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1 – 10 of over 4000Kwasi Dartey-Baah, Samuel Howard Quartey and Maxwell Tabi Wilberforce
The purpose of this paper is to describe the mediating effects of transformational and transactional leadership styles on the relationship between organizational ethics and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe the mediating effects of transformational and transactional leadership styles on the relationship between organizational ethics and workplace incivility.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employed cross-sectional survey design. Data were obtained from 209 employees from the telecommunication sector. The structural equation model was employed as the analytical tool to test the hypotheses of the study.
Findings
Organizational ethics was negatively related to workplace incivility. Both transformational and transactional leadership styles mediated the relationship between organizational ethics and workplace incivility.
Practical implications
Human resource developers and managers can employ, appraise, train and develop managers who can ethically demonstrate transactional, and transformational leadership behaviors to deal with workplace incivilities.
Originality/value
The paper makes an important contribution to the existing organizational literature by establishing the relevance of transformational and transactional leadership styles as mediators of the nexus between organizational ethics and workplace incivility in the telecommunication sector.
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Teemu Birkstedt, Matti Minkkinen, Anushree Tandon and Matti Mäntymäki
Following the surge of documents laying out organizations' ethical principles for their use of artificial intelligence (AI), there is a growing demand for translating ethical…
Abstract
Purpose
Following the surge of documents laying out organizations' ethical principles for their use of artificial intelligence (AI), there is a growing demand for translating ethical principles to practice through AI governance (AIG). AIG has emerged as a rapidly growing, yet fragmented, research area. This paper synthesizes the organizational AIG literature by outlining research themes and knowledge gaps as well as putting forward future agendas.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors undertake a systematic literature review on AIG, addressing the current state of its conceptualization and suggesting future directions for AIG scholarship and practice. The review protocol was developed following recommended guidelines for systematic reviews and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA).
Findings
The results of the authors’ review confirmed the assumption that AIG is an emerging research topic with few explicit definitions. Moreover, the authors’ review identified four themes in the AIG literature: technology, stakeholders and context, regulation and processes. The central knowledge gaps revealed were the limited understanding of AIG implementation, lack of attention to the AIG context, uncertain effectiveness of ethical principles and regulation, and insufficient operationalization of AIG processes. To address these gaps, the authors present four future AIG agendas: technical, stakeholder and contextual, regulatory, and process. Going forward, the authors propose focused empirical research on organizational AIG processes, the establishment of an AI oversight unit and collaborative governance as a research approach.
Research limitations/implications
To address the identified knowledge gaps, the authors present the following working definition of AIG: AI governance is a system of rules, practices and processes employed to ensure an organization's use of AI technologies aligns with its strategies, objectives, and values, complete with legal requirements, ethical principles and the requirements set by stakeholders. Going forward, the authors propose focused empirical research on organizational AIG processes, the establishment of an AI oversight unit and collaborative governance as a research approach.
Practical implications
For practitioners, the authors highlight training and awareness, stakeholder management and the crucial role of organizational culture, including senior management commitment.
Social implications
For society, the authors review elucidates the multitude of stakeholders involved in AI governance activities and complexities related to balancing the needs of different stakeholders.
Originality/value
By delineating the AIG concept and the associated research themes, knowledge gaps and future agendas, the authors review builds a foundation for organizational AIG research, calling for broad contextual investigations and a deep understanding of AIG mechanisms. For practitioners, the authors highlight training and awareness, stakeholder management and the crucial role of organizational culture, including senior management commitment.
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Ifeoluwa Tobi Popoola, Milorad Novicevic, Paul Johnson and Mervin Matthew
The purpose of this paper is to introduce the relational view of unethical pro-organisational behaviour (UPB) to explain interpersonal paths of influence on employees’ engagement…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to introduce the relational view of unethical pro-organisational behaviour (UPB) to explain interpersonal paths of influence on employees’ engagement in UPB. The proposed relational view of UPB is grounded in Darwall’s second-person philosophy.
Design/methodology/approach
This research design involves two quantitative studies – a pilot study with 340 subjects and the main study with 310 employees. The structural equation modelling data analysis was conducted using the R language software.
