Abstract
Especially neoliberal economists use Adam Smith to justify laissez-faire capitalism where governments have to abstain from economic regulations and where pure profit maximization is sanctified as the only true motive in business. Smith is far away from defending such kind of capitalism. For him commerce and liberal economy are legitimized by their positive effects on individual morality, at the one hand, and by the benefits they provide for society, at the other. He believes that a system of natural liberty fosters virtues like prudence, temperance, or industriousness and thus contributes to the development of a noble character of the citizens. Furthermore, he is convinced that commerce generates independence, creates economic wealth, and improves governmental order. Nevertheless, as we will show in the following, such system depends on the morality of its citizens as well as on governmental oversight and intervention in cases where market results are undesirable. Thus, business can only be legitimized when it is based on individual morality and appropriate governmental supervision.
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Aßländer, M.S. (2019). Adam Smith and Business Legitimacy. In: Rendtorff, J. (eds) Handbook of Business Legitimacy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68845-9_28-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68845-9_28-1
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