OVERVIEW

This course aims to analyse some of most important normative issues concerning the relation between citizens and public institutions, such as political obligation, civil disobedience, corruption, and whistleblowing

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

This course aims to provide the students with an overview of the main ethical issues that arise from the relation between institutions and citizens, with a special emphasis on the role of public administrators. The core topics will revolve around the problems that dissent pose to political obligation and around the issues of corruption and whistleblowing.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the end of the course the students will

• understand the main models in public ethics
• improve their capacity to understand the most important ethical issues in the life of a public administrator;
• be familiar with the main features of the debates concerning corruption, civil disobedience, and whistleblowing;
• improve their capacity to present and discuss an ethically relevant case.

PREREQUISITES

No specific previous knowledge is required 

TEACHING METHODS

The first part of the course will consist of professor’s lectures. The second part will be made of seminars in which the students will present and discuss some real cases of the main ethical issues analysed in the first part.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

1. What public ethics is #1
2. What public ethics is #2
3. Theories of political obligation
4. Forms of objections to the law
5. Theories of civil disobedience
6. Corruption
7. Seminar on codes of conduct
8. Seminar on whistleblowing
9. Seminar on corruption
10. Seminar on civil disobedience
11. Seminar on radical protests

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

Compulsory readings: 

• F. Zuolo, Disobbedire. Se, come, quando (Laterza 2024)

and one of the following (availabe in AulaWeb) 

• E. Ceva, Etica pubblica dell'anticorruzione, Carocci 2025 (parts) 
• M. Bocchiola, “La specificità del whistleblowing”, Notizie di Politeia 129, 2018, pp. 50-67
• E. Ceva, “Regole, esenzioni e coscienza”, Ragion pratica 1, 2013, pp. 71-96.

Further readings:

• Neri, D., Filosofia morale. Manuale introduttivo, Guerini, Milano, Cap. 4
• G. Pellegrino, Etica pubblica. Una piccola introduzione, Luiss University Press, 2015 (parti)
• E. Ceva, M. Bocchiola, “Theories of Whistleblowing”, Philosophy Compass 2019
• B. Mattarella, Le regole dell’onestà. Etica, politica, amministrazione, Bologna, il Mulino, 2007 (capp. 1, 3, 4)
• R. Cubeddu, “Democrazia, liberalismo, corruzione”,
• D. Della Porta, A. Vannucci, Mani impunite. Vecchia e nuova corruzione in Italia (cap. 4)
• E. Ceva, “Il male politico della corruzione”, Ragion pratica 49, 2017
• B. Mattarella, Le regole dell’onestà. Etica, politica, amministrazione, Bologna, il Mulino, 2007 (parti)
• S. Miller, “La corruzione istituzionale: un approccio causale”, Notizie di Politeia 129, 2018
• G. Pellegrino, Etica pubblica. Una piccola introduzione, Luiss University Press, 2015 (parti)

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

FEDERICO ZUOLO (President)

VALERIA OTTONELLI

CORRADO FUMAGALLI (Substitute)

MIRELLA AGNESE PASINI (Substitute)

LESSONS

LESSONS START

TBA

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Oral exam for students who attend the classes

Written exam (short essai to be agreed upon with the professor) for non-attending students 

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The exam will assess the student's capacity to 

- reconstruct the main arguments

- define the concepts 

- critically evaluate specific cases 

Exam schedule

FURTHER INFORMATION

For further information please contact the professor