Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T03:06:47.992Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Organizational Moral Values

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 January 2015

Abstract:

This article argues that the important organizational values to study are organizational moral values. It identifies five moral values (honest communication, respect for property, respect for life, respect for religion, and justice), which allow parallel constructs at individual and organizational levels of analysis. It also identifies dimensions used in differentiating organizations’ moral values. These are the act, actor, person affected, intention, and expected result. Finally, the article addresses measurement issues associated with organizational moral values, proposing that content analysis is the appropriate measurement technique to be used for an organization-level conception of moral values.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Business Ethics 2002

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agle, B. R. and Caldwell, C. B. 1999. “Understanding Research on Values in Business.” Business & Society, 38(3): 326387.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Aristotle. 1952. The Works of Aristotle: Volume II. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.Google Scholar
Backman, C. 1976. “Explorations on Psycho-ethics: The Warranting of Judgments.” In Life Sentences: Aspects of the Social Role of Language, (ed.) Harre, R., 98108. London: John Wiley & Sons.Google Scholar
Backman, C. 1985. “Identity, Self Presentation, and the Resolution of Moral Dilemmas: Towards a Social Psychological Theory of Moral Behavior.” In The Self and Social Life, (ed.) Schlenker, B. R., 261289. New York: McGraw-Hill.Google Scholar
Barnes, J. A. 1994. A Pack of Lies Toward a Sociology of Lying. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Beauchamp, T. L. and Bowie, N. E. 1983. Ethical Theory and Business. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall.Google Scholar
Bellah, R. N., Madsen, R., Sullivan, W. M., Swidler, A., and Tipton, S. M. 1992. The Good Society. New York: Random House.Google Scholar
Beyer, J. and Lutze, S. 1993. “The Ethical Nexus: Organizations, Values, and Decision Making.” In The Ethical Nexus, (ed.) Conrad, C., 2345. Norwood, N.J.: Ablex Publishing Company.Google Scholar
Billsberry, J. 1997. The Development and Initial Trial of a Likert-Scaled Questionnaire for the Indirect Assessment of Person-Organisation Value Congruence. Paper. Academy of Management Meeting, Boston, Massachusetts, August.Google Scholar
Boatright, J. R. 1993. Ethics and the Conduct of Business. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall.Google Scholar
Bok, S. 1989. Lying. New York: Random House.Google Scholar
Bowie, N. E. 1990. “Business Ethics and Cultural Relativism.” In Essentials of Business Ethics, (eds.) Madsen, P. and Shafritz, J. M., 366382. New York: Meridian.Google Scholar
Bowie, N. E. 1991. “Challenging the Egoistic Paradigm.” Business Ethics Quarterly, 1(1): 121.Google Scholar
Bowman, E. H. 1984. “Content Analysis of Annual Reports for Corporate Strategy and Risk.” Organization Science, 14(1): 6171.Google Scholar
Brenkert, G. G. 1998. “Marketing and the Vulnerable.” Business Ethics Quarterly, The Ruffin Series (Special Issue #1), 720.Google Scholar
Bretz, R. D. Jr. and Judge, T. 1994. “Person-Organization Fit and the Theory of Work Adjustment: Implications for Satisfaction, Tenure, and Career Success.” Journal of Vocational Behavior, 44: 3254.Google Scholar
Bretz, R. D. Jr., Rynes, S. L., and Gerhart, B. 1993. “Recruiter Perceptions of Applicant Fit: Implications for Individual Career Preparation and Job Search Behavior. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 43: 310327.Google Scholar
Buenger, V., Daft, R. L., Conlon, E. J., and Jeffrey, Austin. 1996. “Competing Values in Organizations: Contextual Influences and Structural Consequences.” Organization Science, 7(5): 557576.Google Scholar
Cable, D. M. and Judge, T. A. 1996. “Person-Organization Fit, Job Choice Decisions, and Organizational Entry.” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 67(3): 294311.Google Scholar
Cable, D. M. and Judge, T. A. 1997. “Interviewers’ Perceptions of Person-Organization Fit and Organizational Selection Decisions.” Journal of Applied Psychology, 82(4): 546561.Google Scholar
