The role of legal professionals in large-scale miscarriages of justice: a virtue ethics perspective

Teaching & Learning Guide for: Contemporary Virtue Ethics

This book addresses one of today’s most burning issues, namely the environmental crisis, by offering an insight into the problem from the perspective of virtue ethics. Virtue ethics is an approach to ethics that centralizes the concept of moral virtue, which can be extended to environmental ethics via environmental virtue ethics (EVE). Beginning with a comprehensive overview, the book explores the renaissance of contemporary virtue ethics and the beginnings of EVE in the second half of the 20th century and presents the main characteristics, proponents, and criticisms of EVE. The book then goes on to analyze its development by distinguishing the three most influential concepts: the classical; the naturalistic, teleological, and pluralistic; and the narrative conception of environmental virtue ethics. The author also discusses the most influential works on EVE, including a revision of Louke van Wensveen’s postulate to use virtue language in environmental ethics. By synthesizing such works on EVE alongside an analysis of the three most important concepts, the book offers a new concept that is universalistic, positive, and pragmatic. The book will be useful for students, scholars, and researchers studying environmental ethics, sustainable development, environmental psychology, moral philosophy, and philosophy of education. The Open Access version of this book, available at https://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.

Ethical issues in the contemporary Chinese fundraising industry are increasingly foregrounded, and effective governance has emerged as a particularly important and urgent priority. However, this issue has not received sufficient theoretical and practical attention. We apply a range of tools (factual and value-based, inductive and deductive approaches; historical and logical dialectics; and comparative analysis) to briefly describe the historical development of domestic and international fundraising ethics. We clarify its importance by drawing on a factual description of the main ethical issues in the fundraising industry. A comparative analysis of the three main ethical theories of utilitarianism, deontology and virtue ethics reveals that virtue ethics is more adaptable in guiding fundraising behavior in contemporary China. In order to effectively address the many ethical issues in the fundraising industry, we argue that a process approach should be adopted that draws on a virtue ethics perspective, which focuses on the character of fundraisers at the time of qualification. We optimize the code of fundraising ethics by drawing on a combination of character and normative provisions, and regulate fundraising behavior, which enables us to shape fundraisers’ professional virtues. Fundraising performance is evaluated by referring to fundraising results, motivation and emotion. We find that while there are still some ethical dilemmas and conflicts in the fundraising industry, issues of good and evil, right and wrong and value ranking still lack a consensus and are open-ended. Future research needs to address this limitation.

The fashion industry needs to become more circular, given the unsustainable levels of waste it produces. Our research empirically explores and theoretically develops how adopting a virtue ethics approach can encourage and support second-hand clothing consumption as a form of reuse and a way of practicing sustainability. Based on ethnographic interviews with consumers who shop in UK charity shops, our grounded theory study focuses on how consumers experience second-hand clothing consumption as constitutive of sources of (in)action that encourage or inhibit virtuous, sustainable behaviour. We find that pleasure and/or shame or guilt (pain) are key to enabling virtuous moral decision-making towards reuse and sustainability. We furthermore argue that seduction and conversion, hand in hand with pleasure, act as levers supporting such moral decision-making, mitigating aversions and wayward desires that obstruct good moral intentions to consume second-hand clothing. By engaging empirically with moral decision-making, our research theoretically advances scholarship on virtue ethics and second-hand clothing consumption, whilst contributing to an ethically informed vision of the circular economy. We conclude with implications for charity retail practices in support of circularity and sustainability informed by a virtue ethics perspective, as well as suggestions for future research.

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to explore how virtue ethics might inform our understanding about what constitutes “good” practice in forensic accounting. In particular, the paper explores the concept of phronesis (or practical wisdom) as a basis for guiding the application of professional judgement in forensic accounting practice.Design/methodology/approachThe paper draws on a review of relevant literature.FindingsPrior literature has identified a number of technical and personal characteristics and attributes that are desirable in forensic accounting practitioners. Although being ethical is identified as an important characteristic, the question of what constitutes a “good” forensic accountant has not hitherto been investigated. Because of the profession’s multi-disciplinary and highly technical nature, forensic accountants are significantly at risk of conflating ethics with compliance with the law. The paper suggests that an understanding of virtue ethics and especially the virtue of “phronesis” or practical wisdom will help forensic accountants maintain public confidence and quality in their services and provide practical guidance on the exercise of professional judgement.Practical implicationsThe paper suggests that the primacy currently given in forensic accounting literature and practice to a commercial logic, technical competencies and legal compliance risks damaging the professional standing of forensic accountants and, over time, reduces the ability of forensic accountants to exercise professional judgement in complex unstructured situations. Virtue ethics can act as a useful counter point to these threats.Social implicationsA recognition of the need for the forensic accounting profession to collectively develop phronesis would re-establish the primacy of the profession’s public interest logic and maintain public trust and quality in forensic accounting services.Originality/valueThere appears to be no prior literature in forensic accounting which explores the application of virtue ethics in this field. In addition, although virtue ethics has been the subject of some prior papers in accounting per se, the importance of phronesis as a basis for understanding the nature and application of professional judgement has not been addressed.

