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How Would Confucian Virtue Ethics for Business Differ from Aristotelian Virtue Ethics?

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  • Daryl Koehn

    (DePaul University)

Abstract

Confucianism is potentially relevant to business ethics and business practice in many ways. Although some scholars have seen Confucian thought as applicable to corporate social responsibility (Wang and Juslin in Journal of Business Ethics 88(3):433–451, 2009) and to corporate governance (Low and Ang in International Journal of Business and Management 8(4):30–43, 2013), only a few business ethicists (Koehn in Local insights, global ethics for business. Amsterdam, Rodopi, 2001a; Business Ethics Quarterly 11(3):415–431, 2001b; Journal of Business Ethics 116(4):703–715, 2013; Romar in Journal of Business Ethics 38(1–2):119–131, 2002; Lam in The Analects, Penguin Classics, London, 2003; Chan in Journal of Business Ethics 77(3):347–360, 2008; Woods and Lamond in Journal of Business Ethics 102(4):669–683, 2011) have taken seriously the possibility that Confucius may have important insights to offer regarding virtue ethics, which has now become the most popular normative theory as evidenced by the number of recent articles published in business ethics journals (Alzola in Business Ethics Quarterly 25(3):287–318, 2017). This paper aims to help rectify this oversight. The paper focuses on several distinctive aspects of Confucian ethics, discussing both how Confucius’ approach differs from Aristotelian virtue ethics in significant ways and how these key differences suggest numerous directions for future research.

Suggested Citation

  • Daryl Koehn, 2020. "How Would Confucian Virtue Ethics for Business Differ from Aristotelian Virtue Ethics?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 165(2), pages 205-219, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:165:y:2020:i:2:d:10.1007_s10551-019-04303-8
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-019-04303-8
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Alzola, Miguel, 2015. "Virtuous Persons and Virtuous Actions in Business Ethics and Organizational Research," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 25(3), pages 287-318, July.
    2. Gary chan, 2008. "The Relevance and Value of Confucianism in Contemporary Business Ethics," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 77(3), pages 347-360, February.
    3. Peter Woods & David Lamond, 2011. "What Would Confucius Do? – Confucian Ethics and Self-Regulation in Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 102(4), pages 669-683, September.
    4. Lei Wang & Heikki Juslin, 2009. "The Impact of Chinese Culture on Corporate Social Responsibility: The Harmony Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(3), pages 433-451, October.
    5. Koehn, Daryl, 2001. "Confucian Trustworthiness and the Practice of Business in China," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 11(3), pages 415-429, July.
    6. Daryl Koehn, 2013. "East Meets West: Toward a Universal Ethic of Virtue for Global Business," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 116(4), pages 703-715, September.
    7. M. Tina Dacin & Peter A. Dacin & Paul Tracey, 2011. "Social Entrepreneurship: A Critique and Future Directions," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(5), pages 1203-1213, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Li Yuan & Robert Chia & Jonathan Gosling, 2023. "Confucian Virtue Ethics and Ethical Leadership in Modern China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 182(1), pages 119-133, January.
    2. Min Huang & Xiaobo Li & Jun Xia & Mengyao Li, 2024. "Does Confucianism Prompt Firms to Participate in Poverty Alleviation Campaigns?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(4), pages 743-762, February.

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