During part of that time, several board members knew of his sexual misconduct but maintained their silence for the sake of the organization. The combination of concern about damaging the organization, uncertainty about the wrongfulness of the doctor's conduct, and squeamishness about addressing the matter at a board meeting allowed the abuse to continue. Organizational Culture Organizational culture consists of the values, beliefs and traditions deep-rooted in the organization. The culture of some organizations blocks them from addressing sensitive issues such as child abuse. For example, an organization that accepts the principle of human redemption may wish to reject the rule that a person who molests a child should never have unsupervised access to children again.
Some organizations have traditions relating to specific activities such as camping or sports.
They may argue that nothing bad happened before or that changing now would mean admitting they were wrong in the past. Strong sensitivity to individual rights can also be a roadblock. Concern about individual rights functions usefully by preventing totalitarianism in the name of protecting children, but rights need to be balanced against children's needs. Inquiring into an individual's sexual history would be a terrible invasion of privacy in most programs. If the individual is applying to be a volunteer mentor, however, the invasion may be justified.