Phronesisin administration and organizations: A literature review and future research agenda

Phronesisis essential for good decision-making and actions. This literature review shows howphronesishas been discussed and related to elements of the field of administration and organizations. A search in the database systems Scopus, EBSCO, Web of Science, and Scielo, based on eligibility criteria, resulted in 43 theoretical and 14 empirical works. The analysis of these studies showed the most significant empirical contributions, the most cited authors, methods, journals, and central themes addressed in studies onphronesisto understand ethics in business. From a virtue ethics perspective, we discuss the major theoretical and empirical contributions, as well as the implications of a restricted understanding ofphronesiswhen it is treated apart from other elements of the virtue ethics framework. We present a synthesis of the concepts ofphronesis, based on dimensions of magnitude and amplitude of the conceptions, ranging from formal to substantivephronesis, and covering individual, organizational, or societal levels of analysis. We argue that a substantive conception ofphronesiswithin virtue ethics may improve our understanding of ethics because it assumes the interdependence ofphronesisand moral virtues, integral anthropology, and the common good. We present a future research agenda, considering the study's limitations and findings.