Does economics have an ethical component?

Abstract

This essay raises the following question “Does economics have an ethical component?”. In this regard, Mayer finds that two distinct perspectives have unique and continuing significance: the instrumentalist and the personalist. The first, he says, traces its origins to the very beginnings of economics as a discipline, has dominated economic thought ever since, and denies there is a place for ethics in the science of economics. The second is of more recent origin, has been far less influential in shaping economic thought, and insists that economics indeed has an ethical component because economic affairs are human affairs. Mayer states that John Paul II has contributed to the development of the personalist perspective by insisting that humans are more than mere instrumentalities in the process of production. They are human persons first and foremost, with a moral agency which they bring with them to the workplace and the marketplace.

Citation

Mayer, H.C. (1998), "Does economics have an ethical component?", International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 25 No. 11/12, pp. 1803-1810. https://doi.org/10.1108/03068299810233484