Table Of Content“The book is a welcome and rewarding contribution to the literature on
business ethics. Its sections on moral theory are accessible and enlighten-
ing, which alone make the book well worth reading for anyone interested
in probing more deeply into what it means to act ethically. Of particular
interest to managers is the third part of the book, ‘The Manager’s View:
Best Practices for Improved Ethical Decision-Making.’ Every manager who
wants to enhance their leadership would do well to study what the authors
have to say and to put their informed suggestions into practice. The business
world and the people it serves would be richer for it.”
– Bruce Weinstein, PhD, The Ethics Guy®, Author of The Good
Ones: Ten Crucial Qualities of High-Character Employees
“The book offers a modern insight into the complex process of solving
moral dilemmas in the everyday practice of decision-makers. It is distin-
guished by a combination of theoretical and practical perspectives together
with empirically supported findings that every leader should know to make
the best possible ethical decisions in the current complex and dynamic busi-
ness environment.”
– Robert Šumi, PhD, Chief Commissioner of The Commission for the
Prevention of Corruption of the Republic of Slovenia
“In the times where most decisions are justified with some level of urgency,
we found ourselves in the world of multiple global crisis. The connection
between two is more obvious by day. And yet, our knowing of crisis doesn’t
bring the best of humanity to the surface, but continue to celebrate those
who keep finding ways for increasing profits in the name of stakeholders,
employment, democracy etc. This book reminds us of basic human decency
and can help co-create a new compass beyond the business world.”
– Mihela Hladin Wolfe, former Director of Environmental
Initiatives, EMEA, Patagonia, Advisor
Ethical Decision-Making in
Management
Moral pragmatism has been largely ignored in Business Ethics, despite its
natural attraction and the fact that it is prominent in philosophy and socio-
economic theories. The main premise of the book is that the complexity of
today’s business world does not permit a grand ethical theory, notwithstanding
the different attempts made by scientists. Moral pragmatism is the “go-to”
approach, where the ethical decision-making of managers varies, depending
on different circumstances, but it always integrates moral considerations.
Ethical decision-making is no longer based simply on known rules but
entails the constant dynamic interaction of circumstances, the development
of new rules, managers’ past experiences, their knowledge concerning ethics
and skills of moral reasoning.
This book interweaves the postmodern approach to management studies
and, based on its innovative research, reintroduces moral pragmatism in
Business Ethics. The combination of decision-making theories, philosophy
and postmodernism paves the way for future novel research in Business Ethics,
making it an excellent resource for researchers, academics and advanced
students in the field of Business Ethics. Practitioners, on the other hand, will
benefit by improving their skills in ethical decision-making and leadership.
Matej Drašček is Finance and Internal Audit Expert and Guest Lecturer
for Strategic Management at the School of Economics and Business at the
University of Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Dana Mesner Andolšek is Professor of Sociology of Organisation, Business
Ethics and Knowledge Management in the Department of Sociology at the
Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Adriana Rejc Buhovac is Professor of Strategy in the Academic Unit for
Management and Organisation at the School of Economics and Business at
the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Routledge Studies in Business Ethics
Business ethics is a site of contestation, both in theory and practice. For some it
serves as a salve for the worst effects of capitalism, giving businesses the means
self-regulate away from entrenched tendencies of malfeasance and exploitation.
For others business ethics is a more personal matter, concerning the way that
individuals can effectively wade through the moral quagmires that characterise
so many dimensions of business life. Business ethics has also been conceived of
as a fig leaf designed to allow business-as-usual to continue while covering over
the less savoury practices so as to create an appearance of righteousness.
Across these and other approaches, what remains critical is to ensure that
the ethics of business is the subject of incisive questioning, critical research,
and diverse theoretical development. It is through such scholarly inquiry
that the increasingly powerful purview of corporations and business activity
can be interrogated, understood and, ultimately, reformulated. This series
contributes to that goal by publishing the latest research and thinking across
the broad terrain that characterised business ethics.
The series welcomes contributions in areas including: corporate social
responsibility; critical approaches to business ethics; ethics and corporate
governance; ethics and diversity; feminist ethics; globalization and business
ethics; philosophical traditions of business ethics; postcolonialism and the ethics
of business; production and supply chain ethics; resistance, political activism
and ethics; sustainability, environmentalism and climate change; the ethics of
corporate misconduct; the politics of business ethics; and worker’s rights.
11. Work as a Calling
From Meaningful Work to Good Work
Garrett W. Potts
12. Ethical Decision-Making in Management
Perspectives of the Philosopher, the Sociologist and the Manager
Matej Drašček, Dana Mesner Andolšek and Adriana Rejc Buhovac
For more information about this series, please visit: www.routledge.com/
Routledge-Studies-in-Business-Ethics/book-series/SE0900
Ethical Decision-Making
in Management
Perspectives of the Philosopher, the
Sociologist and the Manager
Matej Drašček, Dana Mesner
Andolšek and Adriana Rejc Buhovac
First published 2023
by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
and by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 Matej Drašček, Dana Mesner Andolšek and Adriana Rejc Buhovac
The right of Matej Drašček, Dana Mesner Andolšek and Adriana Rejc
Buhovac to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted in
accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval
system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Draš č ek, Matej, author. | Mesner-Andolš ek, Dana, author. |
Rejc, Adriana, author.
