The primary aim of the text is to introduce the reader to the relationship between economics and ethics and to the application of economic ethics in the evaluation of the market. The reader will gain insight into:

• The ethical and methodological strategy of economics and criticism of the core assumptions that underpin the economic defence of free market operation.
• The characteristics of different ethical theories (utilitarianism, duty and rights ethics, justice and virtue ethics) that can be used to evaluate the free market.
• How to apply economics in conjunction with ethical theories to evaluate economic trends and policies that promote the free operation of the market and are subject to public debate.

These insights will help to develop the reasoning and analytical skills needed to criticize economic analysis as well as to apply ethical concepts to moral issues in economic policy.

The world's people and their leaders face a complex and multifaceted set of 'eco-social questions'. As the productivity of humanity increases, the negative external environmental effects of production and consumption patterns become increasingly problematic and threaten the human welfare. As the regulating power of national and international governments is limited, this challenge has generated a strong interest in the corporate social responsibility (CSR) of companies. Firms find it increasingly important to meet the expectations of stakeholders with respect to the company's contribution to profit, planet, and people. The primary aim of this book is to introduce the reader to the impacts and drivers of CSR, with a special focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Research into the social and environmental impacts of CSR is rare. This is a serious gap because if CSR were to fail to have favourable social and environmental impacts on society, the whole concept may become redundant. If societal impacts of CSR are substantial, it is important to know the drivers of CSR. This book considers (1) factors internal to the company, (2) the competitive environment of the company, (3) institutions external to the company, and (4) how the impacts of institutions are mediated or moderated by company internal factors. This book will fill this gap by estimating various types of models that integrate external and internal factors driving CSR and its impacts on environment, innovation, and reputation, making it a valuable resource for researchers, academics, and students in the fields of business management and CSR.

The world's people and their leaders face a complex and multifaceted set of 'eco-social questions'. As the productivity of humanity increases, the negative external environmental effects of production and consumption patterns become increasingly problematic and threaten the human welfare. As the regulating power of national and international governments is limited, this challenge has generated a strong interest in the corporate social responsibility (CSR) of companies. Firms find it increasingly important to meet the expectations of stakeholders with respect to the company's contribution to profit, planet, and people. The primary aim of this book is to introduce the reader to the impacts and drivers of CSR, with a special focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Research into the social and environmental impacts of CSR is rare. This is a serious gap because if CSR were to fail to have favourable social and environmental impacts on society, the whole concept may become redundant. If societal impacts of CSR are substantial, it is important to know the drivers of CSR. This book considers (1) factors internal to the company, (2) the competitive environment of the company, (3) institutions external to the company, and (4) how the impacts of institutions are mediated or moderated by company internal factors. This book will fill this gap by estimating various types of models that integrate external and internal factors driving CSR and its impacts on environment, innovation, and reputation, making it a valuable resource for researchers, academics, and students in the fields of business management and CSR.

The past two decades of market operation has generated welfare and economic growth in Western countries, but increasing income inequalities, depletion of the natural environment and the current financial crisis have led to an intense debate about the advantages and disadvantages of the free market. With this book, Professor Graafland makes a valuable contribution to the Christian debate about the market economy. In particular, it aims to clarify the links between ethical values, Christian belief and economics, as well as informing theologians and economists about recent economic insights into market operation.

The book investigates the effect of free market operation on welfare and well-being, calling into question why one would favour more market competition as a means of increasing happiness. As well as this, Professor Graafland examines how free market competition relates to principles of justice and looks at whether it enforces or crowds out Christian virtues like love, humility and temperance.

Books that systematically link biblical teaching about the economy to recent theoretical and empirical research in economics on free market operation are rare. Most Christian books on the market system are theologically oriented, lacking a sound basis in the extensive knowledge of the recent economic literature on market operation. This book confronts Christian ethical standards with current economic literature on the effects of market operation on welfare, happiness, human rights, inequality and virtues in order to develop a well-based and balanced view of the pros and cons of market operation. This book will be of interest to both undergraduate and postgraduate students of economics, philosophy and theology.

The primary aim of the text is to introduce the reader to the relationship between economics and ethics and to the application of economic ethics in the evaluation of the market. The reader will gain insight into:

• 
  
• The ethical and methodological strategy of economics and criticism of the core assumptions that underpin the economic defence of free market operation.
• 
  
• The characteristics of different ethical theories (utilitarianism, duty and rights ethics, justice and virtue ethics) that can be used to evaluate the free market.
• 
  
• How to apply economics in conjunction with ethical theories to evaluate economic trends and policies that promote the free operation of the market and are subject to public debate.

These insights will help to develop the reasoning and analytical skills needed to criticize economic analysis as well as to apply ethical concepts to moral issues in economic policy.

In the Netherlands, the election programmes of the political parties are assessed for their economic impact by an independent economic bureau. The result of this analysis is published just before the elections take place. In this way, the voter will be protected against political parties that try to win the elections by making popular but unfounded financial promises. Economic Assessment of Election Programmes contains contributions of several distinguished economists and philosophers who consider the gains of this procedure to society. Does the analysis by the Netherlands' Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB) raise the democratic quality of the elections? Can we really be confident in the tools of economics? The last section of this volume states the opinion of representatives of the political parties. This part also clarifies why political parties voluntarily participate in this process and how they perceive the role division between the political party and CPB.

In the Netherlands, the election programmes of the political parties are assessed for their economic impact by an independent economic bureau. The result of this analysis is published just before the elections take place. In this way, the voter will be protected against political parties that try to win the elections by making popular but unfounded financial promises.

Economic Assessment of Election Programmes contains contributions of several distinguished economists and philosophers who consider the gains of this procedure to society. Does the analysis by the Netherlands' Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB) raise the democratic quality of the elections? Can we really be confident in the tools of economics? The last section of this volume states the opinion of representatives of the political parties. This part also clarifies why political parties voluntarily participate in this process and how they perceive the role division between the political party and CPB.

In the Netherlands, CPB often adopts the MIMIC model to explore the structural labour market implications of changes in the tax and social-insurance system. This applied general-equilibrium model combines microeconomic theory with a rich institutional detail and a firm empirical basis. This book describes the structure of MIMIC and discusses a large number of policy measures that have been proposed during the last five years. Moreover, it elaborates on proposals that are currently in discussion, such as the flat tax. To ease the understanding of the model, we also present a core version with only a few equations.