When Employees Do Bad Things for Good Reasons: Examining Unethical Pro-Organizational Behaviors

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Umphress, Elizabeth E.; Bingham, John B.
• 署名单位: Texas A&M University System; Texas A&M University College Station; Mays Business School; Brigham Young University
• 刊物名称: ORGANIZATION SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1047-7039
• DOI: 10.1287/orsc.1100.0559
• 发表日期: 2011
• 页码: 621-640
• 关键词: unethical behavior; social exchange; ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION; ETHICS; MORAL DISENGAGEMENT; neutralization; Guilt; shame; amoral culture; severity

摘要

We propose that employees sometimes engage in unethical acts with the intent to benefit their organization, its members, or both-a construct we term unethical pro-organizational behavior. We suggest that positive social exchange relationships and organizational identification may lead to unethical pro-organizational behavior indirectly via neutralization, the process by which the moral content of unethical actions is overlooked. We incorporate situational and individual-level constructs as moderators of these relationships and consider managerial implications and future research.