Whistleblowers and the Narrative of Ethics

Explores the narrative of ethics expressed by whistleblowers. Information is based on over 80 hours spent listening to a dozen whistleblowers who chose to speak out against illegal or unethical practices within the organizations they worked for in spite of great risk to themselves. All but one of th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of social philosophy 2001, Vol.32 (3), p.402-418
Main Author: Alford, C. Fred
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Altruism
Ethics
Organizational Crime
Philosophy
Philosophy of action
Theory of values and moral philosophy. Philosophy of action
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Summary:Explores the narrative of ethics expressed by whistleblowers. Information is based on over 80 hours spent listening to a dozen whistleblowers who chose to speak out against illegal or unethical practices within the organizations they worked for in spite of great risk to themselves. All but one of the 12 lost their jobs, eight lost their homes, & seven lost their families. Whistleblowers are compared to rescuers of Jews during the Holocaust. It is pointed out that rescuers risked their lives while whistleblowers generally only risk their livelihood. However, rescuers formed mammalian attachments with those they rescued while whistleblowers are deprived of that satisfaction. The altruistic personality of rescuers is examined. Consideration is given to how whistleblowers explain their acts to themselves, including a sense of the historical moment; identification with the victim; & reluctance to double. Similarities between how whistleblowers talk about their experiences & the way Hannah Arendt (1964) talks about thought/thinking are explored to show that whistleblowers are indeed talking about ethics. J. Lindroth
ISSN:0047-2786
1467-9833
DOI:10.1111/0047-2786.00103