Calton, J. M. and Lad, L., J. 1995. Social Contracting as a Trust-Building Process of Network Governance. Business Ethics Quarterly, 5(2): 271295.Google Scholar
Chatman, J. A. 1991. “Matching People and Organizations: Selection and Socialization in Public Accounting Firms.” Administrative Science Quarterly, 36: 459484.Google Scholar
Chatman, J. A. and Jehn, K. A. 1994. “Assessing the Relationship Between Industry Characteristics and Organizational Culture: How Different Can You Be?Academy of Management Journal, 37(3): 522553.Google Scholar
Dalton, D. R., Wimbush, J. C., and Daily, C. M. 1996. “Candor, Privacy, and ‘Legal Immunity’ in Business Ethics Research: An Empirical Assessment of the Randomized Response Technique (RRT).” Business Ethics Quarterly, 6(1): 8799.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
David, F. R. 1989. “How Companies Define Their Mission.” Long Range Planning, 22: 9097.Google Scholar
DeGeorge, R. T. 2000. “Business Ethics and the Challenge of the Information Age.” Business Ethics Quarterly, 10(1): 6372.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Donaldson, T. J. and Freeman, R. E. 1994. Business as a Humanity. New York: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Donaldson, T. and Dunfee, T. W. 1995. “Integrative Social Contracts Theory A Communitarian Conception of Economic Ethics.” Economics and Philosophy, 11, 85112.Google Scholar
Douglas, J. D. 1970. “Deviance and Respectability: The Social Construction of Moral Meanings.” In Deviance and Respectability The Social Construction of Moral Meanings, (ed.) Douglas, J. D., 330. New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar
England, G. W. 1967. “Personal Value Systems of American Managers.” Academy of Management, 10: 5368.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Enz, C. A. 1986. Power and Shared Values in the Corporate Culture. Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press.Google Scholar
Enz, C. A. 1988. “The Role of Value Congruity in Intraorganizational Power.” Administrative Science Quarterly, 33: 284304.Google Scholar
Eskew, D. E. 1993. “The Role of Organizational Justice in Organizational Citizenship Behavior.” Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 6(3): 185194.Google Scholar
Etzioni, A. 1988. The Moral Dimensions: Toward a New Economics. New York: Macmillan, Inc.Google Scholar
Fichter, J. H., S. J. 1961. “Religious Values, A Sociological Perspective.” In Values in America, (ed.) Barrett, D. N., 137144. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press.Google Scholar
Finegan, J. E. 2000. “The Impact of Person and Organizational Values on Organizational Commitment.” Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 73(2): 149169.Google Scholar
Folger, R. and Skarlicki, D. P. 1998. “A Popcorn Metaphor for Employee Aggression.” In Dysfunctional Behavior in Organizations: Violent and Deviant Behavior, (eds.) Griffin, R. W., O’Leary-Kelley, A., and Collins, J. M., 4381. Stamford: JAI Press.Google Scholar
French, P. A. 1996. “Integrity, Intentions, and Corporations.” American Business Law Journal, 34: 141155.Google Scholar
Friedman, M. 1992. “The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase Its Profits.” In Business Ethics, (eds.) Snoeyenbos, M., Almeder, R., and Humber, J., 7277. Buffalo, N.Y.: Prometheus Books.Google Scholar
Gauthier, D. 1986. Morals By Agreement. Oxford: Clarendon Press.Google Scholar
Ghoshal, S. and Moran, P. 1996. “Bad for Practice: A Critique of the Transaction Cost Theory.” Academy of Management Review, 21(1): 1347.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Giordano. 1983. “Sanctioning the High-Status Deviant An Attributional Analysis.” Social Psychological Quarterly, 46: 329342.Google Scholar
Greenberg, J. 1990a. “Employee Theft as a Reaction to Underpayment Inequity: The Hidden Cost of Pay Cuts.” Journal of Applied Psychology, 75(5): 561568.Google Scholar
Greenberg, J. 1990b. “Organizational Justice: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow.” Journal of Management, 16(2): 399432.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenberg, J. 1993. “Stealing in the Name of Justice: Informational and Interpersonal Moderators of Theft Reactions to Underpayment Inequity.” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 54: 81103.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenberg, J. 1998. “The Cognitive Geometry of Employee Theft: Negotiating ‘The Line’ between Taking and Stealing.” In Dysfunctional Behavior in Organizations: Non-Violent Dysfunctional Behavior, (eds.) Griffin, R. W., O’Leary-Kelley, A., and Collins, J. M., 147193. Stamford: JAI Press.Google Scholar
