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Business Perspectives: Does Business Corrupt a Moral Person?

I am very familiar with the ethics that govern my practice as a primary care practitioner and Doctor of Physical Therapy, first, do no harm. Pretty clear cut. In all you do, do no harm or the very least amount of harm possible.  Of course, there are situations where Utilitarianism ethical reasoning is applied and if the pros outweigh the cons and ultimately the patient benefits, some harm can be accepted. Be truthful, transparent, and act with integrity. Also, pretty clear cut. I have found business ethics to be much grayer and morally challenging as the dynamic of personal gain is introduced. 

To begin to understand the ethics of business (the study of moral matters pertaining to business), I first had to understand the purpose of business: to produce a good or service for trade (Klein, 2021). Ethical business cornerstones include the trade of business being voluntary and consensual and agreed upon without force or fraud (Klein, 2021). The introduction of profit, or how well you conduct business, introduces another aspect of ethics I, personally, have never had to consider: making the "right" moral choice even though you may lose wealth and/or prosperity. So, naturally, I asked myself the question: does business corrupt a once moral person? 

With all of the news we are exposed to today, it is hard to go even one day without hearing of another scandal or abuse of power. All involve some level of ethical violations, and almost all involve personal (self or someone close to self) gain. What makes these people/s in power (titans of industry, politicians, lawyers, doctors, etc...) disregard their moral compass and commit to ethical violations that in some circumstances cause irreparable heinous damage to people, animals, and our environment? My answer. Personal gain coupled with believing one will not be caught and disciplined, or personal gain achieved by abusing legal avenues which can be exemplified in New York, as doctors and lawyers abuse the state's no-fault law and file fraudulent claims against insurance companies for personal gain (money) to the point of bankrupting the insurance companies covering taxi and ride-share drivers (Editorial Board, 2024). 

Klein (2021) purported that engaging in business is virtuous and virtues are about how to live better. The hedonism ethical principle outlines that a person does whatever is in their own self-interest, but not clearly illegal (Karri, 2021). When applying this principle to business, these two thought processes are in direct conflict with one another. So, does business corrupt a moral person? If the persons virtues are not strong enough to outweigh the personal gain that will be had, what you have is a recipe for ethical violation to give birth to corruption. Then the next question may be, how can business incorporate stronger virtues to curb the rampant corruption and the price for not doing business well: bankruptcy?

References:

The Editorial Board. (2024, September 29). New York’s legal corruption racket. The Wall Street     Journal. https://www.wsj.com/opinion/new-york-taxis-insurance-american-transit-insurance-company-    fraud-no-fault-ef0ddcd5

Kline, W. (2021).  Esprit De Corps [Lecture Notes]. University of Illinois Springfield, IL,     Canvas. Module 1: Lecture Materials -- Business Ethics: 24FA - BUSINESS PERSPECTIVES -    BUS501C-OL-15272 (instructure.com)

Karri, R. (2021).  Business ethics [Lecture Notes]. University of Illinois Springfield, IL Canvas. Ethics -    Google Slides

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