Abstract
In this chapter I develop ideas about the relationship amongst moral judgement, intuition and social practice, and the ways these notions fit together in thinking about management and virtue ethics. I argue that ethical action by managers in organisations typically requires exercise of intuitive judgement that is developed by experience, aided by social exchange with others in a context of management practice. I also suggest that this account of judgement in virtue ethics is opposed in some important ways to rational choice theory and managerialism. These views’ undue focus on the ‘principal–agent problem’ pushes aside the possibility that managers need to be able to exercise discretion based on judgement that is based on experience and reflection and developed in a social context.
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Notes
- 1.
For recent conversations about judgement and virtue ethics, the author is grateful to Howard Harris and Roderick O’Brien.
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Provis, C. (2013). Judgement, Virtue and Social Practice. In: Harris, H., Wijesinghe, G., McKenzie, S. (eds) The Heart of the Good Institution. Issues in Business Ethics, vol 38. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5473-7_4
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