Title: Mapping the field of a diverse discipline - towards a taxonomy of business ethics

Authors: Christoph Schank; Moritz Botts; Johannes Hirata

Addresses: Faculty of Education and Social Sciences, University of Vechta, Driverstr. 22, 49377 Vechta, Germany ' Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Turkish-German University, Şahinkaya Cad. 86, 34820 Beykoz/İstanbul, Turkey ' Faculty of Business Management and Social Sciences, Osnabrueck University of Applied Sciences, Albrechtstr. 30, 49074 Osnabrueck, Germany

Abstract: The diversity of business ethics approaches makes the field interesting and productive, but it also poses challenges to investigating the field. To help scholars make sense of the complex business ethics landscape, an analytical framework is needed, especially in light of cultural-specific approaches to business ethics. To this end, we propose a taxonomy consisting of ten criteria on four levels to systematise business ethics approaches. We demonstrate the analytical rigor of the taxonomy by applying it to three schools of business ethics from German-speaking countries, namely the economic theory of morality, integrative economic ethics, and cultural business ethics. As a result, commonalities and differences become visible, and scholars may find it easier to identify linkages with their own discipline.

Keywords: business ethics; taxonomy; integrative economic ethics; economic theory of morality; cultural business ethics.

DOI: 10.1504/IJPEE.2023.138586

International Journal of Pluralism and Economics Education, 2023 Vol.14 No.3/4, pp.246 - 269

Received: 13 Sep 2022
Accepted: 06 Oct 2023
Published online: 13 May 2024 *

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