1) It just might work. There is some research pointing to the fact that honor statements and similar can have the effect of making people more honest. – see for instance Dan Ariely’s ‘Predictably Irrational’, which is an interesting read. However, that effect is highly situational – it works when people sign an honor statement right before taking an exam, for instance. The evidence on longer-term effects is unclear. Some research, such as Robert Cialdini’s studies of POW camps (see his great book ‘Influence’), show a prolonged effect. On the other hand, I’m fairly sure that Enron, Parmalat, WorldCom, etc. had honor codes as well.

2) Of course, it it interesting in itself that this initiative has come about. It makes an implicit statement about the (lack of) moral standards that MBAs are generally perceived to have, rightly or not.

3) Are MBAs actually more prone to be dishonest than other people? Or, if MBAs are more often involved in major corporate fraud, is it simply because they have a higher likelihood of ending up in positions where they CAN commit large-scale fraud?

Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg
Managing partner,