The Role of Moral Heroes

The role of exemplars is critical for the application of virtue ethics because it is from these individuals that the virtues are disseminated throughout the profession. Thus in virtue ethics, ethics is something which is learnt through observation of others' behavior. For example, in his article on "Good Works", Michael Pritchard concludes that "beyond discussing codes of ethics, principles of right and wrong, dilemmas … and moral disaster stories, we need stories of a different sort – stories of good professionals whose lives might inspire emulation" (p. 170, emphasis added). A resurgence in recognition of the critical importance of moral heroes is supplied by cognitive science in its invocation of "exemplar theory". Alvin Goldman summarizes the theory as follows:

"Moral theorists often assume that people's usage of moral terms is underpinned by some sort of rules or principles they learn to associate with those terms: rules governing honesty, for example, or fairness. The exemplar theory suggests, however, that what moral learning consists in may not be (primarily) the learning of rules but the acquisition of pertinent exemplars or examples. This would accord with the observable fact that people, especially children, have an easier time assimilating the import of parables, myths, and fables than abstract principles. A morally suitable role model may be didactically more effective than a set of behavioral maxims". [1993, p. 341]

In summary, what this overview of virtue-ethics theory makes clear is that an individual, whether finance professional or otherwise, cannot be ethical in a vacuum. The individual must be educated in the virtues by a nurturing community, and by the guidance of exemplars. This approach takes ethics far deeper than merely a credo or code of conduct. Ethics becomes integral to the professional's whole conception of what it is he or she is about. Rather than the opportunist of financial agency theory, the virtuous agent adopts a different notion of substantive rationality: Practical Rationality.