Directors' values: A glimpse into the black box

Boards have an important role in contemporary society. In fact, in some cases boards govern firms that are wealthier and more powerful than the governments of the countries in which they operate. In recent years, the impact on society of the failures of some large corporations has led governments to prescribe the role of directors. However, by virtue of context, personality or values, no degree of prescription will overcome the fact that there will always be many shades of grey. In other words, different directors and boards may come to different decisions about seemingly similar matters due to their personal values. In spite of this, little is known about the behaviour of directors or the values of the directors that govern companies. Their decisions are made behind closed doors, or in the black box. Therefore, a greater understanding of directors’ values and behaviour is argued to be worthy of research and is the focus of this thesis.