Findings
The findings provided initial support for the relational view of UPB. Study 1 revealed that employees’ accountability (perceived as personal obligation) influenced their engagement in UPB. Furthermore, Study 2 strengthens the theory and findings from Study 1 that employees’ moral organisational identification influences their engagement in UPB over the influence of employees’ identification with the organisation.
Research limitations/implications
The findings extend the nomological network of UPB and extant theoretical knowledge on the moral self by uncovering how moral accountability and personal obligation have a “dark side”.
Practical implications
The findings indicate that practitioners should address the impact of employee interpersonal relationships on their perceived obligation to engage in UPB.
Originality/value
The authors provided an original use of Darwall’s second-person standpoint as the philosophical foundation to integrate accountability and identity theories, to explain interpersonal influences on employees’ engagement in UPB.
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Zeena Mardawi, Elies Seguí-Mas and Guillermina Tormo-Carbó
To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that aims to present a comprehensive view of the auditing ethics literature by unboxing 40 years of efforts in the…
Abstract
Purpose
To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that aims to present a comprehensive view of the auditing ethics literature by unboxing 40 years of efforts in the field.
Design/methodology/approach
This study combined bibliometric, social network and content analysis by analyzing 114 articles published in accounting and top business ethics journals on the Web of Science database from 1980 to 2021.
Findings
The results show a rising interest in this topic and reveal auditors’ ethical decision-making and moral reasoning as the most discussed topics in the literature. The work also clusters the literature according to keywords and scopes, identifying literature gaps and suggesting new avenues for future research.
Practical implications
The research results assist provide an overarching image of the auditing ethics field. In addition, these results draw possible future avenues to bridge the void in the current auditing ethics literature by presenting indispensable directions for potential research. For example, future research could pay more attention to whistleblowing, fraud, personal auditor characteristics, auditor ethical sensitivity, auditor ethical conflict, ethical climate and underreporting of time. Moreover, the rapidly changing business environment necessitates the auditing ethics research to move to more practical implications to mitigate previous mistakes and avoid any future risks.
Originality/value
All crises are an ideal breeding ground to motivate fraud and audit failures. In fact, auditing ethics research has been subordinated to the different economic crises. However, despite increasing awareness of the topic’s relevance, no comprehensive study focuses on auditing ethics literature. Now, the devastating effects of the COVID-19 crisis are producing a new wave of financial distresses and avoiding former mistakes is timelier than ever. With this novel and integrated approach, this work goes one step forward, developing a comprehensive picture of the auditing ethics literature.
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Araceli de los Ríos-Berjillos, Salud Millán-Lara, Ignacio Sepúlveda del Rio and Mercedes Ruiz-Lozano
This paper aims to analyse the role of the code of ethics as a critical element of responsible management and posits it as a tool that integrates ethics, sustainability and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyse the role of the code of ethics as a critical element of responsible management and posits it as a tool that integrates ethics, sustainability and attention to stakeholders. This proposed tool can be a facilitator of integrated management of these dimensions.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was developed to answer the research questions, and descriptive and factor analyses were carried out. A non-probabilistic sampling technique, purposive sampling, was used. The survey, sent by e-mail, was addressed to managers and decision makers of Spanish companies belonging to associations explicitly committed to corporate social responsibility and ethics; 73 questionnaires were answered. Statistical analyses were performed with SPSS 26.0 software.
Findings
The findings highlight that companies that are showing leadership in ethical management are using their codes of ethics as a key instrument in the business ethics strategy. Codes of ethics go beyond being a guide to ethical conduct to being an instrument at the service of stakeholder relations, sustainability and ethics. The keys that these companies agree on are the design of participative processes of responsible management, the multidimensional content of their codes of ethics and a code management oriented to generate a proactive ethical culture in the company.
Practical implications
This paper proposes a series of recommendations that may be useful to all those companies that wish to promote effective and integrative ethical management through their code of ethics, as much as if they already have one, as they are developing it.
Originality/value
This research highlights the role of code of ethics as an integrative tool for ethics, sustainability and stakeholder responsibility. For that, the keys that these companies agree on are the design of participative processes of responsible management, the multidimensional content of their codes of ethics and code management oriented to generate a proactive ethical culture in the company.
