In an effort to build on the current knowledge of ethical behaviour in
Asia this paper proposes to replicate existing ethical research and t
o investigate specific questions relating to intra-cultural difference
s in Hong Kong. Four major conclusions were derived from this descript
ive empirical study. A statistically significant correlation exists be
tween age and ethical beliefs, with older employees less likely to exp
ress agreement to an unethical action than younger employees. In contr
ast to many previous studies no statistically significant differences
in ethical beliefs were found in relation to gender, level in the orga
nisation, company size, and whether the respondent worked in a multina
tional or local company. Significant differences in responses to ethic
al dilemmas were identified between local and expatriate personnel wit
h expatriate respondents indicating a lower level of agreement to unet
hical actions. For local respondents, of Hong Kong origin, there was n
o significant correlation between level of education, religiosity, yea
rs of business experience, functional origin and their ethical respons
es.