MORAL SYMBOLS: A NECKLACE OF GARLIC AGAINST UNETHICAL REQUESTS

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Desai, Sreedhari D.; Kouchaki, Maryam
• 署名单位: University of North Carolina; University of North Carolina Chapel Hill; Duke University; Northwestern University
• 刊物名称: ACADEMY OF MANAGEMENT JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0001-4273
• DOI: 10.5465/amj.2015.0008
• 发表日期: 2017
• 页码: 7-28
• 关键词: ETHICAL DECISION-MAKING; PHYSICAL-ENVIRONMENT; leadership; BEHAVIOR; JUDGMENT; MODEL; ORGANIZATIONS; conceptions; NEGOTIATORS; performance

摘要

This paper investigates whether, by exposing superiors to moral symbols, subordinates can discourage their superiors from asking them to perform unethical acts. Findings from five laboratory studies and one organizational survey study demonstrated that exposure to moral symbols displayed by the subordinates dissuades superiors from both engaging in unethical behaviors themselves and asking their subordinates to engage in unethical behavior. This paper shows that the display of moral symbols leads to two main consequences: (1) the activation of the concept of morality and increases in individuals' moral awareness to decrease unethical behavior, and (2) eliciting inferences about the moral character of the displayer to lower the likelihood of that person being subjected to unethical directives. Additionally, our findings demonstrate that moral symbols influence ethical decisions without provoking hidden backlash effects against those who display them. In sum, our findings show that followers can serve as a form of social influence to guide their leader's behavior and reduce the occurrence of unethical acts in the workplace.