Abstract
It is argued here that business firms can and do provide an incubator that enables the Aristotelian category of friendships of advantage to develop into friendships of virtue. This contradicts other literature that views acquaintances of utility as the business norm, and expresses pessimism concerning more advanced virtuous development of friendship within the business firm. It is argued here, however, that this virtuous development is integral to the Kantian social aim of pursuing a moral community, an aim which declares the appropriate moral motivation for business, and that certainly should incorporate a role for developing virtuous relations as a component of that pursuit. An atmosphere that encourages the development of relations of virtue is feasible, exists in real business, and is optimal for pursuit of moral business communities.
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Notes
- 1.
Adoption and communication of duties being the additional operationalizing parts.
- 2.
Aristotle adds possible good fortune and external goods as necessary additional factors. (Ibid, p. 252)
- 3.
See Taylor (2000, p. 260).
- 4.
See Cooper (1980, Chap. 17, p. 304).
- 5.
See Sommers (1997).
- 6.
Ibid, p. 304.
- 7.
See NE: 1156 b 25–29, and 1156 a 3–5, and 1156 b 12–17.
- 8.
Koehn (1998) argues that friendships of virtue are rare in business, but offers no argument or evidence in support. The author, however, has observed such relations as common in business. See below for some suggested examples.
- 9.
Specific knowledge can only be transmitted from one agent to another at high cost. It is relevant for allocation of decision rights and responsibilities within the firm, and necessary for effective firm functioning. See Jensen (2000, p. 143), and also Brickly et al. (2009), for an extensive review of the roles of general and specific knowledge for firm success.
- 10.
Annas (1993) makes this point throughout her treatise.
- 11.
See McCullough (2015).
- 12.
See Rich and Janos (1994).
- 13.
See Baime (2014).
- 14.
See Josephson (1962), and Wikipedia.
- 15.
See Lager (1994), and Wikipedia.
- 16.
See Allen (2011), and Wikipedia.
- 17.
The ancient philosophy, however, emphasized reflective revision and growth in virtue over one’s life, a reflection and revision that ultimately leads to a happiness of contentment. See Annas (1993, p. 332). This requires, according to Aristotle, a “complete life with complete virtue.” (NE, 1.x.)
- 18.
See Wood (1999, p. 162).
- 19.
- 20.
“Rent seeking” in this context means seeking to receive compensation due to position rather than effort.
- 21.
- 22.
Aristotle (1976, 1168 b 19) also addresses the issue of moral competition among virtuous people. He indicated the benign benefits that would result provided the competing parties have an appropriate sense of moral self worth.
- 23.
- 24.
See Kant (1797, 6: 470–474).
- 25.
The author does not endorse the idea that these by products are only illusion. In business, these by products are definitely tangible.
- 26.
- 27.
See Krackhardt and Stern (1988).
- 28.
See Kilduff (1992).
- 29.
See Fischer (1982).
- 30.
“I ought never to act in such a way that I could not also will that my maxim should be a universal law.” (Kant, 1785, 4:421)
- 31.
“Act so that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or in that of any other, always as an end and never as a means only.” (Kant, 1785, 4:429)
- 32.
See Kant (1785, 4:421, 4:429, 4:433).
- 33.
Also see Sullivan (1994, p. 84–87) for a review similar to Korsgaard’s.
- 34.
See Kant (1797, 6:393).
- 35.
Wood (1999, pp. 301–302) also points out that consequentialist motivation is either egoistic or communal.
- 36.
Notions of flourishing, as used here, certainly incorporate material sustenance as well as societal coherence and support. Those economic communities that exhibit fraud, deception, coercion, and the like, inevitably implode.
- 37.
This is a Kantian passage that fully expresses the second formula’s foundation for duty. For duty of virtue based upon respect, further see Kant (1797, 6:462).
- 38.
- 39.
See Korsgaard (1996, p. 20).
- 40.
Kant (1797, 6:451–452) addresses the issue of benevolence as associated with “closeness,” but he does not address the issue of the connection between “knowledge” and benevolence except tangentially. See Sullivan (1994, p. 98).
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Supplemental Readings
Robinson (2019, Chapter 4) and Robinson (2018) present the seminal literature in the role of relations of virtue in business.
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Robinson, R.M. (2022). Chapter 7: Relations of Virtue, Pursuit of the Moral Community, and the Ends of Business. In: Business Ethics: Kant, Virtue, and the Nexus of Duty. Springer Texts in Business and Economics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-85997-8_7
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