Empty Ethics and Reasonable Responsibility: Vocabularies of Motive among Law and Business Students

Despite professional nonns of being socially responsible and providing service to the underprivileged, the attitudes of law students toward ethical duties and public service bear similarities to those of business students. Using data from multiple interviews with luw and business school students at one university, 1 find that these attitudes develop in response to the expectations of peers and professors during school experiences. Ethics courses are marginalized by the schools, and courses focus on such pragmatic issues as the professional code of conduct (law school) or how the appearance of social responsibility affects the bottom line (business school). Provided with little guidance on what they might do when they encounter real ethical dilemmas, students karn vocabularies of motive concerning how lawyers and managers should balance profits, cany out responsibilities to various stakeholders, and weigh ethical concerns, and they then moderate their own expressions of extreme self-interest or self-sacrifice. Both groups learn to maintain social responsibilities only within reason, emphasizing the separation of work from personal convictions. These elements have implications for the perfonnuwe of public service in their future careers, as well as for a scholarly understanding of professionalism.     

The comparative law and economics of pure economic loss

Law and economics shows that a key factor in determining the optimal economic loss rule is found in the relationship between pure economic loss and social loss. Economic loss should be compensable in torts only to the extent that it corresponds to a socially relevant loss. In this paper we undertake a comparative evaluation of the economic loss rule to verify whether modern legal systems, although not formally adopting the economic criterion, define the exclusionary rule in light of efficiency considerations. The comparative analysis reveals that the substantive applications of the economic loss rule in European jurisdictions are consistent with the predicates of economic analysis.     

Morality, social norms and the rule of law as transaction cost-saving devices: the case of ancient Athens

The importance of the institutional framework for economic development is widely accepted today and it is duly stressed in the economic literature. The protection of property rights, the enforcement of contracts and an efficient legal system are the pillars of the contemporary rule of law. However, formal institutions cannot function without being internalized by the citizens and without the strong backing of social norms. Morality and social norms are the major elements of the informal institutional structure, the social capital, which is also critical for social welfare and economic development. In this paper we will discuss both the formal and the informal institutional framework of Ancient Athens, which was a free market society with economic problems similar to contemporary market societies. Athenians developed a highly sophisticated legal framework for the protection of private property, the enforcement of contracts and the efficient resolution of disputes. Such an institutional framework functioned effectively, cultivating trust and protecting the security of transactions. This entire system however was based on social norms such as reciprocity, the value of reputation and widely accepted business ethics. Conformity to social norms as well as moral behavior was fostered by social sanction mechanisms (such as stigma) and moral education. The Athenian example is a further proof of the importance of morality and social norms as transaction cost-saving devices even in quite sophisticated legal systems. Their absence or decline leads inevitably to the need for more regulation and litigation and to a growing preference for clear-cut rules instead of discretionary standards. Athenian law was pioneering in the development of rules and institutional mechanisms suitable for the reduction of transaction costs, many of them surviving in the most complex contemporary legal systems.     

Does acceptance of corporate wrongdoing begin on the “training ground” of professional managers?

Business schools are a modern-day training ground for many of tomorrow's business leaders and managers. The strong emphasis on an economic ideology dominates business education and leads to the contention that business schools desensitize students to ethical issues and contribute to a moral void in the future corporate leaders. This study employed data collected from a sample of 537 graduate students in a southern state university to examine whether MBA students differed significantly from nonbusiness students in their acceptance of unethical and illegal business practices. Results revealed that business students were more likely to be tolerant of business practices with ethical issues than the comparison group. No significant difference was found in the attitudes toward illegal business practices between them. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

Service to servitude? The decline and demise of life-cycle service in England

Life-cycle service was an essential institution in early-modern England that slowly died during the transition from a pre-industrial to a fully industrial economy. A socially pervasive and culturally broad movement of young people from their parental homes to live and serve in the homes of others, life-cycle service was integral to the demographic, economic, and social framework of the era and could not survive when that framework changed. This article examines the institution of life-cycle service, some of the underlying demographic, economic, and social structure that supported it, the changes in that structure that led to its demise, and the ramifications for young people of that demise. Although inevitable, the loss of life-cycle service with its broad social base denigrated service as an institution and was not without other costs especially for young women.     

