Customer Reviews

Ethical Theory and Business

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I teach business ethics at the college level, and have found Ethical Theory and Business to be very helpful. Basically, B and B attempt to do three things, or so it seems to me. First, they offer an introductory essay, covering some of the main distinctions in both meta-ethics (e. g. whether morality is objective or subjective) and normative ethics. This essay is the weakest part of the book, I think, because they seem to offer caracatures of most relativist leaning views (e. g. egoism), and do not adequately criticize Kantian moral philosophy. But even so, the essay does explain many useful distinctions in philosophical ethical thought. Second, B and B offer both classic readings in Business Ethics (e. g. Milton Friedman), as well as really up to date readings, by many of the leaders in the field (e. g. R. Edward Freeman). This is quite a good selection of readings, although they have omitted a few classic essays (like Galbraith's 'The Dependence Effect'), and a few subjects which might have been useful, such as the question of whether one can attribute moral agency to corporations at all. Even so, B and B include more than any course in Business Ethics could cover. Third, B and B provide a Web site with excersizes and instructor aids. Depending on how much one uses the Web, this may be helpful too. So generally speaking, although no anthology is perfect, Beauchamp and Bowie have put together an admirable collection. There is a seventh edition coming out soon. Perhaps that one will be as good as this one.

This book is a critical reader, and it's probably the most highly used text in business ethics today. Those who reviewed this book negatively sound like people looking for a fun, non-academic overview of the field. If so, this book isn't it. These are articles published in top academic journals, edited for readability, by scholars who are addressing the fundamental issues in a wide range of topics. It's meant to expose the span of the field and still give students (not light readers) exposure to contemporary literature that touches on the most salient points. It's meant to be a starting point to deeper research in any given topic. As such, the book is a complete success. B & B do a great job (here as in other ethics compendiums) of providing a framework that makes it easy for a professor to expose her students to the field in one swoop. They do a fine editorial job, stripping the articles of padding, and they work hard to keep the offerings up to date (passing on older articles that are superceded by fresh insights that touch on contemporary challenges and technologies; look for something relating to the corporate scandals of this last year in the next edition). If you are a student looking for an overview on business ethics, this book is the correct starting point. If you are someone looking for light reading about corporate corruption, with illustrations and full-color photos, stick to People magazine.

I really enjoyed this anthology, especially the section on sexual harassment. Some of the subjects were hard going, but, it was a good introduction to business ethics.

This book is a good primer on business ethics, and it would be even better if the writer / editors hadn't shown their bias with their selections of included material.

Business ethics theories evolve, just like any other social phenomenon; however, just because a theory is new doesn't make it right. Especially in an ethics book! The authors are clearly biased against big business, against small government, and against "shareholder management" theory.

Does this make them right or wrong? No. The only "wrong" committed is the bias itself.

As you read this book, just keep your critical thinking skills sharp and your eyes open.

This book makes for a great read with plenty of controversial subjects.
I like the way it gives both sides to every issue thereby making it very difficult to know who's right.

I have found this book to be very thorough in its approach to ethics as it is related to the area of business. The book is up to date and not dated.

There is no better time than the present for ethics. Its something that cannot and shouldn't be overlooked in business. This is a wonderful text at helping those find the need and application of ethics.

Used for one of my MBA courses.

I wish the book had explained more in detail on how one would define an ethical dilemma--Perhaps a step by step approach on how to define and apply the ethical principles would have been beneficial? To me, the book was just a collection of thoughts by various authors.

On the bright side chapter 1 explains several of the ethical principles, but it is up to you to understand how to define and apply them.

Anyway, use at your own risk.

This book was used so much that the cover does not close. The price was too high for this type of used book.

i received exactly what the description said, and it was in good condition. not perfect.. there were pages with lines and highlighter marks, but it turned out to be useful. Thank you