Beyond the good and the right: Rethinking the ethics of academic entrepreneurship from a relational perspective

This paper critically reviews the ethical resonance of the academic entrepreneurship (AE) phenomenon in light of contemporary concerns about ethics and responsibility in public engagements with science, technology and the commercialisation of technological discoveries through the creation of univers...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Toledano Garrido, Nuria, González Sanz, Juan Diego
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Huelva (UHU)
Repositorio:Arias Montano. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Huelva
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ariasmontano.uhu.es:10272/23365
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10272/23365
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Academic entrepreneurship
University spin-off
Knowledge transfer
Ethics
Moral
Paul Ricoeur
Gift
71 Ética
5311 Organización y Dirección de Empresas
72 Filosofía
Descripción
Sumario:This paper critically reviews the ethical resonance of the academic entrepreneurship (AE) phenomenon in light of contemporary concerns about ethics and responsibility in public engagements with science, technology and the commercialisation of technological discoveries through the creation of university spin-offs. In this context, we address the question of how we can know when we may consider AE as being ethical. We draw on the works on ethics of the French philosopher Paul Ricoeur ̶ one of the most influential thinkers of the twentieth century ̶ to provide an answer which encompasses but also goes beyond the association of ethics solely with ‘good’ purposes or ‘right’ norms to value it in each situation by paying special attention to how academic entrepreneurs behave in their relationships with others. We conclude that it is the manner and quality of open, generous, meaningful and appropriate ‘self-regulation’ that defines academic entrepreneurs as ethical individuals. The paper helps to improve the understanding of ethics in this field and may also illuminate academic entrepreneurs and university policymakers seeking to improve qualitative outcomes in university spin-offs.