This theoretical paper proposes a new perspective to understand the moral distress of nurses more fully, using virtue ethics. Moral distress is a widely studied subject, especially with respect to the determination of its causes and manifestations. Increasing the theoretical depth of previous work using ethical theory, however, can create new possibilities for moral distress to be explored and analyzed. Drawing on more recent work in this field, we explicate the conceptual framework of the process of moral distress in nurses, proposed by Ramos et al., using MacIntyrean virtue ethics. Our analysis considers the experience of moral distress in the context of a practice, enabling the adaptation of this framework using virtue ethics. The adoption of virtue ethics as an ethical perspective broadens the understanding of the complexity of nurses' experiences of moral distress, since it is impossible to create a ready model that can cover all possibilities. Specifically, we describe how identity, social context, beliefs, and tradition shape moral discomfort, uncertainty, and sensitivity and how virtues inform moral judgments. Individuals, such as nurses, who are involved in a practice have a narrative history and a purpose (telos) that guide them in every step of the process, especially in moral judgment. It is worth emphasizing that the process described is supported by the formation of moral competence that, if blocked, can lead to moral distress and deprofessionalization. It is expected that nurses seek to achieve the internal good of their practice, which legitimizes their professional practice and supports them in moral decision-making, preventing moral distress.

Abstract:Business ethicists have increasingly used Aristotelian “virtue ethics” to analyze the actions of business people and to explore the question of what the standard of ethical behavior is. These analyses have raised many important issues and opened up new avenues for research. But the time has come to examine in some detail possible limitations or weaknesses in virtue ethics. This paper argues that Aristotelian virtue ethics is subject to many objections because the psychology implicit within the ethic is not well-suited for analyzing some problematic forms of behavior. Part One offers a brief overview of the firm and of the good life from a virtue ethics perspective. Part Two develops a number of criticisms of this perspective.

PurposeFinancial disclosure manipulation is unethical and unlawful because it leads to less transparent reporting and harmful economic decisions based on misleading information. The purpose of this paper is to provide a summary and synthesis of research covering financial disclosure misrepresentation via impression management (IM). Ultimately, this report proposes that virtuous managers may be well-suited to provide transparent, objective disclosure. By extension, virtuous managers may oversee profitable firms and improve capital market efficiency. Suggestions for future research are presented.Design/methodology/approachThis is an academic literature review covering financial disclosure manipulation. The findings are viewed through the lens of Christian virtue ethics (CVE).FindingsIM studies commonly focus on specific methods used to mislead disclosure readers. Antecedent and mitigation strategies are less commonly noted in the research. This paper presents and analyzes IM tools and antecedents. Mitigation approaches are considered through the lens of CVE. This report proposes that virtuous managers may be well-suited to provide transparent, objective disclosure. By extension, virtuous managers may oversee profitable firms and improve capital market efficiency.Originality/valueThis present study focuses on the antecedents of IM in financial disclosures and introduces a novel perspective to financial disclosure mitigation – CVE. Financial disclosure authors and readers, researchers, financial regulators and accounting standards setters may be interested in the findings presented in this study.

The emergence of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has radically reorganised the production models of digital animation, and AI-driven motion comics have catalysed a transition towards high-efficiency production paradigms in the creative sectors. However, this technological empowerment hides an emerging ethical dilemma on the creative agency. Creators face 'moral deskilling', that is the erosion of narrative and emotional articulation through excessive automation, resulting in professional identity being hollowed out. This study uses a comparative case analysis with a theoretical lens of Virtue Ethics to create a tripartite analytical framework of Techne, Phronesis, and Virtue. It is through this framework that the research methodically dissects the processes of agentic weakening and suggests a path towards reconstruction. The results indicate that by using intent-focused ethical practices, creators ought to repurpose AI as a collaborative prosthetic based on a virtuous agent. This transition allows moving to passive operators to the so-called Virtuous Creator, thus ensuring the ethical autonomy in human-AI co-creation and avoiding the danger of colonisation of technology. On the one hand, theoretically, the given paper expands the scope of application of Virtue Ethics to the sphere of digital creativity; on the other hand, it provides practical recommendations regarding industry ethics standards and the recovery of creative agency, creating a sustainable synergy between humanity, art, and technology.

