"The most profound decisions about justice are not made by individuals as such, but by individuals thinking within and on behalf of institutions. It follows that moral philosophy is an impossible enterprise if it does not start with the constraints on institutional thinking."
Mary Douglas
I have investigated this question in the context of several specific cases: mission-driven social enterprises, Protestant theologies of work, racial equity hiring programs, and alternative ownership structures of businesses. I have also explored the newer moral languages of DEI, ESG, and CSR. My writing interprets these cases through any number of literatures, whether institutional theory, organizational theory, or normative ethics. Most of my work also speaks to larger political questions of how non-state entities serve the ends of enacting social justice, preserving democratic institutions, and creating a flourishing social order.
I received a PhD in Sociology from the University of Virginia, with special concentrations in social theory and religion. I have presented my research at the Academy of Management, the Society of Business Ethics, the American Sociological Association, and the American Academy of Religion. My research has also appeared in the Academy of Management Review, the Journal of Business Ethics, and the Journal of Critical Realism. I have also published non-academic pieces in the Washington Post and the Hedgehog Review.
You can contact me by emailing apl9ze [at] virginia.edu or following me on twitter: @andrew7ynn.