ETHICS and ECONOMICS: DEPARTURE in JUSTIFICATION

• Main Authors: Sansel OZPINAR, İsmet ATES
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Social Sciences Research Society 2009-07-01
• Series: International Journal of Social Sciences and Humanity Studies
• Online Access: http://www.sobiad.org/ejournals/journal_IJSS/arhieves/IJSS-2009/07sansel-ozpinar.pdf

Economics, in mainstream textbooks, is defined as an optimization science. That means that it tries the find the ways in which endless needs and want s are met by limited resources. Where does the traditional economics reach by starting with “hom o economicus” and “ceteris paribus”? Where is and how much the ethics take place in the adventur e of economics. May be it is better to ask this question that way: Must economics contain ethics? Otherwise is it independent from ethics? It is clear that there is no place for et hics in Orthodox Economics. If there is one, it must be the ethics of interest. Ethics is related with “other”. Every threats, manors or activities affecting “other” have inevitable relations with ethics. In this study, first the relation between the transformation of the science of economics and phase of capitalism will be inspected then, the basic postulates of Orthodox economics and its problems caused by itself will be discussed. Finally, the r easons of high tensioned relation between ethics and economics will be betrayed.