Family history in canada

Life-cycle service was an essential institution in early-modern England that slowly died during the transition from a pre-industrial to a fully industrial economy. A socially pervasive and culturally broad movement of young people from their parental homes to live and serve in the homes of others, life-cycle service was integral to the demographic, economic, and social framework of the era and could not survive when that framework changed. This article examines the institution of life-cycle service, some of the underlying demographic, economic, and social structure that supported it, the changes in that structure that led to its demise, and the ramifications for young people of that demise. Although inevitable, the loss of life-cycle service with its broad social base denigrated service as an institution and was not without other costs especially for young women.     

Corporate social responsibility as new challenge for the IT industry

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a relevant topic for enterprises offering products and services on a global scale. International organizations provide for guidelines and private associations publish codes of conduct requiring businesses to integrate social, environmental and ethical aspects, human rights as well as consumer concerns into their operations. Not at least the EU is promoting CSR through an Agenda for Action 2011–14. The implementation of CSR is a multidimensional ethical process and gains particular importance for the IT industry which by its nature is global. Therefore, IT enterprises are invited to conduct a CSR assessment, to develop a CSR strategy and to implement CSR commitments. These tasks are to be done by introducing specific CSR processes and compliance measures for risk assessment and risk mitigation.     

A review of Anglo-American forensic professional codes of ethics with considerations for code design

Continuing instances of ethical misconduct and recent advances in the practice of forensic science, the latter reflected by increased growth and professionalism, along with heightening public scrutiny, require that the profession be clear, current, and forthright about its core values. A way of expressing these values is through the codes of ethics of its professional membership organizations. Codes of ethics/conduct from 14 Anglo-American professional forensic membership organizations are reviewed for their clarity, construction, cogency, and the normative form of their provisions. Ethical precepts from the forensic codes reviewed are organized, in summary fashion, by obligation form and application context. Functions that professional codes have served in other professions are described. The codes are found to vary considerably. Some provisions are unclear, and most of the codes are less than comprehensive. There is very little guidance for application of ethical obligations in any of the codes reviewed. Suggestions for redesign, with a partial example, are provided.     

Reflections on a young offenders institution: communication--a need, a want, a right

In this article, it is demonstrated that a dichotomy exists between wider societal movements to develop communication between individuals and among institutions and management practices within a young offenders institution. The principle aim of the article is to illustrate how young offenders are being systematically denied the opportunity to socially interact with others at an appropriate level. The significance of social exchange for these prisoners and how they achieve this is highlighted. The article concludes by suggesting some recommendations in relation to communication within young offenders institutions.     

Juvenile Delinquency in the Cross-Cultural Context: The Egyptian Experience

This essay is a theoretical analysis of the cultural and structural factors that define and explain the extent of juvenile delinquency in the Arab Republic of Egypt. While delinquency in the United States and other Western countries continues to increase in rates as well as in the degree of violence, juvenile delinquency in Egypt remains relatively stable and remarkably benign. This can be attributed to three main factors: (a) an orthodox religion-based value system in which Islamic institutions exert dominant influences on the day-to-day moral behavior of juveniles; (b) a closely-knit family structure that functions within a communitarian environment in which children are constantly disciplined whereas they are taught socially acceptable behavior and shamed when they succumb to criminal behavior; and (c) an extraordinarily progressive juvenile justice system, which treats delinquency as a social phenomenon rather than a criminal endeavor. The study presents statistical data, based on official statistics, which show the levels of predelinquent and delinquent activity in the different provinces based on their degree of urbanization. Furthermore, the study attempts to explain the reasons behind the present deviance in society by discussing the possible impact of Social Control Theory, Strain Theory, and the idea of Relative Deprivation. The more serious aspects of deviance, it appears, emerged during the infitah era (economic opening) championed by president Sadat in the mid-seventies as an attempt to modernize—and westernize—the traditionally conservative nation.     

