Food fraud can be traced back to the beginning of second century, but it was not until 2013 that the phenomenon of food fraud received the definition “intentional violation of the rules motivated by economical or financial gain” by the EU. In Sweden, the Swedish Food Agency (Livsmedelsverket) together with the municipal food inspectors work against food fraud. It is essential to detect food fraud in order to protect the Swedish consumers safety and health. The aim of this study is to assess consumers experience about food fraud and their mistrust to any food groups as well as consumers awareness about whistle blowing functions. In addition, differences between consumers and municipal food inspector’s estimation of the extent of food fraud in Sweden will be investigated. The study revealed that 51 % of the consumers have experienced food fraud and 48 % have experienced fear of being exposed to food fraud. Approximately 16 % also have a lack of trust to some food groups. The municipal food inspectors usually only control fraud when receiving tips but only a relatively small group of consumers are aware of the whistle blowing functions. An interesting pattern throughout the report is that meat and meat products scores significant high, both regarding consumers experience of fraud, avoidance of food groups and in ranking of most exposed food group. The study showed no significant difference between the consumers and the municipal food inspector’s estimation of the existent of food fraud in Sweden.

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The objective of this study was mainly to describe, analyse and evaluate the determinants of the phenomenon of whistle blowing that influences the protection of employees making authorised and/or unauthorised disclosures. It was also a purpose of the study to evaluate the specific role of the Protected Disclosures Act 2000 (Act 26 of 2000) (PDA) in fulfilling its mandate to protect authorised disclosures on wrongdoing in public and private sector organisations. The PDA seeks to combat crime and corruption through the disclosing of wrongdoing. The intention is to create a culture which will facilitate the disclosure of information by employees relating to criminal and other irregular conduct in the workplace in a responsible manner, by providing comprehensive statutory guidelines through the PDA for the disclosure of such information, and protection against any retaliation as a result of such disclosures. An important aspect that this study dealt with was the provision, as a prerequisite to the PDA to be implemented successfully, that individual members of the private and public sectors have to act responsibly and in good faith in making disclosures in order to be protected by the PDA. In order to provide clarity on the conceptualisation of whistle blowing, the study explored the conceptual knowledge of the variables influencing the determinants of whistle blowing and the whistle blower through the application of a literature study of the concept and theories of ethics, values, morals, loyalty, trust and whistle blowing, in order to describe and analyse the variables influencing the whistle blower, the whistle blowing process, the characteristics of whistle blowers and the strategies and procedures employed to blow the whistle in an organisation. The study explored the organisational determinants influencing a whistle blower's decision to blow the whistle in the social context of an organisation in order to determine the influence of organisational culture and organisational trust as internal social factors that may facilitate the effective management of whistle blowing resulting in no whistle blowing taking place. The study objectives, appropriate conclusions and proposals are addressed based on the role that the PDA, the ethical determinants of the work environment, the determinants influencing the individual whistle blower and the organisational determinants influencing effective whistle blowing, can fulfil, in order to serve as a mechanism to combat corruption. / Public Administration / D. Litt. et Phil. (Public Administration)

The objective of this study was mainly to describe, analyse and evaluate the determinants of the phenomenon of whistle blowing that influences the protection of employees making authorised and/or unauthorised disclosures. It was also a purpose of the study to evaluate the specific role of the Protected Disclosures Act 2000 (Act 26 of 2000) (PDA) in fulfilling its mandate to protect authorised disclosures on wrongdoing in public and private sector organisations. The PDA seeks to combat crime and corruption through the disclosing of wrongdoing. The intention is to create a culture which will facilitate the disclosure of information by employees relating to criminal and other irregular conduct in the workplace in a responsible manner, by providing comprehensive statutory guidelines through the PDA for the disclosure of such information, and protection against any retaliation as a result of such disclosures. An important aspect that this study dealt with was the provision, as a prerequisite to the PDA to be implemented successfully, that individual members of the private and public sectors have to act responsibly and in good faith in making disclosures in order to be protected by the PDA. In order to provide clarity on the conceptualisation of whistle blowing, the study explored the conceptual knowledge of the variables influencing the determinants of whistle blowing and the whistle blower through the application of a literature study of the concept and theories of ethics, values, morals, loyalty, trust and whistle blowing, in order to describe and analyse the variables influencing the whistle blower, the whistle blowing process, the characteristics of whistle blowers and the strategies and procedures employed to blow the whistle in an organisation. The study explored the organisational determinants influencing a whistle blower's decision to blow the whistle in the social context of an organisation in order to determine the influence of organisational culture and organisational trust as internal social factors that may facilitate the effective management of whistle blowing resulting in no whistle blowing taking place. The study objectives, appropriate conclusions and proposals are addressed based on the role that the PDA, the ethical determinants of the work environment, the determinants influencing the individual whistle blower and the organisational determinants influencing effective whistle blowing, can fulfil, in order to serve as a mechanism to combat corruption. / Public Administration and Management / D. Litt. et Phil. (Public Administration)

