'It's all good, boss!'

"When people are sure they know the answer [to a moral dilemma], you can be certain they don't," Mr. Shussett says. What's more, admitting some doubt might actually enhance a leader's credibility. "People respect someone who can say, 'Given the information we have, this is the decision we have made. Should other information come along, we are prepared to think it through differently.' "

Others dispute the notion that certitude is a sure sign of self-delusion or probable waywardness from a moral path. Dallas Willard, a Christian philosopher at the University of Southern California, says smart people get blinded to their own immoral actions because "an unsatisfied desire is the time bomb that ticks away in a person."

Over time, he says, high achievers with considerable autonomy find the forces staving off their desires for money, sex, or power "begin to fall away."

To keep at bay such festering passions, Willard says, people need firm resolve to pursue "the good that flows from their function" in life, such as providing a worthy service to the public through a business enterprise. Such resolve, he says, depends on a deep certainty about what is right and wrong.

"One of the things that's come up over and over about George Bush is that he is too certain," Willard says. "We all know that that's a possibility, but usually people don't look at the other side in terms of what uncertainty does.... If you can make up stories for The New York Times [as former reporter Jayson Blair did] and get by with it, why not? That sort of behavior is not a reflection of too much moral certainty. That's the result of something very different."

It stems instead, Willard suggests, from a worldview that sees no moral absolutes.

In Willard's view, a single confidant rather than an entire network can be sufficient to keep a successful person morally grounded, especially when coupled with a regular, private journaling habit.

He urges those in authority to write daily on two questions: "When have I served the good of my function [as a family member or professional, for instance]? And when have I served myself?"

Others also see value in reflecting regularly on certain questions. Lennick urges leaders to "play the freeze game," which involves stopping often to ask, "Is this right? What was I doing when I made the decision? What was I feeling?"

Josephson says decisionmakers can help defend against moral blindness by asking if a particular decision would advance trust, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and lawfulness among various stakeholders.

Whether the early 21st century's scandals will ultimately increase awareness of human capacities for self-aggrandizement and self-delusion remains to be seen. In the meantime, those offering equipment for self-improvement in the moral realm intend to keep making it available.

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