Truth-telling is a key issue within the nurse-patient relationship. Nurses make decisions on a daily basis regarding what information to tell patients. This paper analyses truth-telling within an end of life scenario. Virtue ethics provides a useful philosophical approach for exploring decisions on information disclosure in more detail. Virtue ethics allows appropriate examination of the moral character of the nurse involved, their intention, ability to use wisdom and judgement when making decisions and the virtue of truth-telling. It is appropriate to discuss nursing as a 'practice' in relation to virtue ethics. This is achieved through consideration of the implications of arguments made by Alasdair MacIntyre who believes that qualities such as honesty, courage and justice are virtues because they enable us to achieve the internal goods of practices.

This paper analyses the contribution of virtue ethics, the study of good character traits, to the humanitarian context. It argues that a virtue ethics perspective paints a realistic picture of the use of ethical standards in morally complex circumstances. Virtuous relief workers can employ standards in their thinking, but they are also committed to professional excellence that goes beyond any formal code. The concept of virtue ethics places a stress on moral development, which can be facilitated by role models that impart modest and feasible ideals. However, virtue ethics cannot provide simple guidelines on how to resolve difficult situations. It is possible that two virtuous persons can disagree on what should be done in a particular instance. In addition, a virtue ethics perspective emphasises the need for both individuals and organisations to discuss the actual purpose of relief work in order to pinpoint the virtues of a good relief professional.

There is a renewed appreciation of the contribution of virtue ethics in clinical healthcare practice, including dentistry. This interest in virtue ethics highlights the limitations of only focusing on the development of clinical skills and competence or mere adherence to a set of ethical rules and guidelines. There is also a growing interest and appreciation that an equally important and integral aspect of dental practice is the development of a virtuous character. From this virtue ethics perspective, a virtue is an haracter, a disposition, well entrenched in its possessor.

This chapter discusses the relation between virtues and economic contexts and explores potential approaches to this subject matter by virtue ethics and economics. Referring to Aristotle’s philosophy, the crucial role of rationality for linking virtue ethics and economic theory is demonstrated. Against this backdrop, the chapter critically discusses conceptions of economic rationality in modern economics and argues that bounded rationality concepts are a more suitable methodological basis for analyzing the interrelation of virtues and economic actions than standard economic rationality. From a virtue ethics perspective, the chapter explores the meaning of multiple modern economic spheres for the development of personal virtues and explores the ethically relevant societal contexts of today’s economic spheres. Finally, the chapter discusses potential new normative frameworks of excellence relevant to the modern economy with the example of sustainability.

In response to Alasdair MacIntyre’s and Brad Gregory’s claim—that the Reformation’s concept of morality in terms of obedience to divine commandments has been a major factor in a catastrophic breakdown in modernity of the teleological view of life and the virtues—this essay aims both to correct this criticism and to reread Calvin from the perspective of virtue ethics. Calvin’s utterances about the nature of the law, virtue, the self before God, one’s calling in the world, natural law and reason appear to be much more in alliance with a teleological, virtue ethical view than MacIntyre suggests. This opens up the possibility of a fruitful interplay between a Reformed account of law and Christian virtue ethics.

Background In the dynamic realm of business, ethics serves as a critical compass, guiding the delineation between right and wrong actions. Gaining momentum as a focal point within organisational discourse, the concept of ethics has burgeoned into a cornerstone element of corporate identity and operations. Objectives This study aims to dissect the theoretical underpinnings of moral virtues—specifically wisdom, justice, courage, and restraint—and their intersection with the managerial profession and associated personality traits. We propose the extension of the Mintzberg model of managerial traits from the perspective of virtue ethics. Methods/Approach Employing a theoretical review methodology, this investigation traverses through each identified moral virtue, engaging with contemporary research and scholarly publications within the domain of virtue ethics. Results The analysis affirms that virtue ethics, with its emphasis on character and morality, is instrumental in shaping the framework for managerial conduct and decision-making. The exploration identifies a symbiotic relationship between managerial virtues within the Mintzberg model of managerial traits, highlighting how these elements collectively contribute to the effectiveness and ethical grounding of managerial practices. Conclusions The findings underscore the indispensability of moral virtues and specific personality traits in the cultivation of proficient and ethically oriented managerial professionals. The extended Mintzberg model can be a relevant starting point for a more detailed discussion regarding virtue ethics in a globalised economy.