Humans, environment and economies: From vicious relationships to virtuous responsibility

Bina, Olívia; Vaz, Sofia Guedes

doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2011.09.029

Cited by 50 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Organizational virtuousness scholars have suggested that some virtuous firms choose to engage in responsible initiatives such as SSCM practices simply because it is the right thing to do, a moral motive, irrespective of reciprocity or self-interest, and that virtuousness does not stand in opposition to concepts of social responsibility, or citizenship, or ethics, but rather it extends beyond them (Cameron et al 2004;Bright et al 2006). Specifically, virtuousness could lead to better care for the environment because (1) classical interpersonal virtues such as benevolence or loyalty might be extended to the environment and nonhuman beings to maintain biodiversity (Cafaro and Sandler 2005;Hull 2005;Sandler 2009), and (2) ''protecting'' or ''not-exploiting'' the environment might lead to ''eudemonia'' due to the harmonious relationship with the environment (Bina and Vaz 2011). Following this theory and taking the stance that supply-chain managers have a moral ''duty'' to proactively question how their actions impinge on the stability and integrity of the supply-chain ecosystem, organizational environmental virtuousness integrates the notion of environmental management and organizational virtuousness to engender a positive means of self-regulation by which organizations may engage in SSCM practices (Hoffman and Haigh 2011;Sadler-Smith 2013).…”

Section: Moral Motives and Sscm Practicesmentioning

confidence: 98%

Motives and Performance Outcomes of Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices: A Multi-theoretical Perspective

2015

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Many researchers believe the tremendous industrial development over the past two centuries is unsustainable because it has led to unintended ecological deterioration. Despite the ever-growing attention sustainable supply-chain management (SSCM) has received, most SSCM research and models look at the consequences, rather than the antecedents or motives of such responsible practices. The few studies that explore corporate motives have remained largely qualitative, and large-scale empirical analyses are scarce. Drawing on multiple theories and combining supply-chain and business ethics literature, we purport that instrumental, relational, and moral motives are behind a firm's engagement in SSCM practices. Specifically, we examine the links between corporate motives, SSCM practices, and firm performance. Using a sample of 259 supply-chain firms in Germany, we empirically test five hypothesized relationships. Our results reveal that relational and moral motives are key drivers, and that firms exhibiting high levels of moral obligations tend to outperform those primarily driven by amoral considerations. Findings of this study contribute to multiple literatures espousing sustainability management and can help policy makers, stakeholder groups, and scholars develop more robust strategies for encouraging firms to practice SSCM.

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Section: Moral Motives and Sscm Practicesmentioning

confidence: 98%

Motives and Performance Outcomes of Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices: A Multi-theoretical Perspective

2015

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“…Van den Bergh considers that these degrowth grassroots initiatives ignore modern insights in psychology and behavioural economics. Bina and Vaz (2011) suggest that the debates on the meaning of growth need a holistic understanding of human beings. According to these authors, it is urgent to revisit the concept of an economic actor as the very basis of economic theory and practice.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…The neoclassical economic theory assumes that the Homo economicus is a "narrow self" (Bina and Vaz, 2011). The standard microeconomic approach is based upon the reductionist vision of human beings as individualistic, egoistic, competitive and profit and utility maximisers (see Bina and Vaz, 2011, Table 1 p. 172).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microeconomic degrowth: The case of Community Supported Agriculture

Bloemmen

Bobulescu

et al. 2015

Ecological Economics

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In this paper, we attempt to build a new microeconomic approach that could be considered as a basis of the degrowth macroeconomic view. As degrowth is a critique of the dominant macroeconomic model of the endless search for economic growth, its microeconomic foundations can be built by searching a relevant grass-root economic initiative to theorise. Our approach is based upon the case study research of a self-harvesting Community Supported Agriculture in Belgium. The mainstream microeconomic model is based on the well-known Homo economicus assumption of individual self-interest and competitive behaviour. By contrast, our model is based on a holistic approach of producers and consumers, based upon trust, cooperation and ecologically responsible behaviours. This contribution participates to the flourishing literature on degrowth in Ecological Economics. We begin by reviewing the debate on degrowth and economic behaviour. We discuss the case study and its accounting expression that departs from the capitalist profit-seeking model. We conclude by explaining the limits and challenges of our model that implements degrowth on a small scale and in a capitalist environment.

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“…Dodds (1997), likewise argues for a more expansive understanding of well-being than that generally adopted by environmental economists, and a host of more recent interventions have taken issue with it in both philosophical and practical terms (e.g. Ferraro and Reid, 2013;Bina and Vaz, 2011;Frey and Stutzer, 2005;Layard, 2005).…”

Section: Locating Well-being Within Ejmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental justice, capabilities, and the theorization of well-being

Edwards

Reid

Hunter

2016

Progress in Human Geography

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Environmental Justice (EJ) scholarship is increasingly framing justice in terms of capabilities. This paper argues that capabilities is fundamentally about well-being, and as such there is a need to more explicitly theorize well-being. We explore how capabilities have come to be influential in EJ and how well-being has been approached so far in EJ specifically and human geography more broadly. We then introduce a body of literature from social psychology which has grappled theoretically with questions about well-being, using the insights we gain from it to reflect on some possible trajectories and challenges for EJ as it engages with well-being.

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Humans, environment and economies: From vicious relationships to virtuous responsibility

Cited by 50 publications

References 29 publications

Motives and Performance Outcomes of Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices: A Multi-theoretical Perspective

Motives and Performance Outcomes of Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices: A Multi-theoretical Perspective

Microeconomic degrowth: The case of Community Supported Agriculture

Environmental justice, capabilities, and the theorization of well-being

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