The focus of this research was on the Management of Whistle-Blowing at the University of South Africa (UNISA). This study investigated the perception of UNISA staff on the issue of whistle-blowing. Using a quantitative approach, a questionnaire was used to obtain relevant information from permanent employees of UNISA, at all campuses and regions, regarding the issue of whistle-blowing. This study highlights the attitudes and opinions of permanent employees of UNISA regarding the issue of whistle-blowing, and whether or not these attitude and opinions can influence the effectiveness of whistle-blowing, as a crime and unethical conduct deterrent and detection mechanism. Several issues were investigated in this study, as whistle-blowing if implemented and managed correctly, can be a valuable source of intelligence on crime and unethical conduct in the workplace. / CRIMINOLOGY / MA (POLICE SCIENCE)

The focus of this research was on the Management of Whistle-Blowing at the University of South Africa (UNISA). This study investigated the perception of UNISA staff on the issue of whistle-blowing. Using a quantitative approach, a questionnaire was used to obtain relevant information from permanent employees of UNISA, at all campuses and regions, regarding the issue of whistle-blowing. This study highlights the attitudes and opinions of permanent employees of UNISA regarding the issue of whistle-blowing, and whether or not these attitude and opinions can influence the effectiveness of whistle-blowing, as a crime and unethical conduct deterrent and detection mechanism. Several issues were investigated in this study, as whistle-blowing if implemented and managed correctly, can be a valuable source of intelligence on crime and unethical conduct in the workplace. / CRIMINOLOGY / MA (POLICE SCIENCE)

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis commences with an exploration of the ethics of whistleblowing as traditionally understood, describing the ethical dilemma at its centre: remaining loyal to one's organisation, against alerting society to organisational wrongdoing that threatens its welfare. The positions on several problematic issues in the literature, such as dissent, organisational retaliation, whistleblower motive, and mandatory whistleblowing will be presented and evaluated. The key internal/external disclosure dichotomy within whistleblowing will also be critically examined. The purported solutions to these issues, as well as whistleblowing's central dilemma, will be shown to remain unsatisfactory. This will be attributed to the adoption of an Enlightenment rules-based approach to ethics in general, which underpins and informs the ethics of whistleblowing in particular. An Enlightenment rules-based approach seeks to posit universal and immutable ethical standards that transcend context. As corrective to the above failings, the ethics of whistleblowing will be investigated from the view that seeks to understand whistleblowing as a historically determined and culturally mediated social practice. Within the contexts of the USA and South Africa it will be demonstrated that key whistleblowing issues (and even the central whistleblowing dilemma of divided loyalties) cannot be cast in immutable and universal terms, and are influenced by the contingencies that accompany them. An attempt will then be made to understand whistleblowing in the context of the globalisation of the last thirty years, which will prove more difficult. This will be undertaken through an analysis of Vandekerckhove's project, which seeks to place the normative legitimisations of whistleblowing legislation and organisational whistleblowing policies within a globalisation semantic able to contain the conflict between society and the organisation. This will be shown as ill-conceived because of Vandekerckhove's particular understanding of the organisation as an operationally closed system. Moving the argument forward will be undertaken at the hand of Critical Complexity theory which attempts to make the case for understanding the organisation as an open system. This will allow us to recast corporate responsibility as relational responsiveness to a particular stakeholder, which in turn will allow flexibility in terms of who qualifies as a recipient of a disclosure of wrongdoing. Consequently the internal/external disclosure dichotomy will be proved unsustainable. Further opening up the organisation will render the boundary with society meaningless, as it will be shown that the identity of society and organisation are inextricably tied together. As such, the notion of society versus the organisation will disappear, and whistleblowing will be reconceptualised as loyalty to both society and the organisation simultaneously, thus rendering the central dilemma of whistleblowing obsolete. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis begin met 'n studie van die etiese kwessies rakende fluitjieblasers soos dit tradisioneel verstaan word, en beskryf die sentrale etiese dilemma – om lojaal te bly tot die organisasie, teenoor om die gemeenskap in te lig oor die organisatoriese oortredings wat die welvaart van die gemeenskap bedreig. Die verskillende menings ten opsigte van verskeie problematiese kwessies in die literatuur soos verdeeldheid, organisatoriese vergelding, motief van die fluitjieblaser en verpligte fluitjieblaas sal aangebied en gëevalueer word. Die hoof vraag of 'n openbaring van informasie wat binne of buite die organisasie gebeur as fluitjieblaas beskou kan word, word ook krities ondersoek. Die voorgestelde oplossings tot hierdie kwessies, sowel as die fluitjieblaser se kerndilemma, is onbevredigend en sal dus onderskryf word deur die aanvaarding van 'n reëls-gebaseerde Verligtingsbenadering tot etiek in die algemeen, wat deur die etiek van fluitjieblaas spesifiek, ondersteun en ingelig word. 'n Reëls-gebaseerde Verligtingsbenadering poog om universele en onveranderlike etiese standaarde, wat konteks oorbrug, te postuleer. As korreksies tot die bogenoemde tekortkominge, sal die etiek van fluitjieblaas ondersoek word vanuit 'n benadering wat poog om fluitjieblaas as 'n histories bepaalde en versoenbare sosiale praktyk te verstaan. Binne die konteks van die VSA en Suid-Afrika, sal dit gedemonstreer word dat sleutel fluitjieblaas kwessies, en selfs die sentrale fluitjieblaas dilemma van verdeelde lojaliteit, nie binne onveranderlike en universele terme gegroepeer kan word nie, en dat hierdie kwessies beïnvloed word deur die gebeurlikhede wat daarmee gepaard gaan. 'n Poging sal aangewend word om fluitjieblaas binne die konteks van globalisering in die afgelope 30 jaar te verstaan, wat meer kompleks sal wees. Dit sal gedoen word deur 'n analise van Vandekerckhove se projek, wat poog om die normatiewe legitimering van fluitjieblaas wetgewing en organisatoriese fluitjieblaas beleide in 'n globale semantiek te plaas, ten einde om die konflik tussen die gemeenskap en die organisasie te verminder. Dit sal bewys word dat hierdie projek nie deurdag is nie, as gevolg van Vandekerckhove se bepaalde begrip van organisasies as 'n operasionele geslote sisteem. Die argument sal verder onderskryf word aan die hand van die Kritiese Kompleksiteitsteorie, wat die organisasie as 'n oop sisteem beskryf. Dit sal ons toelaat om korporatiewe verantwoordelikheid as 'n reaksie in 'n verhouding met 'n spesifieke belanghebbende te beskryf, wat weer op sy beurt ons sal toelaat om buigsaam te wees in die kwalifisering van wie as 'n ontvanger van 'n onthulling van oortredings geïdentifiseer moet word. Gevolglik sal die onderskeid tussen 'n interne en eksterne openbaring van informasie as onvolhoubaar bewys word. As die organisasie oper gemaak word, sal dit die grens met die gemeenskap betekenisloos maak, omdat, soos bewys sal word, die identiteit van die organisasie en gemeenskap onlosmaaklik vas is aan mekaar. So sal die konsep van gemeenskap teenoor die organisasie verdwyn, en sal fluitjieblaas geherkonsepsualiseer word as gelyktydige lojaliteit tot beide die gemeenskap en die organisasie, wat die sentrale dilemma van fluitjieblaas sal uitskakel.

