Step 1: Determine the facts in the situation 

• Jack is an American student working at a youth center in Kenya- working on a social venture
• Often works with the children at the youth center. Also works with the staff
• An international donor donated gifts to children under the age of 14 to a youth center in Kenya
• There were not enough gifts for all of the children. 4 children didn’t get gifts
• The staff members had allocated the gifts for the children and labelled them. Jack handed out the labeled gifts to each child. 
• Jack spent 5 months at the center
• Hats were given to the kids who didn’t receive gifts. The kids did not like the hats. 
• Kids think that the gifts are from Jack
• Jack discussed the gift situation with the staff. The staff thinks that Jack is making a big deal out of this matter but said that he can solve the problem. 

The ethical problem: Is giving out backup gifts (black hat) ethical? Do the kids need to be compensated for their situation? Do the staff have to work on the problem? How could Jack comfort the kids who didn’t get a gift?

Step 2: Define the problem and the stakeholders

• Jack 
• Kids who did not receive the gifts 
• Kids who did receive the gifts
• Staff members  

 

Problem: There were not enough gifts for all of the children. 

 

Step 3: Determine and distinguish between the personal and professional motivations of the stakeholders. 

• Staff:
  • Personal: Want the children at the youth center to be happy. Don’t want to be blamed for not having enough gifts.
  • Professional:Concerned about Jack becoming a “children’s rights activist”. Aren’t too concerned about the gift issue. 
• Children who received gifts
  • Personal: Happy that they received gifts. Think the gifts are from Jack. May feel bad for the kids who got hats. 
• Children who did not receive gifts
  • Personal: Angry that they didn’t get actual gifts. Blame Jack. 
• Jack
  • Personal: He doesn’t want the children who did not get gifts to resent him. He wants to be well liked and respected by the children. 
  • Professional: Concerned about the holistic growth of children. If the children feel being ignored, they might have low self-esteem.

 

Step 4: Formulate (at least three) alternative solutions

• Potential Solution 1: Jack uses his own money to purchase gifts for the remaining four children. 
  • How does it solve the problem? 
    • Pros: 
      • The children would receive gifts. 
      • Jack would still uphold his status with the children. 
    • Cons 
      • Other kids for whom Jack won’t purchase gifts might feel left out
      • Jack will have to spend his own money.
      • Jack might be seen as a push over and they will start to take advantage of him. 
      • Jack will be looked at differently with the staff because he went behind their backs. 
  • How does it save face of those involved? 
    • Jack would still be providing gifts for the remaining four children so that they won’t feel being ignored.
  • Implications on relationships 
    • Short-term 
      • Kids do not hate Jack anymore 
    • Long-term 
      • Kids might expect more gifts from Jack 
  • Implications on the venture 
    • Short-term: The children will think that Jack is generous so they are more willing to meet him. This may impact his goal of his social venture. 
    • Long-term: There might be potential conflicts among children in the youth center. It might be harder to supervise because of Jack’s action.

 

• Potential Solution 2: Jack gives the black hat to the children.
  • How does it solve the problem? 
    • Pros: The four children still leave with a gift.
    • Cons: 
      • The children think that Jack forgot about them.
      • The children did not receive a gift like their peers. 
  • How does it save face of those involved? 
    • The children are still walking away with something. 
  • Implications on relationships 
    • Short-term: 
      • They are mad at Jack because they did not receive a gift like their peers. 
      • They feel inferior to their peers.
      • They might be jealous or mad at their peers who did receive gifts. 
    • Long-term: 
      • They might think less of Jack’s character. 
      • They might resent Jack for forgetting to get them gifts.
  • Implications on the venture 
    • Short-term: Jack is not upholding a positive status with his kids. This may impact his goal of his social venture. 
    • Long-term: His status might be spread among the kids in youth centers, so he might not be welcomed and thus could not proceed his social venture.

 

• Potential Solution 3: Jack provides the kids with some other form of a “gift”(special privileges like first in lunch line) 
  • How does it solve the problem? 
    • Pros: Kids with hats feel better and like Jack more. People who work at the youth center will be ok with it because they aren’t spending money. 
    • Cons: Kids who got gifts may feel left out. The children who did not get gifts may not want to be a line leader or receive another form of a gift. 
  • How does it save face of those involved?
    • Jack would not be seen as someone who does not treat everyone equally 
  • Implications on relationships 
    • Short-term  
      • Kids with hats feel cared 
    • Long-term 
      • Jack won’t be able to always treat kids with hats with privilege and kids might feel awkward about it 
  • Implications on the venture 
    • Short-term 
      • Jack will resolve the problem without any extra resources 
    • Long-term 
      • He might be interfering with the youth center’s principles

 

Step 5: Seek additional assistance, as appropriate

Additional assistance could be sought from other youth centers and professionals in child psychology and pedagogy who have the knowledge on dealing with similar kind of problem. Asking the peers in the youth center might also be a good way to let the other kids be more understanding and to make the friendship stronger.

 

Step 6: Select the best course of action

A combination of solution 1 and 3 would be the best course of action. The kids would not only need a compensation gift, but also need a psychological comfort. Being left out in front of the public and being ignored by the adults could form mental shadow on children, especially when they live on their own in a group of peers in the youth center. Since the kids don’t like the black hats and the staff are not willing to help, in order to establish a friendly and generous character, Jack should buy the gifts for the kids. Additionally, the special privileges could make the kids feel less isolated. They deserve a mental compensation like this. Even being the first in lunchline once is enough for the kids. They can also learn the equality at a young age. As Jack and the staff reach an agreement, even if the small privilege interferes with the rule in the youth center, it’s okay to break the rule once because of special reasons. And the staff would not have the pressure on thinking about a proper solution. There would be an overall positive impact on Jack’s social venture.