Reflections on the sociology of law: A rejection of law as ‘socially marginal’

Rejecting the concept of law as subservient to social pathology, the principle aim of this article is to locate law as a critical matter of social structure – and power – which requires to be considered as a central element in the construction of society and social institutions. As such, this article contends that wider jurisprudential notions such as legal procedure and procedural justice, and juridical power and discretion are cogent, robust normative social concerns (as much as they are legal concerns) that positively require consideration and representation in the empirical study of sociological phenomena. Reflecting upon scholarship and research evidence on legal procedure and decision-making, the article attempts to elucidate the inter-relationship between power, ‘the social’, and the operation of law. It concludes that law is not ‘socially marginal’ but socially, totally central.     

Household formation, institutions, and economic development: Evidence from imperial Russia

Household formation patterns have been adduced in recent years by historians and other social scientists to account for the economic development of western Europe. The so-called European Marriage Pattern, which prevailed throughout northwest Europe, is viewed as having been particularly conducive to early industrialisation and economic growth. But to what extent were household formation systems exogenous to the broader economic and social context in which they were located? Evidence from nineteenth-century Russia indicates that family systems were influenced by the same variables that determined the shape of the local economy; they were part of a complex web of institutions and thus cannot be viewed as independent determinants of economic development.     

Counterfeiting as corporate externality: intellectual property crime and global insecurity

Corporate negative externalities occur when corporations place some of the costs of their profit-seeking activity onto society. This paper suggests that the current global problem of intellectual property crime is such an externality, and that it has not been recognised as such because corporations present product counterfeiting and piracy as crimes which reduce their revenue, rather than as predictable side effects of corporate production and merchandising, including branding activity, which have considerable socially deleterious consequences. It is argued that corporate actors are responsible for the socially harmful effects of the global counterfeiting problem in the following respects. Branding, advertising, and other corporate activities drive the market for goods which have a fashion value over and above their use value. While corporations ‘create’ this desire, they cannot prevent it being applied to the desire for fake or replica goods. Outsourcing of corporate production activities to developing countries to take advantage of cheap manufacturing and labour costs presents considerable opportunities to producers in those countries to copy and distribute the goods in an unauthorised way. Serious measures are not taken against product counterfeiters by rights-holding corporations, since market expediency dictates that the costs of counterfeiting are not so adverse to corporations to incentivise them to change their business methods. Counterfeit and pirated goods cause a range of social harms above and beyond the spuriously-costed financial damage corporate rights-holders suggest they suffer - these include the health and safety issues created by some fake goods, and the creation and maintenance of highly profitable organised crime activity in international markets for fake goods.     

事业单位员工养老保险转移与接续的问题及立法思考

事业单位员工养老保险转移与接续机制的缺失是我国目前经济发展中遇到的一个突出问题。本文从社会保险价值的基础和功能入手,分析了我国事业单位员工养老保险转移与接续的立法现状、存在的问题及原因,在借鉴国内外立法经验的基础上,结合我国实际,提出了提高立法层次形成全国统一法律法规;将事业单位员工养老保险金纳入全国统筹;设置统一的管理机构;建立高效的转移与接续协作机制;制订统一标准、实现标准化管理的立法建议。     

Sex offender treatment is not punishment

Abstract

The treatment of sexual offenders can be fraught with ethical dilemmas. Practitioners must balance the therapeutic needs of sex offender clients alongside the risks they might pose to others. These ethical challenges include balancing community safety with the rights of the offender, the privileged therapeutic relationship and the potential for coerced treatment. In this paper, we respond to Glaser's argument that treatment is punishment and that sex offender treatment providers breach ethical codes by violating confidentiality, engaging in coercion, and ultimately causing harm to clients. We first consider whether sex offender treatment is indeed punishment. We argue that it is not, and that mandated treatment can and should be conducted in a fashion consistent with professional codes of ethics familiar to mental health providers. We then discuss the human rights model, which we agree is an essential lens through which to view the psychological treatment of sexual offenders. We attempt, as have other scholars, to illustrate the ways in which human rights principles intersect with traditional mental health codes of ethics particularly in the case of sex offender treatment. We conclude that sex offender treatment can be conducted ethically, that treatment differs from punishment in clear and distinct ways, and that ethical treatment conforms to a human rights perspective.     

