Struggling in Business Ethics class

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I’m really having some issues with my business ethics class. I’m sure it’s directly related to my Aspergers because it’s a subjective topic and I’m a black and white thinker. I do well at math, computers and science not subjects like law, humanities, literature, etc. I don’t know what would help me do better in subjects like this or if I should say anything to the instructor. First, I do not have an official diagnosis and, second, I don’t want to just be coping out, blaming my “disability”. That said, I think this is much harder for me to study than the average student.

I studied hard for yesterday’s exam and most of the questions were based (loosely) on the ideas in the assigned reading rather than directly relating to the reading. Forest vs trees, I suppose. I was studying definitions and laws and she gave us scenarios and “What do you think this person meant when they said ‘[insert quote]’?” I have a very hard time understanding peoples thoughts, motives, and rationalizations so I have difficulty answering questions like this. Even if I explained my issue to the instructor I’m not sure how she could help me. I know she gives a dyslexic classmate extra time on exams but I really don’t think extra time on an exam would help me understand how NTs think.

Has anyone had this struggle? Did you find anything that helped? Should I say anything or just slog it out and hope I pass?

Tori, as one who studied ethics in college, I have a couple of tips that may help you. First, ethics is merely the study of the conduct of life, and can be aboutg good or bad behavior. For example, both the Bolsheviks and Nazis had an ethic, but neither could possibly be classified as good.

So, what we're talking about is morality. Morality is defined as those taboos and imperatives that allow individuals to cooperate with one another, trust one another, and hence to form societies. If we look at low-trust societies, such as those in the Mideast based upon extended families rather than the larger society, the importance of morality becomes obvious. Business cannot be done unless there is trust and cooperation. Therefore, anything that encourages trust and cooperation is moral, and the rest is immoral or neutral.

I believe you should try to talk to your teacher about your situation. You should not just struggle through the class and hope you pass. Good luck to you.

Thank you for your responses. I'm still waiting to review this last test to see what ones I got wrong so I can possibly approach her with examples of what I'm struggling with. As I recall there were 3 questions relating to the Enron scandal when Enron was only mentioned in a list in the assigned reading. Not even a heads up to google some information on Enron so you can discuss it on the exam. I think it's a broad assumption that we all followed that case. One of the questions was how did management rationalize their actions. Maybe there's some universal NT answer for that kind of question but I was lost guessing at which multiple choice answer was correct. They all sounded like possible excuses to me. Another one was asking what school of business theory does the quote "what's good for GM is good for the country"reflect? In my mind that could mean two completely different things. 1. a capitalistic view where acting in GMs best interest will also benefit society, by creating jobs, better cars, etc. or 2. a socialistic view where what's good for one is good for the other and that doing what's good for society will also be good for GM. I have no idea and spent a lot of time pondering this.
I had this same professor for the prerequisite law class and she really seems arbitrary, Like I could pull up laws and argue reasons for a particular verdict and she'd be like "Wrong, because it was Tuesday!" (or so it seemed).

Ok, two of the questions I got wrong were exactly the ones I mentioned, Enron and GM. I did email the professor and tell her that I have a lot of difficulty with scenarios or out of context quotes like that and asked for some feedback because I was concerned I might not do so well if there's more of those type of questions on future exams. I did not disclose my undiagnosed Aspergers. Every time I tried to write it into my email draft it just sounded like an excuse to me. It's not really her problem unless I get an official diagnosis on paper and register my disability with the college.

I actually did look into getting diagnosed when I first realized I had Aspergers but couldn't find a specialist in my area. I could only find some kind of life skills coach and when I contacted her she pretty much blew me off. She said if you think you have it you probably do and that by adulthood most people with Aspergers have learned ways to cope but that she's be glad to see me if there was a specific life skill I needed help with. So, after that I figured I wouldn't bother pursuing a diagnosis. I'm not sure there would be any benefit other than maybe some minor accommodations at school or a future workplace.

Maybe I really do need to just suck it up, do my best and take whatever I get. I've already had a couple classes where I got straight As the whole term and bombed the final because I had to take it in a crowded room of strangers all going clackety-clack on computer keyboards.

Ok, I disclosed....

I had gotten access to review the test but it just had red Xs on the wrong ones with no indication of which choice was correct. I thought that was an oversight so I emailed the professor again.
She responded that she never gives out the correct answers and thinks it's better if students figure out on their own what they should have selected. I think this is ridiculous but what can I do.
So, I responded to that and said I was sorry, I didn't realize it was intentional and then went on to say that I have Aspergers and I'm much more suited for math or computers and subjects and that subjects involving understanding people are difficult for me but I'll keep at it.
I thought I'd get questioned as to why I wasn't registered with the school's access services for disabled students but she basically responded no problem, carry on. At least its in her mind if anything comes up later in the term.
Back to studying.