THE DIFFICULT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ETHICS AND ECONOMICS

The mainstream Economic theory does not take into consideration Ethics in its analysis. This limitation not only has an impact in the theory, but also is determining the performance on reality. We intend to go through the history of economics to study the views of some economists on the relationship between Ethics and Economy. The most relevant reform that has taken place in capitalism has arrived with the establishment of the welfare state. The social rights have implied an advance in the common interest which should be one of the aims of Ethics. In the last decades, and to a greater extent with the crisis, they are trying to dismantle partially or completely this welfare state by favouring free market.