M.A. / Fraud and corruption as well as other forms of organizational wrongdoing has become a serious problem in South Africa. If employees become aware of the fact that a superior is involved in some form of wrongdoing they find themselves in a dilemma. If they report the transgression without being authorized to do so, they face the possibility of being victimized within the organization. The unauthorized disclosure of information about organizational wrongdoing by an employee has become known as whistleblowing. Whistleblowing could have positive consequences for the organization, as it provides the possibility that organizational misconduct could be exposed and dealt with. However, the unauthorized nature of the exposure often results in the organization focussing its attention on the messenger rather than the message. As a consequence the whistleblower is often ostracized until he or she leaves the organization voluntarily or is forced out, while the misconduct is ignored or even covered up in a misguided attempt to protect the organization’s reputation. The act of whistleblowing therefore often has a very detrimental effect on the individual whistleblower’s career, family relationships and self-image. Apart from the possible negative consequences faced by the individual when engaging in whistleblowing, the organization within which the whistleblowing occurs can also be negatively affected. Individual employees are their best form of detection when something is wrong within the organization. However, if the whistleblower is victimized and leaves the organization, it means that the organization loses a valuable employee and that the misconduct will continue. Furthermore, in future when employees become aware of some form of dishonesty they will tend to turn a blind eye rather than report the important information. Financial institutions and in particular banks, are particularly vulnerable to the possibility of fraud and corruption or other forms of misconduct occurring. Rather than focussing on the experiences of the whistleblower, this study investigated the views of managers at a commercial bank with regard to the nature and ways of managing whistleblowing in the organization. Senior managers were interviewed during the course of this study and three issues came to the fore. Firstly, the managers generally showed very little understanding with regard to the nature and implications of whistleblowing for the organization. Secondly, the organizational culture seems to concentrate mainly on creating an environment that is conducive to protecting the stakeholders’ interests than allowing reporting of wrongdoing to take place. Thirdly, there does not seem to be any effective mechanisms in place that could facilitate the disclosure of organizational misconduct in such a manner that it would result in a beneficial outcome for both the individual disclosing the information and the organization. The study concludes by making some recommendations with regard to ways in which a culture of ethics can be created in an organization. This would entail instituting mechanisms of confidential reporting, which would promote the authorized disclosure of organizational misconduct and therefore pre-empt the necessity of blowing the whistle. / Prof. J.M. Uys

