Business Ethics As Applied Ethics

The article examines business ethics as an independent area of knowledge. The relevance of the problem is related to the need for raising “ethic consciousness” of professionals in small business and to call for responsibility of the business community. The formation and establishment of business ethics as a research area and an academic discipline is analyzed in the context of the general change of the content and nature of humanitarian knowledge especially ethics. One of the manifestations of this change is the emergence of applied ethics. There is a special focus on the relationship between ethics and applied ethics, the levels of ethical analysis, origin and cases for the emergence of applied ethics, stages of development. The substantial parameters of business ethics, as a problem field in applied ethics, are identified on the basis of a long process of re-evaluation of the notions of practical ethics. In connection with this, the alternative applications of the moral principles in business (as a social sector of human activity) are ascertained and analyzed. The thesis that business ethics solves moral problems related to decision making is presented and defended: firstly, in connection with certain individuals participating in a given business situation and secondly - in problem situations which cannot be solved only by the strength of participants’ professional knowledge, skill and competence.