The penalization of protest under neoliberalism: managing resistance through punishment

The repression of anti-austerity protests in Spain from 2011 to 2014 constitutes an example of how neoliberal developments are facilitated by the penal system as it limits political resistances to the imposition of precarious working conditions and social cuts. The limits imposed on contentious politics are both material (consisting of banning acts that are prominent in social movement’s repertoire of contention, fining demonstrators, etc.) and symbolic (consisting of transforming the meaning of legitimate politics by imposing new legal and political definitions). This case study is used to illustrate the interconnection between labor markets, social policies and the repression of social protest, and to elaborate on Wacquant’s approach to the relationship between punishment and other social institutions. It is at such times of political and economic crisis when institutional interconnections seem particularly exposed, arguably enabling more profound analyses.     

DIFFUSION OF FRAUD: INTERMEDIATE ECONOMIC CRIME AND INVESTOR DYNAMICS*

Criminologists have studied the spread of fraudulent practices and techniques among perpetrators. This article attempts to contribute to the field by looking at the other side of diffusion, examining the spread of fraud among investors in a case of “intermediate fraud.” Intermediate fraud occurs when fraudulent acts are committed in or by a legitimate business. Using comprehensive archival, interview, and survey data, we analyze a business that exhibited a two‐stage pattern of intermediate fraud: It was created and operated as a legitimate business in the first stage, and then economic crimes were increasingly committed in the second stage. We use diffusion theory to guide our analysis, investigating the ways in which five factors—product attributes, buyer attributes and behavior, seller attributes and behavior, structure of the social network, and method of propagation—influence the adoption and diffusion of investments in oil and gas wells among a population of investors. The case of intermediate fraud is interesting because the factors that contributed to the success of the business in its legitimate stage are the same factors that contributed to the success of the fraud in its illegitimate stage.     

Drawing the Boundaries of Nanoscience – Rationalizing the Concerns?

Nanotechnology as an emerging field is strongly related to visionary prospects which are disposed to reappear as dystopian concerns. As long as nanotechnology does not provide reliable criteria for assessing these worries as rational or as irrational they remain a challenge for ethical reflection. Given this underdetermination, many nanovisions and their corresponding concerns should therefore be considered as "arational." For that reason, a "constructivist" stance is endorsed which does not seek to take part in discussions as to how ethicists should cope with controversial worries, but tries to observe how concerns are managed by different social actors. This perspective allows us to remodel some concerns such as "grey goo" not solely as a societal reaction, but also as challenging and irritating factors. As such they potentially initiate two different processes simultaneously: a differentiation in terms of demarcating science from non-science on the one hand, and a rationalization of concerns on the other. Analyzing these processes empirically allows to reconstruct how "arational" concerns are socially made rational or, on the contrary, irrational.     

Preface to Social Theory of Property Rights

Abstract. In the history of liberal theories of property, the predominant model deduces a right to highly unequal amounts of property from a premise that the person is primarily independent and self-determined. But modem social theory, communitarianism and critical legal theory have generated strong support for an alternative premise of social self-determination of the person. These theories have not, however, adequately explored the logical implications of social personality for the justifiable degree of equality of income under property right. This study reasons a right to some significant equalization of income from a premise that the individual is socially self-determined. The supporting argument develops a different concept of social personality than found in prevailing social and communitarian theories. With regard to property, it is particularly important to conceptualize the formation of the individual by and within the system of economic relations. The personological premises are also developed differently from Marx's analysis, which overemphasizes the production side of the economy. The present analysis examines the individual in the consumption side as well. But in contrast to the subjective-individualist conception of the consumer in neoclassical economic theory, we will utilize a conception of socially self-determined consumer wants and self-seeking. This social-personological premise proves to have strong egalitarian implications for the distribution of income under property rights.