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Virtuous Markets: The Market as School of the Virtues

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  • Maitland, Ian

Abstract

In a commercial society, said Adam Smith, “every man becomes in some measure a merchant.” If Smith is right, what does that mean for the character of the society? This paper addresses the character forming effects of the market—and, specifically its impact on the “virtues.” There is a long tradition of viewing commerce as subversive of the virtues. In this view, the market is held to have legitimated the pursuit of narrow self-interest at the expense of social and civic obligations and moral restraints. But, as Albert Hirschman has shown, many Enlightenment moralists saw commercial society as a moralizing force. Which view is right? This paper examines how many of the character traits that we commonly call virtues are rewarded—and so presumably reinforced and diffused—by the market. In this way, the market (as it were by a hidden hand) strengthens its own foundations and reproduces a moral culture that is functional to its own needs.

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  • Maitland, Ian, 1997. "Virtuous Markets: The Market as School of the Virtues," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 7(1), pages 17-31, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:buetqu:v:7:y:1997:i:01:p:17-31_00
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    Cited by:

    1. Galassi, Francesco L. & Newton, Lucy A., 2001. "My Word Is My Bond: Reputation As Collateral In Nineteenth Century English Provincial Banking," Economic Research Papers 269369, University of Warwick - Department of Economics.
    2. Felix Martin, 2011. "Human Development and the Pursuit of the Common Good: Social Psychology or Aristotelian Virtue Ethics?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 100(1), pages 89-98, March.
    3. Thomas Carson & Mary Verdu & Richard Wokutch, 2008. "Whistle-Blowing for Profit: An Ethical Analysis of the Federal False Claims Act," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 77(3), pages 361-376, February.
    4. Johan Graafland, 2020. "When Does Economic Freedom Promote Well Being? On the Moderating Role of Long-Term Orientation," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 149(1), pages 127-153, May.
    5. David Dawson, 2015. "Two Forms of Virtue Ethics: Two Sets of Virtuous Action in the Fire Service Dispute?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 128(3), pages 585-601, May.
    6. Gregory Wolcott, 2018. "The Rehabilitation of Adam Smith for Catholic Social Teaching," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 149(1), pages 57-82, April.
    7. Lori Verstegen Ryan, 2006. "Foundation and Form of the Field of Business Ethics," Journal of Private Enterprise, The Association of Private Enterprise Education, vol. 22(Spring 20), pages 34-49.
    8. David Dawson, 2018. "Organisational Virtue, Moral Attentiveness, and the Perceived Role of Ethics and Social Responsibility in Business: The Case of UK HR Practitioners," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(4), pages 765-781, April.
    9. Miguel Alzola, 2018. "Decent Work: The Moral Status of Labor in Human Resource Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 147(4), pages 835-853, February.
    10. Bucar, Branko & Glas, Miroslav & Hisrich, Robert D., 2003. "Ethics and entrepreneurs: An international comparative study," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 261-281, March.
    11. Matthew Caulfield, 2023. "Between Markets, Politics, and Ethics: On Vendor Conscience and Impersonal Markets," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 188(2), pages 307-326, November.
    12. Alex Nicholls, 2010. "Fair Trade: Towards an Economics of Virtue," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 92(2), pages 241-255, April.
    13. Surendra Arjoon & Alvaro Turriago-Hoyos & Ulf Thoene, 2018. "Virtuousness and the Common Good as a Conceptual Framework for Harmonizing the Goals of the Individual, Organizations, and the Economy," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 147(1), pages 143-163, January.
    14. Andrew West, 2014. "Ubuntu and Business Ethics: Problems, Perspectives and Prospects," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 121(1), pages 47-61, April.
    15. Marie Daou & Alain Marciano, 2022. "Commodification: The traditional pro-market arguments," Post-Print hal-03876907, HAL.
    16. David Dawson, 2018. "Measuring Individuals’ Virtues in Business," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 147(4), pages 793-805, February.

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