Cornell Quote by Jeffrey Pfeffer
““Research by Cornell’s Robert Frank and his colleagues showed that the percentage of students choosing unethical options on an honesty test increased dramatically among students taking microeconomics courses, but not among students in astronomy classes.””
About This Quote
Source Study: Behavioral Ethics Research, Robert Frank et al., 2012
Students in microeconomics are more likely to act unethically on honesty tests than those in astronomy, suggesting discipline context influences moral choices.
In simple terms: Microeconomics students act less honestly than astronomy students.
Key Takeaway
Beware how subject matter can shape ethical behavior.
Themes
ethics
education
behavior
context
Mood
concerned
analytical
Type
research
observational
informative
When to use this quote
- college classrooms
- business training
- policy design
- curriculum development
Key Concepts
behavioral economics
moral psychology
decision making
Questions to Reflect On
- How does the content of a course affect students’ moral decisions?
- What safeguards can reduce unethical behavior in economics education?
A Different Perspective
The effect may be due to self‑selection or other variables, not just the subject.
![“[Cornell University will be] an asylum for Science—where truth shall be sought for truth's sake, not stretched or cut exactly to fit Revealed Religion.” quote by Andrew Dickson White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f23/andrew-dickson-white-24254_cornell_cornell-university-will-be-an-asylum-for_1362392.jpg)
