The Anatomy of "Corruption" as the Product of "Consequentialist" Approach: Which Business Ethics?

Abstract

The objective of this article, by using the concept of corruption in its widest sense, is to underline the need to perceive the rise and spread of corruption in the context of its philosophical and historical background. Thus, three complementary analysis are made in this context: "utilitarian ethics" as a means of legitimizing corruption, the relationship between the corruption and the "consequentialist" approach, the latter being the product of utilitarian ethics, and finally the social consequences of these relationships. This individual-centered understanding which lacks moral grounds and suggests profit as the sole measurement of success is the most significant factor that lies beneath the pervasion of the belief that means justify the ends. Corruption is one of the archetypes used for this kind of legitimization.