IS “BUSINESS ETHICS AN OXYMORON?

Dragos Bigu and Ionut Anastasiu

Proceedings of the INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE, 2015, vol. 9, issue 1, 860-865

Abstract: In this article, we examine some objections to the enterprise of business ethics. We draw the distinction between two lines of argumentation against business ethics: the former based on real-life examples of unethical conduct in business, and the latter based on theoretical and normative arguments. We show in the first section why the first line is not successful. In the second section we examine in more detail the arguments in the second category. First, we argue that the idea that profit is the purpose of business does not lead to the conclusion that there are no ethical norms that should be observed in business. Secondly, we argue that ethical principles are not confined to the sphere of personal life or, in the professional life, to that of public institutions. We analyze the distinctions between ethical norms applicable to the field of business and those applicable to the public sector.

Keywords: business ethics; purpose of business; public vs. private sector ethics. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:rom:mancon:v:9:y:2015:i:1:p:860-865

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