglected in terms of proving a justification for their engagement in nudging. The relationship between a state and its citizens is structurally different from the relationship between an employer and its employees. Although both stand in a similar power relation with the nudgee, their mandate and their discretionary power differ. Therefore, governmental nudges and corporate nudges need different underlying justifications. Within my research I investigate various arguments in favour and against corporations nudging their employees and customers towards morally responsible decisions. Furthermore, I have developed a framework which cansupport decision-makers in deciding whether employing a certain nudge is morally justified or not.

  Conceptual framework: Although many nudges have been introduced and empirically tested in the corporate sphere (such as printing defaults, corporate pension plans, and cafeteria food choices) there is no conceptual framework, which helps us to structure those nudges and find gaps for future research. Within my empirical literature review I aim to provide a basis for such endeavours and want to raise awareness for the topic in general.

  Behavioural studies: According to my framework nudges have mainly been employed in the area of environmental and social engagement of the firm. Although there are still plenty of opportunities to work in this field, I aim to conduct empirical research in the neglected but highly important field of governance: Can nudging help us to increase compliance of employees with rules of good conduct? For example, can nudges decrease the likelihood of employees accepting a bribe? In order to answer this question laboratory experiments will be conducted.
  

• PhD Related Publications

  • Ruehle, Rebecca C.; Wachsmuth, Loreen; Geisbüsch, Anne-Kristin; Wagner, Josephin; Heldt, Lisa (2018): Zukunftsfähige Lehre gestalten – Studentinnen und Studenten treten für Ethik und Nachhaltigkeit an Hochschulen ein, edited by Raueiser, M.; Kolb, M. (editors): CSR und Hochschulmanagement – Sustainable Education als neues Paradigma in Forschung und Lehre, Springer, pp.69-89.
  • Ruehle, Rebecca C.; Grimm, Julia; Thakhathi, Andani; Schreck, Philipp (2018): Bitter Sweet: Child labor in the cocoa industry – a clear case of double standards? (Published at the Case Centre, Reference no. 718-0008-1. including a teaching note and two teaching supplements).
  • Forthcoming: Ruehle, Rebecca C. (2018): Die Bedeutung des Entscheidungsarchitekten für die moralische Zulässigkeit von Nudging. Eine Gegenüberstellung von Staat und Unternehmen, in: Vierteljahreshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung 2018.
  • Gombert, Adrian & Ruehle, Rebecca C. (2024): Beyond Black and White: Assessing the Legitimacy of Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives between the Descriptive and the Normative Perspective. In: Business Ethics Quarterly (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/business-ethics-quarterly/article/beyond-black-and-white-assessing-the-legitimacy-of-multistakeholder-initiatives-between-the-descriptive-and-the-normative-perspective/44F6FC492318EF9E5F36AA39AB2813F6)

• Awards

  • 2021, Academy of Management (AOM): Finalist of the "SIM Best Student Paper Award" for "Three Dimensions of Legitimacy and their Meaning in the Context of Multi-stakeholder Initiatives" (with Adrian Gombert)