Ethical Boundaries of Capitalism

The spate of corporate scandals across the Atlantic and similar cases in the EU in the early twenty first century illustrate the complex reality of capitalist societies, casting new doubts on the ability of these societies to impose natural limits on greed, selfishness and aggressive rivalry between economic actors. Social scientists now question whether capitalism can provide a solid basis for the development of ethical behaviour and whether unethical behaviour is an inherent feature of capitalist systems. This book addresses these issues within a thesis-antithesis approach, with analysis of the ethical virtues of capitalist structures, and a study of ethical issues within various applied contexts, including corporate governance and regulation. This book will be of interest to students of business, economics, and philosophy. It will also appeal to practitioners who want to broaden their understanding of modern societies and improve the quality of their decision-making by incorporating the essential ethical dimension.