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Ritab AlKhouri, Pashaar Halteh, Khaled Halteh and Milind Tiwari
This paper aims to outline how certain lessons from ethical systems can be relevant and applicable to tackling unethical behavior, including financial crime, within the finance…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to outline how certain lessons from ethical systems can be relevant and applicable to tackling unethical behavior, including financial crime, within the finance profession.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper adopts a pragmatic perspective while acknowledging that there is a myriad of reasons managers act unethically, including the reality that many do so knowingly and deliberately. The matter is further complicated by human nature, given an individual’s behavior (ethical or unethical) is not easily discernable from their psychological, sociological, theological or cultural attributes.
Findings
Although such systems may not solve the problem of corrupt behavior, research suggests that industry professionals can learn to act in a more responsible and ethical manner. Given the wounded reputation of the financial sector, owing to their role in committing financial crimes such as money laundering, advances in ethical conduct would elevate both the effectiveness of the sector, as well as its reputation.
Originality/value
It is impractical to think we can completely resolve the problem of unethical behavior. Improvement, however, seems possible through promoting virtuous character traits and ethical behavior in individuals and organizations. Virtue ethics can play a significant role in combating financial crime and supporting anti-money laundering initiatives.
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Cameron Sumlin, Mauro J. J. De Oliveira, Richard Conde and Kenneth W. Green
The purpose of this study is to determine whether the implementation of a performance management system comprising some traditional management practices (management process and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to determine whether the implementation of a performance management system comprising some traditional management practices (management process and organizational behavior modification) lead to an ethical organizational environment and improved employee performance.
Design/methodology/approach
A structural model is theorized and assessed using data from samples of full-time employees in the USA and Brazil. Partial least squares–structural equation modeling is used.
Findings
The findings of this study suggest that management process and organizational behavior modification directly and positively impact the ethical environment, and the ethical environment directly and positively impacts employee performance. The management process and organizational behavior modification indirectly impact employee performance through an ethical environment.
Research limitations/implications
Although this theorized model was tested and provided significant results for implementing the management practices suggested, it is strongly recommended that other random data samples be used to analyze the theorized model and assess to reconfirm the results. In addition, incorporating the ethical environment construct within a larger model that includes other potential antecedents, such as management principles, and other potential outcomes, such as organizational commitment, job satisfaction and workplace optimism, is recommended.
Practical implications
This study provides management practitioners with empirical evidence that implementing a performance management system consisting of the management process and organizational behavior modification will enhance both the ethical environment and organizational trust, which, in turn, will lead to improved individual employee performance. Based on the theoretically and statistically supported framework, managers can improve the performance of their subordinates. The results further support the assertions that managers must implement the management process along with organizational behavior modifications to improve employee performance through an ethical environment and organizational trust
Social implications
The general conclusion from this study is that good management practices in the form of the management process and organizational behavior modification are inherently ethical. Furthermore, when implemented and consistently maintained by managers, these practices will result in an organizational environment that supports ethical behavior and engenders a high level of trust. The results of this study demonstrate a significant contribution to the existing literature, in that good management is tied, in fact, directly to ethics and trust.
Originality/value
The results provide evidence that good management in the form of the management process and organizational behavior modification yields both a positive ethical environment and improved employee performance. Practitioners are provided with evidence that reaffirms the need to define expectations for employees and to provide the necessary resources and positive reinforcement to fulfill the expectations. This study is one of the first to directly assess the impact of traditional management practices on an ethical environment.
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Charles Baah, Yaw Agyabeng-Mensah, Ebenezer Afum and Johana Andrea Lascano Armas
Environmental degradation in emerging economies has induced stakeholder pressures on diverse firms to ensure sustainable business performance. Consequently, firms are adopting…
Abstract
Purpose
Environmental degradation in emerging economies has induced stakeholder pressures on diverse firms to ensure sustainable business performance. Consequently, firms are adopting environmentally ethical cultures and reinforcing green creativity to satisfy stakeholders' environmental needs while attaining green competitive advantage, sustainable production and higher financial performance. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether corporate environmental ethics and green creativity serve as antecedents to higher competitiveness, sustainable production and financial performance, and also examine if green competitive advantage and sustainable production mediate the relationships between corporate environmental ethics, green creativity and financial performance in the context of an emerging economy.
