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Bad Apples in Bad Barrels Revisited: Cognitive Moral Development, Just World Beliefs, Rewards, and Ethical Decision-Making

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 January 2015

Neal M. Ashkanasy ,
Carolyn A. Windsor  and
Linda K. Treviño
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Abstract:

In this study, we test the interactive effect on ethical decision-making of (1) personal characteristics, and (2) personal expectancies based on perceptions of organizational rewards and punishments. Personal characteristics studied were cognitive moral development and belief in a just world. Using an in-basket simulation, we found that exposure to reward system information influenced managers’ outcome expectancies. Further, outcome expectancies and belief in a just world interacted with managers’ cognitive moral development to influence managers’ ethical decision-making. In particular, low-cognitive moral development managers who expected that their organization condoned unethical behavior made less ethical decisions while high cognitive moral development managers became more ethical in this environment. Low cognitive moral development managers also behaved less ethically when their belief in a just world was high.

Type
Articles
Information
Business Ethics Quarterly , Volume 16 , Issue 4 , October 2006 , pp. 449 - 473
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Business Ethics 2006

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