Anthropological Underpinnings of Business Ethics and Work Ethics in Relation to Business Legitimacy

Abstract

There is a strong human factor in business. Therefore, it is an important task for anyone who deals with economics - scientists as well as business people - to think about questions of anthropology: what are the important traits of human character and decision-making and how do I account for them in my own economic theory or business model? The chapter presents the understanding of human being and acting that is typical for neoclassical economics, the so-called homo economicus model. It then turns to various criticisms of that model and contends that there are two other significant anthropological models in current theory of economics: the other-regarding, moral person with specific interests in justice, solidarity, and integrity, and the “intuitive agent” of behavioral economics. It is argued that even though it has been tried to deduce norms and rules of business legitimacy directly from anthropological findings, anthropology cannot replace ethics. Still, observations with regard to human motivation and decision-making are an indispensable underpinning of any economic theory and policy.