University of Notre Dame
Browse

File(s) under embargo

2

year(s)

25

day(s)

until file(s) become available

Relevance of the Virtue of Justice to Contemporary Discussions of Corruption

thesis
posted on 2019-12-27, 00:00 authored by Ebenezer Akesseh

Addressing the perception and incidence of corruption in Ghana calls for a holistic approach. Unlike studies which privilege the importance of institutions and policies to addressing corruption, this dissertation pivots the idea of corruption as a vice and, as such, argues the necessity of focusing on forming virtuous individuals who work in those institutions. Using the virtue ethics tradition in Catholic Moral Theology, and with particular emphasis on Thomas Aquinas’ account of justice and its related concepts, this dissertation illustrates how the virtue of justice enables us probe the latent and manifest socio-cultural and economic reasons for the perpetration and perpetuation of corruption. Furthermore, the Thomistic account of justice and its related concepts such as the common good, helps us examine nepotism, greed, extortion and other forms of corruption carried out by politicians, civil servants and citizens. Since corruption occurs between actors and actants in a particular social setting, the dissertation uses anthropological theories of corruption and social relations to understand corruption in Ghana. It also explores reasons why certain corrupt practices are accommodated while others incur public anger. This work further explores the intersection between moral assemblages and social navigation, and how people access and distribute the goods of the state. The dissertation concludes by examining how the discussion of justice can be used as a formative tool in liturgical and para-liturgical settings and counseling sessions.

History

Date Modified

2020-04-07

Defense Date

2019-12-04

CIP Code

  • 39.0601

Research Director(s)

Jean Porter

Degree

  • Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Level

  • Doctoral Dissertation

Alternate Identifier

1149013644

Library Record

5475346

OCLC Number

1149013644

Program Name

  • Theology

Usage metrics

    Dissertations

    Categories

    No categories selected

    Keywords

    Exports

    RefWorks
    BibTeX
    Ref. manager
    Endnote
    DataCite
    NLM
    DC