Books in the Ethical Economy series

The aim of this book is to deepen our understanding of financial crimes as phenomena. The book unveils how the growth of financial crimes has contributed to the increase of the anthropological gap, and how the phenomenon of financial crimes now distorts the way we understand humankind.

In addition, it looks at general questions regarding ethical behaviour and risk taking, such as: To what extent does the social embeddedness or abstraction play a role in guaranteeing ethical behaviour?

This book investigates the functioning and effects of moral rules and values as endogenous elements of governance structures when applied to economic and social transactions. By offering comprehensive insight into the research results of the Ethics of Governance project, this book provides a unique scientific work on business and economic ethics.

This book presents a selection of articles with focus on the theoretical foundations of business ethics, and in particular on the philosophy of management and on human rights and business. This implies identifying and discussing conflicts as well as agreement with regard to the philosophical and other foundations of business and management.Despite the general interest in corporate social responsibility and business ethics, the contemporary discussion rarely touches upon the normative core and philosophical foundations of business. There is a need to discuss the theoretical basis of business ethics and of business and human rights. Even though the actions and activities of business may be discussed from a moral perspective, not least in the media, the judgments and opinions relating to business and management often lack deeper moral reflection and consistency.Partly for this reason, business ethicists are constantly challenged to provide such moral and philosophical foundations for business ethics and for business and human rights, and to communicate them in an understandable manner. Such a challenge is also of scientific kind. Positions and opinions in the academic field need to be substantiated by thorough moral and theoretical reflection to underpin normative approaches. Far too often, business ethicists may agree on matters, which they approach from different and sometimes irreconcilable philosophical standpoints, resulting in superficial agreement but deeper-lying disagreement. In other cases, it may be of high relevance to identify philosophical standpoints that despite conflicting fundamentals may arrive at conclusions acceptable to everyone.

John Maurice Clark's article "The Changing Basis of Economic Responsibility," published in the Journal of Political Economy, is the topical starting point for all scholars interested in economic responsibility and responsible economic action.

Over the last years, "Creating Shared Value" has become a much discussed concept in business practice as well as in management theory and especially in the context of corporate social responsibility.

The book offers new and refreshing insights, ranging from the development of early economic thinking to economic aspects and concepts in the works of classical thinkers such as Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and Karl Marx, to the role of economic reasoning in contemporary policies of art and health care.

This book proposes, from a civil perspective -such as that developed by Stefano Zamagni- and a cordial perspective -such as that developed by Adela Cortina-, orientations to design an economy in tune with what the historical moment demands.

Addressing this neglected area of research in economic studies, altogether the contributors touch upon the importance and potential of virtues, the notions of freedom and self-love, the potential of simulation models, the dialectics of love, and questions of methodology in constructing a relational anthropology for contemporary economics.

However, in adulthood, greed is commended by some as essential to profit-seeking in business and for offering the greatest promise in promoting economic prosperity for everyone. Those who advocate a more permissive position on greed in the adult world typically concede that some constraints on greed are needed.

This book provides an innovative way to revisit the depth and scope of our moral/post-moral worldviews, while undertaking an ontic reflection about organizational life.