Denna avhandling behandlar frågan om i vilken utsträckning ett egenintresserat handlande kan vara etiskt berättigat. Utgångspunkten för analysen är homo economicus, den neoklassiska ekonomiska teorins antagande att individer är rationella och ultimat motiveras av sitt egenintresse. Efter en kort översikt av grunddragen i den neoklassiska ekonomiska teorin analyseras och preciseras egenskaperna hos homo economicus. Därefter utformas en normativ etisk teori för individer med anknytning till John Rawls teori om rättvisa. Syftet är att utforma ett teoretiskt ramverk för den etiska bedömningen av egenintresserat handlande. I det avslutande kapitlet tillämpas den rawlsianska etiska teorin på frågor om beskattning och skatteundandragande. Tillämpningen visar att skatteundandragande kränker ett flertal av den rawlsianska etiska teorins principer. Avslutningsvis diskuteras även skattereduktion för hushållsnära tjänster, RUT-avdraget, som ett medel för att komma tillrätta med skatteundandragande i vissa särskilt utsatta branscher. Jag hävdar att skattereduktion för städhjälp kan berättigas utifrån den rawlsianska etiska teorin, medan det ifrågasatta avdraget för läxhjälp inte kan berättigas. / This dissertation deals with the question of whether self-interested actions can be morally justified. The theoretical starting point of the inquiry is homo economicus, the neoclassical economics’ assumption that individuals are rational and ultimately motivated by their self-interest. After a brief sketch of neoclassical economic theory, the main characteristics of homo economicus are analyzed and clarified. A normative ethical theory for individuals drawing on John Rawls’s theory of justice is developed. The aim is to suggest a theoretical framework for dealing with the ethical justification of self-interested actions. In the final chapter of the thesis, the rawlsian ethical theory is applied to issues of taxation, as well as tax evasion and tax avoidance. It is argued that tax evasion/tax avoidance violates several principles identified in the rawlsian ethical framework. Tax deduction for domestic service work, as a measure to overcome tax evasion by transforming black-market work into white-market work, is also discussed. By applying the rawlsian ethical theory it is argued that tax deduction for house cleaning can be justified from the suggested framework, while deduction for the much-debated homework help cannot be justified. / <p>In the printed version of this Ph.D. Thesis the ISBN is incorrect: 9<strong>87</strong>-91-7519-202-4. The correct ISBN is 9<strong>78</strong>-91-7519-202-4 and corrected in the electronic version.The series namn <em>Studies in Applied Ethics</em> is incorrect. The correct series name is <em>CTE</em>.</p>

In this thesis, I scrutinise and interpret Jürgen Habermas’s claim that justification of moral norms necessitates cognitivism. I do this by analysing the general idea behind his discourse theory of morality and then his metaethics. From there, I examine the non-cognitivist theory called prescriptivism as set out by Richard Hare to see if his account of moral reasoning is able to counter Habermas’s claims and thereafter, I examine some criticism against his concept of communicative action. I also engage with the discussion on how to define cognitivism: that is, whether the line should be drawn between moral realism on the cognitivist side, and constructivism on the other, or if cognitivism can include constructivist theories too. I propose that it should, provided that it allows moral statements to be truth-apt and express a mental state like that of belief. Following this definition, I argue that Habermas can be labelled a cognitivist and finally, I conclude that Habermas's argument does not hold under scrutiny.

