CV

Dr. Marcel Becker (1961) studied history and philosophy at the ‘Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen’ (currently Radboud University). He finished his dissertation about ethics of war and peace in 1997. Since then he is assistent professor applied ethics at the Radboud University Nijmegen. Next to this he is member of the Centre for Ethics of the Radboud University.

Virtue ethics, applied ethics and philosophical ethics

Being an ethicist I try to connect classic ethical theories with problems in present day society. The central place of the theories enables us to reflect from a certain distance on problems, not being trapped in everyday self-evidencies. I’m particularly interested in the relation between Aristotelian virtue ethics and the activities of the professional in the (post)modern organization.

Next to research on the Ethics, Politics and Rhetoric  of Aristotle I study the application of virtue ethics on moral problems in de modern organization. The core idea is, that the (harmed) moral motivation of the individual is grounded in the ultimate goals of his work. This perspective is particularly fruitful in analyzing integrity problems in public administration.

Past years I’ve been studying the digitalization’ of our lives. Clearly, digitalization deeply influences our communication patterns. On the other hand processes of digitalization are rooted in the offline world. 

Courses

My teachings in ethics are widely dispersed. I teach professional ethics to students students psychology, law, and business administration. Next to these teach a course on classival texts at the philosphy department and a course ‘Ethics of the new media’ to Humanity students.  

Main Publications

Aristotelian Ethics and Aristotelian Rhetoric, in: L. Huppes-Cluysenaer, N. Coelho (ed.) Aristotle and the Philosophy of Law: Theory, Practice and Justice, Springer: Dordrecht, Heidelberg New York Londen, p.109-122. 2013

E pluribus unum? Critical comments on John Rawls Concept of Overlapping Consensus, in: Religion, State & Society 41, 2, p.188-198. 2013

(with J. Talsma) Adding colours to the shades of grey: Enriching the integrity discourse with virtue ethical concepts. To be published in Routledge Compedium of Ethics and Integrity. July 2015.