Shere Hite was not very happy with the Sunday Times, she told David Frost on his Sunday morning television show, Breakfast with Frost, a couple of weekends ago. A profile of her had been headlined: “Hite goes back to war over the business of sex.”

There is little doubt that the topics of social responsibility and ethical behaviour are now firmly on the corporate agenda. But, in general, managers do not appear to know how to respond to calls for ethical guidance.

One area of recent controversy has involved the overseas purchasing policies of certain clothing and sports goods retailers.