Ontology, Relational Ethics, and Corporations

This book offers a unique exploration and analysis of social responsibility and associated ethical concepts used by business and financial organizations. Mussell lays out the argument that a realist analysis of social responsibility reveals caring relations underpinning this ethical behavior. The combination of a realist social ontology with contemporary relational care ethics provides the theoretical framework needed to successfully explore the ethics of social responsibility. She then applies this realist caring relations argument to three specific contexts in which social responsibility is explicitly evident - including corporate social responsibility, socially responsible investment, and the legal concept of the fiduciary. By tracing the historical development of each concept – including how economic methodology has influenced interpretations and practice – a complex picture emerges, showing how ethics, economic theory, and political theory intersect. This is an insightful work of philosophically informed contemporary political economy, analyzing the evolution and connection of key ethical concepts widely used by organizations. Helen Mussell is a Lecturer in Organizational Studies at Cardiff University, and a Research Associate at the Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge, UK.