Zeitschrift für Wirtschafts- und Unternehmensethik

Editorial

European Economic Ethics Research: A Diagnosis

The purpose of the European Economic Community's founders was not only "mercantilist', but "economic", in the broader sense of the term "economics". If there has been a specific model of Europe, it has been the social market economy. But the crisis of the welfare state has raised doubts about key features of that model. Does Europe have anything particular to offer in the economic realm? The approaches of economic ethics that have been developed in Europe have a lot to say in the formation of...

Ethics and Economics*: Of Value and Values

This paper argues that economics and ethics should not be seen as opposed and radically different, but rather as two versions or aspects of the same enterprise, that of providing rules of interactions for agents who are not attached by obligations of reciprocity. The particularity of modern economics - as opposed to traditional gift exchange - is not that it is without any ethical content but that it proposes an answer to the question: how should I behave towards those to whom I owe nothing? ...

Christian Perspectives On the Market*

This paper analyses tbe economic ethics of three main Christian traditions in Europe: the Roman Catholic tradition, the Evangelical tradition and the Ecumenical tradition. After defining several common and divergent elements of these different Christian traditions, we analyze the shortcomings of the free market operation concerning two common Christian values: the priority of the poor and stewardship of creation. We conclude that, because of these shortcomings, the Christian traditions will o...

Ethics As Part of a New Regulation Scheme*: Global Trends and European Specificities

This paper analyzes the development of economic and business ethics as an element of a new regulation scheme of the capitalist economy. It is argued that a more formal recourse to ethical justifications is becoming more indispensable due to a lesser relevance and/or efficiency of other mechanisms of social "embeddedness" of the economic system. The paper will then also analyze the specific influence of the European process on this evolution, showing that the constitutive logic of this process...

A European Social Model of State-Market Relations*: The Ethics of Competition From a 'Neo-Liberal' Perspective

This paper portrays "neo-liberalism" in its original conceptual meaning as opposed to the generic term of depreciation which it is commonly used. Fair competition is identified and the denial of all privilege is declared as the major concern of neo-liberals. Ethical merit for competition might, at first sight, be based on only two principles: individual natural rights (equal liberty) and socially desirable outcomes ("unintended altruism"). It was the neo-liberal idea to put fairness-norms or ...

Value Generalization*: Limitations and Possibilities of a Communication About Values

This contribution is an attempt to demonstrate that the concept of "value generalization" is of considerable importance for moral philosophy and therefore hopefully also for those interested in business and economic ethics. The importance of this concept lies in its relevance for what one could call "the logic of a communication about values." This logic is different from the structure of rational-argumentative discourse in a strict sense, but also far from a mere clash of values or identitie...

Modern Values*: Content and Contributors

There are interdependencies between the market economy and more general values in modern European societies. In this article, the contribution of both theory and more practical morals of the market are discussed. Another source of influence on values is the unselfishness demanded by religion and honored by most philosophers. Whether this demand is positive is also discussed. There is a danger of trivialization of ethics into a public-relations discourse, which reduces its function as an aid i...

Economic Ethics for Real Humans*: The Contribution of Behavioral Economics to Economic Ethics

This paper discusses how economic ethics can profit from taking into account the results of behavioral economics. In contrast to the neo-classical mainstream of economics, behavioral economics does not presuppose the model of 'economic man', but explores the ways in which real human beings make economic decisions. The example of akrasia and its effects on old-age saving shows that behavioral economic research opens new fields for economic ethics. A central ethical aspect in this context is th...

Customer Integration and Beyond*: Towards a Business Economic-Ethical Theory of the Firm

This paper aims to make a contribution to the overcoming of what Freeman has characterized by his "separation thesis" and, based on a theory of the firm, the resources-processes-outcomes approach, developing of a business economic-ethics approach. The resources-processes-outcomes approach draws on two main theoretical concepts: integrative production and customer integration. The concept of customer integration throws light on the mutual responsibility of supplier and customer for the value-c...

23rd Meeting of the Berliner Forum

Using a Socio-Psychological Approach for Understanding the Influence of Civil Society On Economic Activity*

This paper proposes a socio-psychological approach for empirical research into the influence of civil society contexts on the practices of individual economic actors. This methodological approach is based on social theories that explicitly take into account the link between structure and agency, and the paper explains how such framework can be utilized in qualitative interview-based studies. To illustrate the usefulness of such socio-psychological approach, the paper reports on the findings o...

Tagungsankündigung Zu Den V. Bayreuther Dialogen 'Die Moralisierung Der Märkte - Neue Ohnmacht Des Konsumenten'