Epistemological issues and aspects of organizational practice

Frits Schipper

pp. 79-107

in: Peter Koslowski (ed), Elements of a philosophy of management and organization, Berlin, Springer, 2010

Abstract

Philosophy deals with ontological, epistemological and ethical problems, and the philosophy of a particular discipline or practice does this in connection with just this discipline or practice. The three themes mentioned are not unconnected. In the case of medicine, for example, when a physicalist ontology is leading, the concept of 'suffering" would become irrelevant, while human beings would be nothing but complex physio-chemical systems. If so, then this has unavoidable implications for what could be considered as responsible action, which points to ethics. Something analogous would apply to management and organization too. If a company, for instance, is regarded as no more then a money-making machine, then this gives expression to a particular ontology. As such, this view limits where to look at when a business' performance is viewed in terms of relevant ethical criteria.