経営倫理とCSR概念に関する一考察 ‒プラグマティズム哲学を手掛かりとして‒

Abstract

In many cases, the moral judgment criteria of conventional CSR research, which is based on the theory of balancing “profitability” and “sociality,” are based on the standards of traditional “normative ethics.” As an extension of this research, this study examines the relationship between administration ethics and the concept of CSR. First, I will gain a deeper understanding of representative ethical theories, including the standards of traditional normative ethics. Then, I will provide an overview of administration ethics as business ethics that was born out of normative ethics, and administration ethics as organizational ethics based on the basic principles of management. Finally, using the philosophy of classic American pragmatism as a guide, we consider the essence and limitations of administration ethics and the concept of CSR. In modern capitalist society, the view of administration ethics in economic rationality is in opposition to the ethical principle of business, the principle of humanization. Perhaps many of the discussions about business administration and ethics are based on this dichotomy and binary opposition, and people are still unaware that this is fundamentally wrong. From the standpoint of pragmatism, individuals and others are always reciprocal. As both are social beings, it is natural that differences in value will arise between individuals and others or communities. It is through dynamic interactions around such “differences” that social value is born and society grows. By examining the concept of CSR from the perspective of pragmatist philosophy, it is important to understand “sociality” and “profitability” as an “inclusive, unified relationship” rather than a “parallel, antagonistic relationship.”