This book explores how ethics and the moral context of business have evolvedhistorically in inf luential management theories and concepts. It looks at howmanagerial thought accommodates morality, values, and ethics and demonstratesthe emerging patterns of ethical conduct to illustrate how moral aspectsof management and organizational practice can become peripheral.The author examines a diverse range of data sources such as the most seminalbooks in management and academic papers published in the mainstreamacademic literature. The readings selected in the process are subject to criticalanalysis and are complemented by an exploratory study of the financial servicesindustry, based on semistructured in-depth interviews. The uniqueness of theproposed approach comes first from the consolidation of many perspectivessuch as management, organization studies, and business anthropology ratherthan focusing on one particular subdiscipline; second, from using a mixedmethodology, combining literature reviews with empirical, exploratory researchbased on interviews; and third from including a narrative context in theanalysis and proposed future theory framework.This book will appeal to students, researchers, and scholars who teach ethicsin the fields of economics or business. It is useful for advancing theory andresearch on moral management and as a resource for management practitionerslooking to create business practices fostering moral sensitivity. Those interestedin setting future development directions may also find the proposedconsolidation of theoretical and empirical evidence valuable for the design offuture policies.
