Module Code and Title:        ETH203 Ethics in Economics

Programme:                           BA in Development Economics

Credit Value:                          12

Module Tutor:                        Sanjeev Mehta

General objective: This module aims to strengthen critical thinking about ethical issues that arise in economic analysis and public policies. It will facilitate the students to explain moral foundations in economics, apply moral philosophy to human choices and economic policy. Students will develop skills that are necessary to evaluate economic behaviour and policies on ethical concepts.

Learning outcomes – On completion of the module, students will be able to: 

1. Apply ethical framework on a moral position.
2. Provide an economic perspective to an ethical question.
3. Examine conflict between public and private morality.
4. Examine the role of incentives and rewards in setting ethical behaviour.
5. Evaluate the moral status of profit in the context of sector specific needs.
6. Explain the role of self-organisation in promoting ethical behaviour.
7. Distinguish between virtue and care ethics
8. Establish link between markets virtues and Happiness
9. Describe the limits to market ethics.
10. Examine ethical applications in labour market.
11. Describe the role of social responsibility in the provision of financial services.
12. Evaluate risks related to the decision making for others. 
13. Examine the moral responsibilities of economists. 

Learning and Teaching Approach:

Assessment Approach:

Each student will submit an assignment before the mid-semester examination, entailing evaluation of an issue from a given ethical framework, should have a maximum limit of 800-1000 words.

1    Identification of the ethical issue (s) involved

2    Defining the embedded ethical concept

3    Justification for the use of an ethical framework

4    Analysis and findings

Each student will write two essays (10 marks each), one each before and after mid semester examination, on any ethical economic issue from Unit II and Unit V respectively. Word limit: 800-1000 words each essay.

1    Logical flow of thoughts

3    Ability to comprehend relevant issues in the debate

3    Evidence based arguments

1    Language skills 

1    Subtleness of conclusion

1    Structure of the essay

Each student will write and post a blog on a given case (a film/ public policy/ private decisions) from the issues covered in Unit III and IV. The blog should have a maximum limit of 500-750 words. 

6    Identification of the issues of ethical conflict 

2    Link the conflicts to an ethical framework 

4    Assessment of the impact of ethical conflict 

3    Justification of the ethical stand 

Students will take a written exam of 1.5-hr duration covering topics up to the mid-point of the semester. The exam will comprise structured questions like MCQ, fill-in-the-blanks, matching, definition, as well as open-ended essay questions.

Students will take a written exam of 2.5-hr duration encompassing all the subject matter covered in the semester. This assessment is comprehensive and summative in nature, and will comprise structured questions like MCQ, fill-in-the-blanks, matching, definition, as well as open-ended essay questions.

Overview of assessment approaches and marks

Pre-requisites: None

Subject matter:

1. Unit I: Moral Foundation
   1. Why Ethics Matters: Definition of Morality, Ethical Framework- Consequentialism, Deontologism, and Virtue-Based
   2. Classical Utilitarianism and Rule Utilitarianism
   3. Link between Ethics and Economics, Positive and Normative Economics
   4. Ethics and Markets, Roles of Rights, Duties, Rules and Virtues
   5. Perfect and Imperfect Duties, Judgment and Willpower, Rights, Wrongs, and Externalities.
   6. Limits to Benevolence, Potential for Corruption, Moral Development
2. Unit II: Sources of Morality in Economics (Economic Judgment and Moral Philosophy)
   1. Economic Man, Rationality and Bounded Rationality, Economics without Economic Man, Role of Incentives and Rewards, Moral Status of Profit, especially in context of sector specific needs
   2. Utility and Wellbeing, Rights and Freedom, 
   3. Group Size and Economic Behaviour, Self-Organisation and Return of Invisible Hand
   4. Incentives and Cost of Lying, Self-Image, Moral Balancing
   5. Public and Private Personas and Morality, Moral Suasion, Social Identity
3. Unit III: Market, Virtues and Happiness
   1. Virtue Ethics and Care Ethics, Conflict between Virtue and Care Ethics, Redressing the Balance
   2. Link between Market Virtues and Happiness, 
   3. Moral Limits of the Market: Commodification, Commercialisation, Privatisation, Involuntary Exchange, Plurality and Commensurability 
4. Unit IV: Commerce and Markets
   1. Humane markets, Humane Political Economy, Dehumanising Market, 
   2. Ethics of Money and Finance, Money as the Root of Evil, Fairness in Financial Market, Social responsibility of Finance
   3. Ethics in Labour Market, Labour Market and Rise of Gig Economy,
5. Unit V: Welfare, Risk and Policy 
   1. Ethics of making Risky Decisions for Others, Four Dilemmas, Distributional Sensitiveness
   2. Economic Harm and Responsibilities of Economists, Sources of Econogenic Harm, Harm Centric Approach to Economic Assessment 
   3. Ecological Justice

Reading List:

Essential Reading

Hausman, D (2018). Economic Analysis, Moral Philosophy and Public Policy. 

Sen, Amartya (1998). On Ethics and Economics. Blackwell Publishing.

White, D M (2019). The Oxford Handbook of Ethics and Economics. OUP.  

Wight, Jonathan B (2016). Ethics and Economics: An Introduction to Moral Framework. Stanford University Press. 

Additional Reading

Sandel, M J (2012). What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Wempe, B., Frooman, J. (2018). Reframing the Moral Limits of the Market Debate: Social Domains, Values and Allocation Methods. Journal of Business Ethics 153, PP1-15. 

Gaarfland, J.J. (2010). Do Markets Crowd out Virtues? An Aristotelian Framework. Journal of Business Ethics, Vol 9 (1). PP1-19.

Jarecki, N. (2012). Arbitrage. Greenroom Films, Treehouse Pictures, Artina Films

Date: June 2022