Laszlo Zsolnai ‘Future of Capitalism.’ , in Ethics in the Economy – Handbook of Business Ethics, ed. Laszlo Zsolnai, Peter Lang, Oxford, Bern, Berlin, 2002. (This book may be available at: Amazon)
The moral foundation of capitalism should be reconsidered. Modern capitalism is disembedded from the social and cultural norms of society. Reciprocity and social capital play vital roles in providing public goods in advanced market economies. The stakeholder relationship is a key in the functioning of business in today’s world, and identifying and analyzing stakeholders is a way to acknowledge the existence of multiple constituencies in a corporation.
The economic teachings of world religions challenge the way capitalism is functioning, and their corresponding perspectives are worthy of consideration. Conserving and enabling call for a radical transformation of business. Business should contribute to the conservation and restoration of the ecology of the natural world and, at the same time, it should contribute to the enhancement of the capabilities and self-development of people.
Ethics and the future of capitalism are strongly connected. If we want to sustain capitalism for a long time we have to create a less violent, more caring form of it.