Samhällets hantering av komplexa risker karaktäriseras av osäkerhet, ojämlikhet i exponering och otillräckliga resurser för att hantera riskerna. Det gör att avvägningar måste göras om vilka risker som kan accepteras och hur resurser ska allokeras för att hantera dem. Många av riskerna är också väldigt osannolika. Olyckor som resulteras av transport av farligt gods på vägnätet är exempel på sådana risker. Dessa risker utreds idag ofta av konsulter på företag som har specialiserat sig på ämnet. I avsaknad av specifika nationella kriterier för acceptabla risknivåer förhåller de sig dels till lagstiftning (till exempel Plan- och bygglag), dels till regionala riktlinjer och utvärderingar. Syftet med utredningarna är att beskriva riskerna med transport av farligt gods nära den plats där ny bebyggelse planeras, att bedöma huruvida riskerna kan accepteras samt i de fall riskerna bedöms som oacceptabelt höga även presentera förslag på åtgärder för att minska dem. Syftet med uppsatsen har varit att undersöka hur dessa föreslagna åtgärder motiveras, med utgångspunkt i fem etiska teorier. Genom en kvalitativ innehållsanalys där de etiska teorierna har införlivats visar uppsatsen att riskutredningarna och de förslag på åtgärder som presenteras främst bygger på de etiska teorierna utilitarism och teorin om det sociala kontraktet. Detta har konstaterats genom att tre teman identifierats och analyserats: risksamhället, ekonomiska argument och antropocentrism. Vidare har syftet varit att ge förslag på hur riskreducerande åtgärder kan motiveras utifrån etiska teorier som inte visat sig synliga genom den kvalitativa innehållsanalysen. I uppsatsens diskussionskapitel beskrivs hur deontologisk etik, dygdetik samt miljöetik kan användas för att motivera riskreducerande åtgärder på andra sätt. Slutligen konstateras i uppsatsens diskussion och slutsatser att de studerade utredningarna delar tre metodologiska utmaningar. Bland annat finns en motsättning mellan utredningarnas probabilistiska förståelse för risk och hur vissa riskreducerande åtgärder motiveras. En rekommendation görs att konsultföretagen diskuterar dessa utmaningar och deras implikationer för trovärdigheten i utredningarna. / Complex risks in today’s society are characterized by uncertainty, inequality in terms of exposure, and a lack of resources to handle all risks. Because of this, trade-offs have to be made in terms of what risks can be accepted and how society’s resources for risk management should be allocated. Added to this, many of the risks are very improbable. An example of such risks are accidents resulting from transportation of dangerous goods. In Sweden, these risks are often analysed by consultants at companies that have specialized themselves in this field. As there are no nationally determined criteria for when these risks are at acceptable levels, these consultants relate to legislation, regional policies, and evaluations. The purpose of these analyses is to describe the risks of constructing buildings near roads where dangerous goods are being transported. The purpose is also to assess whether the risks can be accepted, and if not, provide recommendations for measures to reduce the risk levels. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate how these recommendations are motivated, with ethical theory as departure point. Through a qualitative content analysis (where five ethical theories were integrated) the study shows that it is mainly utilitarianism and social contract theory that underpin the assessments and recommendations. This is concluded through the identification and analysis of three key themes: risk society, economic arguments, and anthropocentrism. A second purpose was to provide alternatives to how risk reducing measures can be motivated. The discussion provides thoughts and examples on how deontology, virtue ethics and environmental ethics can be used to find other ways to motivate risk reducing measures. Finally, the thesis concludes that the six assessments studied share three methodological challenges. For example, there seems to be a contradiction between on the one hand a probabilistic understanding of risk, and the way some of the risk reducing measures are motivated. As a result, this thesis recommends that consultancy companies discuss these challenges and the implications of them on the credibility of the assessments.

The objective of this study is to examine the perspectives and preferred actions by managers at elderly care home facilities regarding ethical dilemmas that may emerge when elderly people fall in love. Previous research is mainly focused on ageism and the sex-life of elderly people at care homes. Less attention is paid to their love-life and the view of the managers is often overlooked. Researchers tend to interview and observe the staff, such as nurses and assistant nurses, rather than the managers. In order to provide information to reduce this knowledge gap, this study is based on interviews with managers at elderly care homes in Sweden using the vignette-method.The analysis of this study is based on ethical theory, which is divided into two main orientations called duty-based ethics and consequentialist ethics. Ethical theory is used as a tool for analyzing the data in order to discover which ethical orientation the managers prefer to base their arguments on. The conclusion of this study shows that neither duty-based ethics, nor consequentialist ethics is more often used than the other. The managers motivate their arguments and actions on both ethical orientations without being solely reliant on neither one. Furthermore, the conclusions of this study state that the managers value autonomy and the well-being of the elderly as well as their spouses. However, they all pointed out that ethical dilemmas derived from love in elderly care homes are complex to deal with and more knowledge is needed.