Design/methodology/approach
This study using a survey approach examined data from 290 manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises. Data were analyzed and interpreted using SmartPLS 3.0 software, a variance-based structural equation modelling technique. This modelling technique was adopted due to its suitability for predictive research models.
Findings
The findings show that corporate environmental ethics and green creativity are critical antecedents to green competitive advantage, sustainable production and financial performance. The results connote that while corporate environmental ethics and green creativity directly and robustly influence green competitive advantage, sustainable production and financial performance, their effect on financial performance is strengthened via the indirect effects of green competitive advantage and sustainable production. Contrasting past findings, corporate environmental ethics negatively related to financial performance in this study context. The findings indicate that the integration of environmental ethics and green creativity can be a unique strategy for mitigating environmental negative risks while improving green competitive advantage, sustainable production and financial performance.
Originality/value
The study is among the few that draws insights from organizational ethics and the natural resource-based view (NRBV) to examine the interactions between corporate environmental ethics, green creativity, green competitive advantage, sustainable production and financial performance. Drawing insights from the findings, the study provides suggestions for managers, academicians, policymakers and governments as well as highlights implications and directions for future research.
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Indra Caniago, Yuliansyah Yuliansyah, Fajar Gustiawaty Dewi and Agrianti Komalasari
The purpose of this research paper is to review various results regarding ethics in behavioral accounting. It critiques accountants’ ethical standards and discusses Islamic work…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this research paper is to review various results regarding ethics in behavioral accounting. It critiques accountants’ ethical standards and discusses Islamic work ethics to solve related problems.
Design/methodology/approach
This research uses a systematic literature review of peer-reviewed articles on accountant ethics published in Scopus from 2011 to 2021.
Findings
The findings describe a broader trend with a focus on the internal and external factors that influence the ethical behavior of accountants. The external factors are culture, ethical climate and training and education, whereas the internal ones are demographics, emotions and moral intensity, honesty, intention, personal attributes and professional vs commitment. Furthermore, Islamic work ethics is presented to overcome the problem of ethical behavior among accountants.
Research limitations/implications
It was concluded that knowledge of ethics in behavioral accounting provides sufficient scope for further research. The results show that the 11 criteria of Islamic work ethics produce quality work capable of avoiding violations while working for the good of the community and the environment.
Originality/value
The initial research focused on the relationship between Islamic work ethics in behavioral accounting.
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Sherzodbek Murodilla Ugli Dadaboyev, Soyon Paek and Sungwon Choi
This research aims to clarify the relationship between organizational identification and employees’ unethical pro-organizational behavior, which has been a topic of mixed findings…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to clarify the relationship between organizational identification and employees’ unethical pro-organizational behavior, which has been a topic of mixed findings in previous empirical studies. To address this issue, a meta-analytic review was conducted, focusing on the influence of key individual differences such as gender, age and organizational tenure on the relationship between organizational identification and unethical pro-organizational behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
The study utilizes large scholarly databases including Google Scholar, PsycINFO, Business Source Premier and ProQuest Dissertations to identify relevant studies. A total of 31 independent samples with a combined sample size of 8,861 participants were included in the analysis.
Findings
The results showed that the estimated average correlation between organizational identification and unethical pro-organizational behavior after corrected for measurement unreliability was 0.188 (p < 0.001, 95% [CI: 0.125, 0.251]). Gender demonstrated a significant moderating effect (estimate = 0.004, p < 0.05, 95% [CI: 0.000, 0.007]), suggesting that there is stronger association between organizational identification and unethical pro-organizational behavior among male participants. Neither age nor organizational tenure had significant effect on organizational identification-unethical pro-organizational behavior relations.
Originality/value
This study revealed that the organizational identification-unethical pro-organizational behavior link was positive, and the relationship was stronger among male participants than their female counterparts. Age and organizational tenure show no significant impact on unethical pro-organizational behavior. These contribute to The authors' understanding of organizational identification-unethical pro-organizational behavior relationship, as well as identifying its boundary conditions. The study suggests directions for future research and implications for managers and practitioners.
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