Chair of Economic Ethics
Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg
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Short Profile
Prof. Dr. Ingo Pies, born 1964 in Arnsberg (West-Germany). Scholarship by Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes (German Academic Scholarship Foundation). 1989 Diploma (= Master) in Economics at Muenster University. 1992 Dissertation (= Ph.D., Dr. rer. pol.) „Normative Institutionenökonomik“ (Normative Institutional Economics) at Catholic University Eichstaett. 1999 Habilitation (Dr. rer. pol. habil.) „Ordnungspolitik in der Demokratie“ (Ordo Politics in Democracy). 2001-2002 interim professor at the Chair of Economic and Social Policy at Passau University. Since October 2002, he has been a tenured professor as the Chair for Economic Ethics at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg where he directs work on the ordonomic research program.
Ordonomics is a rational choice based approach that combines economic, psychological, sociological, and ethical strands of thought in order to analyse the moral appropriateness of societal institutions, as well as the societal functionality of traditional morality. Among some of ordonomic’s main propositions are the following: (a) In accordance with Andrew Young’s motto “public purpose capitalism”, economic competition can be used as a means for societal cooperation since its incentives can promote efficiency and innovation. (b) Markets are a motor of modernity. (c) Markets facilitate solidarity among strangers and foster institutionalised empathy. (d) Companies can employ morality as a factor of production: they can commit themselves, make their behaviour predictable and thus incentivise their interaction partners in value creation to react productively. (e) Compared with people, companies – as organisations – have a longer life span and a superior capacity for credible commitments, which constitutes their very raison d’être. (f) Companies can take regulatory responsibility. (g) They can thus help to overcome barriers for both thinking and acting (especially discourse failures) and contribute to making moral desiderata a reality.
Ingo Pies has published over 70 articles in peer-reviewed journals, e.g. Business Ethics Quarterly, Journal of Business Ethics, Business and Society, Voluntas. As author or co-author, he has written 22 books, and is the co-editor of the series „Konzepte der Gesellschaftstheorie“ (Concepts of Social Theory) by Mohr-Siebeck (20 volumes), as well as the editor of the series “Ökonomik und Ethik. Studien zur Sozialstruktur und Semantik moderner Governance“ („Economics and Ethics. Studies on the Social Structure and Semantics of Modern Governance”) by Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Berlin (wvb) (27 volumes)
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Thematic Orientation Dissertation Topics