Jean Paul Sartre proposed that: Historical situations vary…What does not vary is the necessity for him to exist in the world, to be at work there, to be there in the midst of other people, and to be mortal there. The limits are neither subjective nor objective, or rather, they have an objective and a subjective side. Objective because they are to be found everywhere and are recognizable everywhere; subjective because they are lived and are nothing if man does not live them, that is, freely determine his existence with reference to them (Sartre 1987: 38, 39). The Existential philosophy as outlined by Sartre, Levinas, and Kierkegaard cares about the lived experiences of individuals. Such a view is in contradistinction to other philosophical views which have a tendency to reduce human experience, or to lose the individual in abstraction. This thesis has a central concern for the ethical care of patients in the National Health Service. In order to explore the concrete experiences of patients it is necessary to consider the care providers. To that end, the individual health professional then becomes the focus of study. To assist in this approach a double narrative runs through the thesis, which comprises exploring ethical decision making in the NHS, and also on the legal concept of clinical negligence. These two concepts are intertwined in that legal hearings and rulings have a normative influence upon health care practice, and also influence public expectations. The explicit purpose of this approach was to ensure that the theory was explored and developed; grounded upon everyday clinical NHS practice, which includes legal and political influences. The first four chapters of the thesis constructs the three main areas of analysis; Philosophical, legal, and political. With this framework established, the critical analysis of five legal cases of clinical negligence (Chapters Five and Six), establishes convergences in the work of Sartre, Levinas, and Kierkegaard in relation to the subject, freedom and the ethical. The Kierkegaardian concept of kinesis is applied to explore the transition from possibility to actuality in ethical action. During this process a range of dynamics are identified in creating the concept as best described by Levinas as totalisation . Where previously the argument was located at the individual (subject) and organisational (system) level, in Chapter Seven it moves outwards to consider how the authentic individual can create a civil society. Given the recalcitrant barriers identified in the analysis, Chapter Eight considers existentialism as a theory of community and as contributing to epistemology. Together these theories are proposed as addressing the real needs of individuals, by promoting their freedom, and achieving unity in diversity. The recommendations in Chapter Nine are based upon the interplay of two main dialectics uncovered in the body of the thesis concerning ethics and epistemology. Deontology, Utilitarianism, and Virtue ethics were found to all contribute towards professional conduct. However, they were found to be insufficient because they reduce patients and health professionals’ existence to the same as everyone else. Further, Virtue ethics reverses the way in which ethical behaviour is evaluated in comparison to the other two main normative theories. That is, behaviour is evaluated against the virtue being foundational, as opposed to the act performed. However, there is no discussion on how the individual health professional would decide which approach to use. All three approaches then lack a crucial factor which is the existential dimension. Existential ethics is then presented as a possible approach to facilitate the development (kinesis) of health professionals to the ethical sphere of care. Existential ethics emphasises the pre-theoretical aspect in caring for patients. That is, it appreciates the individual and their difference, prior to any conceptualization which has the potential to reduce individual difference to sameness. From this perspective recommendations are outlined for facilitating individuals to develop the ethical aspect of care, for health care pedagogy, and for leadership within the NHS.

An individual’s bad news reporting behavior has been studied from a number of perspectives and has resulted in a variety of research streams including the MUM effect (or reluctance to transmit bad news), whistle-blowing, and organizational silence. While many scholars in different areas have studied reporting behavior, it has not been widely discussed in the information systems literature. This dissertation research addresses an individual’s bad news reporting behavior (and its antecedents) in the troubled IT project context. Many social phenomena are multi-causal (Hollander 1971). The silence phenomenon involved in an individual’s bad news reporting behavior is multi-causal too. While prior research has identified many antecedents to the bad news reporting behavior, it has not provided any systematic approach for categorizing them. In this dissertation, the antecedents are categorized into three different levels: personal factors (i.e., individual-level factors), situational factors (i.e., project-level factors), and organizational factors. This research empirically investigates how the antecedents at different levels affect (i.e., encourage or discourage) an individual’s decision to report or not report bad news in the IT project context. The dissertation follows a multi-paper model, and includes three independent, empirical studies, each with its own research model focusing on personal, situational, and organizational factors.