Title: Ethical decision-making in management : perspectives of the
philosopher, the sociologist and the manager / Matej Draš č ek,
Dana Mesner Andolš ek and Adriana Rejc Buhovac.
Description: 1 Edition. | New York, NY : Routledge, 2023. |
Series: Routledge studies in business ethics | Includes bibliographical
references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022053183 | ISBN 9781032186610 (hardback) |
ISBN 9781032186627 (paperback) | ISBN 9781003255604 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Business ethics—Philosophy. | Decision making—Moral
and ethical aspects. | Creative ability in business. | Pragmatism.
Classification: LCC HF5387 .D73 2023 | DDC 174/.4—dc23/eng/
20221102
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022053183
ISBN: 978-1-032-18661-0 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-032-18662-7 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-25560-4 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003255604
Typeset in Bembo
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
Contents
List of Figures xi
List of Tables xii
Preface xiii
Introduction 1
PART I
The philosopher’s view 7
1 Postmodern ethical theories 9
1.1 Postmodern ethical theories in ethical decision-making 9
1.2 Moral reasoning and moral dilemma 13
1.3 The difference between moral generalism and moral
particularism 18
1.4 The role of moral intuitivism in decision-making 24
2 The case for moral pluralism and moral pragmatism
in ethical decision-making 29
2.1 Moral pluralism in philosophical theory 29
2.1.1 Foundational and non-foundational pluralism as the two
main levels of pluralism 29
2.1.2 Definition of value in moral pluralism 30
2.1.3 Comparability or noncomparability of values among
themselves as a problem of moral pluralism 31
2.2 Moral pragmatism in philosophical theory 35
2.3 The relationship between moral pragmatism, moral pluralism
and moral relativism 40
2.4 Pragmatism as a bridge between ethical theory and practice 42
2.5 Role of pragmatism in business ethics 47
viii Contents
3 Theories of business ethics and ethical decision-making:
utility, duty and virtues in the business world 49
3 .1 Three normative ethical theories in business ethics 49
3 .1.1 The difference between metaethics, normative and
descriptive ethics 49
3 .1.2 The forgotten normative ethical theory: virtue ethics 54
3 .1.3 The difference between basic and derived ethical
theories 56
3 .1.4 Virtue ethics as the only ethical theory without internal
conflicts 57
3 .2 Business ethics or just ethics? 58
3 .3 Business ethics and normative ethical theories 63
3 .3.1 Utilitarianism as the basis of business ethics 63
3 .3.2 Deontology as the basis of business ethics 68
3 .3.3 Virtue ethics as the basis of business ethics 73
4 Decision-making theories: from philosophy to neuroscience 81
4 .1 Up to the 20th century – philosophical approach to
decision-making 81
4 .1.1 The basics of reasoning and decision-making: deduction
and deduction 81
4 .1.2 The influence of religion on decision-making 83
4 .1.3 Mathematical approach to decision-making 84
4 .2 The 20th century – economic approach to decision-making 85
4 .2.1 Financial approach to decision-making 85
4 .2.2 The role of decision-making in management 87
4 .2.3 Prospect theory 93
4 .3 The 21st century – neuroscience and the behaviourist approach
to decision-making 94
4 .3.1 Behaviourist approach to ethical decision-making 94
4 .3.2 Neuroscience in decision-making 98
4.4 The labyrinth of ethical decision-making theories 106
4 .4.1 Basic premises and models in ethical
decision-making 107
4.4.2 Rational and irrational models of ethical
decision-making 108
4.4.3 Other models of ethical decision-making 109
4.4.4 Ethical decision-making models based on ethical
theories 111
4.4.5 Modern applied models of ethical decision-making 113
4.4.6 Analysis of ethical decision-making models 114
Contents ix
PART II
The sociologist’s view 117
5 Sociological view of ethical decision-making 119
5 .1 The everyday view on ethical decision-making 119
5 .1.1 The ordinary moral actor 121
5 .1.2 Ethics in individual and social cognitive reality 124
5 .1.3 Elements of the stock of knowledge 126
5 .1.4 A morally competent decision maker or a well-informed
citizen 131
5 .1.5 The ideal type: the expert – the philosopher 133
5 .1.6 The ideal type: the well-informed citizen or competent
moral actor 136
5 .2 Empirical research on ethical decision-making 138
5 .2.1 Common errors in research methods in business
ethics 140
5 .2.2 Typical questions in the research of business ethics 144
5.2.3 Review of quantitative empirical research in the field of
ethical decision-making 153
5 .2.4 Review of qualitative empirical research in the field of
ethical decision-making 156
5 .2.5 Postmodern research in the field of ethical
decision-making 157
5 .2.6 Postmodernist research: can we predict managers’ choice
of ethical theory in their ethical decision-making? 162
PART III
The manager’s view 175
6 The manager’s view: best practices for ethical
decision-making 177
6.1 The role of ethical infrastructure in ethical decision-making 177
6.1.1 Informal mechanisms in ethical infrastructure for ethical
decision-making 179
6.1.2 Formal mechanisms in ethical infrastructure for ethical
decision-making 182
6.1.3 The role of the board of directors in setting the tone at
the top and providing support 185
6.1.4 The code of ethics 188
6.1.5 Whistleblowing reporting 192
