Open Access Repository

Embedding ethics: dialogic partnerships and communitarian business ethics

Macklin, R ORCID: 0000-0001-7191-0616 and Mathison, K ORCID: 0000-0003-0373-3704 2017 , 'Embedding ethics: dialogic partnerships and communitarian business ethics' , Journal of Business Ethics , pp. 1-13 , doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-016-3431-0.

Full text not available from this repository.

Abstract

The existence of a plurality of communities, a diversity of norms, and the ultimate contingency of all decisions in modern societies complicates the task of academics and practitioners who wish to be ethical. In this paper, we envisage and articulate a dialogical, communitarian approach to embedding business ethics that requires business ethicists to more reflexively engage with practitioners in working on and representing the normative criteria that people in organisations use to deal with moral dilemmas in business. We promote the idea that business ethicists should not only cross the divide between normative ethics and empirical research, but also take a step beyond the empirical to become more active change agents. As potential exemplars of this approach in practice, we explore how self-critique and cross-disciplinary collaboration in education and teaching might be used by academics to engage current and future business ethicists, as well as managers, in dialogic partnership. In an organisational context, we also propose a three-part approach to embedding reflexive ethics in practice, through dialogic research, debate, and re-presentation of ideas. We contend that our approach has more efficacy than the traditional grand theories of ethics or more focused theories of business ethics, such as Integrated Social Contract Theory; it has the potential to provide more grounded, and therefore more practical, advice to academics, current and future business ethicists, and business practitioners.

Item Type: Article
Authors/Creators:Macklin, R and Mathison, K
Keywords: communitarian business ethics, dialogue, ethics education, integrated social contract theory, normative business ethics
Journal or Publication Title: Journal of Business Ethics
Publisher: Springer
ISSN: 0167-4544
DOI / ID Number: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-016-3431-0
Copyright Information:

Copyright 2017 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

Related URLs:
Item Statistics: View statistics for this item

Actions (login required)

Item Control Page Item Control Page
TOP