Abstract:
Unethical behaviour is a worldwide phenomenon, within increasingly unethical societies. Within
these societies, individuals are required to make decisions on many different matters on a daily
basis, where it is not always easy to distinguish a good decision from a bad decision. Vyas-
Doorgapersad (2007) argues that developing countries, such as South Africa, are more susceptible
to unethical behaviour because of widespread poverty, relatively low public-sector compensation,
a lack of risk mechanisms (e.g. insurance and a well-developed market), opportunities created by
complex, poorly defined, continually changing, and inadequate rules and regulations, a lack of
properly established laws and principles, a lack of institutions to enforce a code of conduct and an
absence of watchdog agencies. Unethical behaviour in South Africa, mainly in the form of
corruption through bribery, has reached crisis proportions (Patel, 2013) and, as such, on a daily
basis, citizens are confronted with media reports of corruption, fraudulent activities and bribery,
among other things.
