Table 1 Comparison between the... | Emerald Publishing

Table 1

Comparison between the patriarchal logics and ethics of care

	OSCM governed by patriarchal logics	Ethics of care
Root	Capitalism (Kothari et al., 2019; Quijano, 2000)	Feminist morality (Gilligan, 1982; Noddings, 1984)
Purpose	Wealth accumulation (LeBaron, 2015)	Collective well-being (Held, 2005; Tronto, 2013)
Objectives	Maximise profit, efficiency, flexibility and responsiveness (Montabon et al., 2016; Pagell and Wilhelm, 2025; Wiengarten et al., 2021)	- Acknowledge vulnerability (Gilligan, 1982; Lawrence and Maitlis, 2012) - Attend to relations (Gilligan, 1995; Tronto, 1993) - Avoid hurt (Gilligan, 1982; Hamington and Flower, 2021)15/06/2026 14:32:00
Mechanisms^*	Non-exhaustive list - Cost reduction tactics - Predatory purchasing practices - Flexible on-demand, small orders towards upstream - Informal/temporal labour practice - Penalty-based supplier management (Anner, 2019; Huq et al., 2014; Karaosman et al., 2023; Marques et al., 2025; Montabon et al., 2016; Vieno, 2023)	Contextual moral reasoning: Grounded in the particular circumstances, histories and needs of those involved, the Ethics of Care attends to the irreducible particularity of human relations over abstract universal principles through - Caring about: The moral capacity to recognise and attend to the needs and vulnerability of others, requiring attentiveness beyond one's own concerns (Tronto, 1993). Whose needs get noticed is shaped by power relations (Held, 2005; Tronto, 2013) - Caring for: The assumption of responsibility to respond to an identified need, marking the transition from passive attentiveness to active moral engagement (Tronto, 1993, 2013) - Care-giving: The direct, embodied and actual work of care in meeting needs requiring the moral quality of competence (Tronto, 1993). The one-caring. The one-caring receives and responds to the cared-for's reality and acts not from obligation or principle. The motivation originates in the relation, not in the self (Noddings, 1984) - Care-receiving: The cared-for's response to care received, serving as the only means to assess whether care has been adequate, which requires the moral quality of responsiveness (Noddings, 1984; Tronto, 1993) - Caring with: Care mutually constituted among participants, grounded in plurality, communication, trust and respect and solidarity (Tronto, 2013) Other-oriented care as a form of practice directed outward towards the well-being of others, describing a moral orientation in which the needs, vulnerabilities and experiences of others become the primary reference point for action and judgement (Johansson and Wickström, 2023)

	OSCM governed by patriarchal logics	Ethics of care
Root	Capitalism (Kothari et al., 2019; Quijano, 2000)	Feminist morality (Gilligan, 1982; Noddings, 1984)
Purpose	Wealth accumulation (LeBaron, 2015)	Collective well-being (Held, 2005; Tronto, 2013)
Objectives	Maximise profit, efficiency, flexibility and responsiveness (Montabon et al., 2016; Pagell and Wilhelm, 2025; Wiengarten et al., 2021)	- Acknowledge vulnerability (Gilligan, 1982; Lawrence and Maitlis, 2012) - Attend to relations (Gilligan, 1995; Tronto, 1993) - Avoid hurt (Gilligan, 1982; Hamington and Flower, 2021)15/06/2026 14:32:00
Mechanisms^*	Non-exhaustive list- Cost reduction tactics - Predatory purchasing practices - Flexible on-demand, small orders towards upstream - Informal/temporal labour practice - Penalty-based supplier management (Anner, 2019; Huq et al., 2014; Karaosman et al., 2023; Marques et al., 2025; Montabon et al., 2016; Vieno, 2023)	Contextual moral reasoning: Grounded in the particular circumstances, histories and needs of those involved, the Ethics of Care attends to the irreducible particularity of human relations over abstract universal principles through- Caring about: The moral capacity to recognise and attend to the needs and vulnerability of others, requiring attentiveness beyond one's own concerns (Tronto, 1993). Whose needs get noticed is shaped by power relations (Held, 2005; Tronto, 2013) - Caring for: The assumption of responsibility to respond to an identified need, marking the transition from passive attentiveness to active moral engagement (Tronto, 1993, 2013) - Care-giving: The direct, embodied and actual work of care in meeting needs requiring the moral quality of competence (Tronto, 1993). The one-caring. The one-caring receives and responds to the cared-for's reality and acts not from obligation or principle. The motivation originates in the relation, not in the self (Noddings, 1984) - Care-receiving: The cared-for's response to care received, serving as the only means to assess whether care has been adequate, which requires the moral quality of responsiveness (Noddings, 1984; Tronto, 1993) - Caring with: Care mutually constituted among participants, grounded in plurality, communication, trust and respect and solidarity (Tronto, 2013) Other-oriented care as a form of practice directed outward towards the well-being of others, describing a moral orientation in which the needs, vulnerabilities and experiences of others become the primary reference point for action and judgement (Johansson and Wickström, 2023)

Note(s):

*

Underlined are the ethical values for each phase of care Tronto (2013)

Source(s): Authors’ own work