ビジネスにおけるPositive Deviance

― 企業倫理研究の視点から ―

抄録

 In Japan, there is a growing awareness of corporate social responsibility and philanthropy. However, simultaneously, issues such as bribery, accounting fraud, and manipulation of the measured data in the various industries cannot be ignored. This study explores whether there is a solution to escape the complicated situation of both efforts to have a positive social impact and the problems of corporate fraud. This leads to the idea that a market mechanism is needed to evaluate ethical companies. In other words, businesses may need to compete to create a better world to change the chaotic state in which both wrongful behaviors and corporate social responsibility exist. Positive deviance (PD) in the academic field of Positive Organizational Scholarship (POS) is one of the approaches. PD in POS is defined as “intentional behaviors that significantly depart from the norms of a referent group in honorable ways.” The purpose of PD is to lead business norms to excellence and ensure that other organizations follow the updated standards. In Business Ethics, this is equivalent to a moral role model based on virtue theory, in which people learn about the good values that should be cultivated, learn from the lifestyle of real heroes, and share values. With the emergence of followers, it is more than just one episode; it establishes a new standard of value. This study examines some cases of PD in business and proposes that PD is positioned as an entity that transforms business norms into competition to create a better world.