The Political Economy Of Business Ethics In East Asia

The Political Economy of Business Ethics in East Asia: A Historical and Comparative Perspective deals with modes of ethical persuasion in both public and private sectors of the national economy in East Asia, from the periods of the fourteenth century, to the modern era. Authors in this volume ask how, and why, governments in pre-modern Joseon Korea, modern Korea, and modern Japan used moral persuasion of different kinds in designing national economic institutions. Case studies demonstrate that the concept of modes of exchange first developed by John Lie (1992) provides a more convincing explanation on the evolution of pre-modern and modern economic institutions compared with Marx’s modes of production as historically-specific social relations, or Smith’s free market as a terminal stage of human economic development. The pre-modern and modern cases presented in this volume reveal that different modes of exchange have coexisted throughout human history. Furthermore, business ethics or corporate social responsibility is not a purely European economic ideology because manorial, market, entrepreneurial, and mercantilist moral persuasions had widely been used by state rulers and policymakers in East Asia for their programs of advancing dissimilar modes of exchange. In a similar vein, the domination of the market and entrepreneurial modes in the twenty-first century world is also complemented by other competing modes of change, such as state welfarism, public sector economies, and protectionism. Compares Chinese, Japanese, and Korean business ethics from a comparative and historical context Explores recent theoretical approaches to capitalist development in modern history in non-Western regions Discusses the theoretical usefulness of new institutionalism, modes of exchange, and neoclassical discussions of business ethics Evaluates historical texts in their own languages in its attempt to compare Chinese, Japanese, and Korean business ethics in the pre-modern and modern times

The relationship between government and business has become a central issue in East Asia since the financial crisis of 1997. As the Asian economies try to advance the reform process, recent scandals involving corruption and cronyism have demonstrated the ongoing significance of the issue. This edited book features a range of distinguished international specialists and explores the interaction between politics and business across the region. Detailed case-studies focus on Japan, China, South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia. This is the first comprehensive introduction to government-business relations in the region and makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the problems faced by the Asian economies.

For organisations and management the role of business ethics is of key importance, but to what extent business ethics are actually new or fashionable or universally applicable are interesting questions. Asia has been the site of contests between competing economic and ethical views of how economic norms and institutions are organized. This book examines the evolutionary similarities and differences of institutionalizing business ethics in Asia in a historical context and in comparison to better-explored business ethics literature, both empirically and theoretically. This collection uses both historical and contemporary cases in Japan, Korea and China to show that these countries have tried to balance their traditional business ethics norms and values with those that have been introduced from the West. Underpinning the case studies is the fact that these countries have historically pursued ethical mandates in running private corporations, although corruptive practices were also rampant during different historical periods.

In a systematic study of the political economy of East Asia, Cai adopts an historical perspective alongside a contemporary focus, exploring East Asia's development since the late 19th century. Following similar paths to economic development, East Asian states have achieved economic success, integrating themselves into a regional economy.

With the life story of Shibusawa Eiichi (1840–1931), one of the most important financiers and industrialists in modern Japanese history, as its narrative focal point, this book explores the challenges of importing modern business enterprises to Japan, where the pursuit of profit was considered beneath the dignity of the samurai elite. Seeking to overturn the Tokugawa samurai-dominated political economy after the Meiji Restoration, Shibusawa was a pioneer in introducing joint-stock corporations to Japan as institutions of economic development. As the entrepreneurial head of Tokyo’s Dai-Ichi Bank, he helped launch modern enterprises in such diverse industries as banking, shipping, textiles, paper, beer, and railroads. Believing businesses should be both successful and serve the national interest, Shibusawa regularly cautioned against the pursuit of profit alone. He insisted instead on the ‘unity of morality and economy’ following business ethics derived from the Confucian Analects. A top leader in Japan’s business community for decades, Shibusawa contributed to founding the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the Tokyo Chamber of Commerce, and numerous educational and philanthropic organizations to promote his vision of Confucian capitalism. This volume marks an important contribution to the international debate on the extent to which capitalist enterprises have a responsibility to serve and benefit the societies in which they do business. Shibusawa's story demonstrates that business, government, trade associations, and educational institutions all have valuable roles to play in establishing a political economy that is both productive and humane.

The role of ethnic Chinese business in Southeast Asia in catalyzing economic development has been hotly debated - and often misunderstood - throughout cycles of boom and bust. This book critically examines some of the key features attributed to Chinese business: business-government relations, the family firm, trust and networks, and supposed 'Asian' values. The in-depth case studies that feature in the book reveal considerable diversity among these firms and the economic and political networks in which they manoeuvre. With contributions from leading scholars and under the impressive editorship of Jomo and Folk, Ethnic Business is a well-written, important contribution to not only students of Asian business and economics, but also professionals with an interest in those areas.

As market economic systems extend over southeast Asia, the debate over what role the state should play and what political regime is necessary for economic growth is hotly contested. This revised and updated text examines the political economy of specific countries in the region and follows with a thematic and comparative analysis of key issues.

This book aims to distil from both sets of developments before and after the Asian crisis of 1997 a generic business model for East Asia in the context of the new economy. Globalisation, information communication technology, knowledge-based economy, deregulation and emerging new competition delineate and set the challenges for the new economy. More rapid technological change in the new globalised economy means greater creative destruction and tick of premature obsolescence to companies and workers of capital, job skills and earning power.