Greenberg, J. and Alge, B. 1998. “Aggressive Reactions to Workplace Injustice.” In Dysfunctional Behavior in Organizations: Violent and Deviant Behavior, (eds.) Griffin, R. W., O’Leary-Kelly, A., and Collins, J. M., 83118. Stamford, Conn.: JAI Press.Google Scholar
Hartshorne, H. and May, M. A. 1930. Studies in Deceit. Studies in the Nature of Character, vol. 1. New York: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Heider, F. 1944. “Social Perception and Phenomenal Causality.” The Psychological Review, 51(6): 358374.Google Scholar
Heider, F. 1958. The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations. New York: John Wiley & Sons.Google Scholar
Hofstede, G., Neuijen, B., Ohayv, D. D., and Sanders, G. 1990. “Measuring Organizational Cultures: A Qualitative and Quantitative Study across Twenty Cases.” Administrative Science Quarterly, 35: 286316.Google Scholar
Hogan, J. and Hogan, R. 1989. “How to Measure Employee Reliability.” Journal of Applied Psychology, 74(2): 273279.Google Scholar
Jackall, R. 1988. Moral Mazes The World of Corporate Managers. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Jehn, K. A. 1994. “Enhancing Effectiveness: An Investigation of Advantages and Disadvantages of Value-Based Intragroup Conflict.” The International Journal of Conflict Management, 5(3): 223238.Google Scholar
Jermier, J. M. 1992. “Critical Epistemology and the Study of Organizational Culture: Reflections on Street Corner Society.” In Reframing Organizational Culture, (ed.) Frost, P. J., 223233. Newbury Park, Caif.: Sage.Google Scholar
Jones, T. M. 1991. “Ethical Decision Making by Individuals in Organizations: An Issue Contingent Model.” Academy of Management Review, 16(2): 366395.Google Scholar
Jones, T. M. and Ryan, L. V. 1997. “The Link between Ethical Judgment and Action in Organizations: A Moral Approbation Approach.” Organization Science, 8(6): 663680.Google Scholar
Kabanoff, B., Waldresee, R., and Cohen, M. 1995. “Espoused Values and Organizational Change Themes.” Academy of Management Journal, 38(4): 10751104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kelley, H. H. 1967. “Attribution Theory in Social Psychology.” In Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, (ed.) Levine, D., 192238. Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press.Google Scholar
Kelley, H. H. and John, L. 1980. “Attribution Theory and Research.” Annual Review Psychology, 31: 457501.Google Scholar
Kristof, A. L. 1996. “Person-Organization Fit: An Integrative Review of Its Conceptualizations, Measurement, and Implications.” Personnel Psychology, 49: 149.Google Scholar
Ladd, J. 1970. “Morality and the Ideal of Rationality in Formal Organizations.” The Monist, October, 499.Google Scholar
Martin, J. 1992. Cultures in Organizations Three Perspectives. New York: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Martin, J., Feldman, M. S., Hatch, M. J., and Sitkin, S. B. 1983. “The Uniqueness Paradox in Organizational Stories.” Administrative Science Quarterly, 28: 438453.Google Scholar
Martinko, M. 1995. “The Nature and Function of Attribution Theory within the Organizational Sciences.” In Attribution Theory: An Organizational Perspective, (ed.) Martinko, M. J., 714. Delray Beach, FL: St. Lucie Press.Google Scholar
May, L. 1987. The Morality of Groups: Collective Responsibility, Group-Based Harm, and Corporate Rights. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press.Google Scholar
McCoy, C. S. 1986. “Corporate Ethics and the Environment of Values.” McNaughton Lecture, October 89.Google Scholar
McMahon, C. 1995. “The Ontological and Moral Status of Organizations.” Business Ethics Quarterly, 5(3): 541554.Google Scholar
Meglino, B. M., Ravlin, E. C., and Adkins, C. 1989. “A Work Values Approach to Corporate Culture: A Field Test of the Value Congruence Process and Its Relationship to Individual Outcomes.” Journal of Applied Psychology, 74(3): 424432.Google Scholar
Mischel, W. and Mischel, H. N. 1976. “A Cognitive Social Learning Approach to Morality and Self-Regulation.” In Moral Development and Behavior Theory, Research, and Social Issues, (ed.) Lickona, T., 84107. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.Google Scholar
Mitchell, R. K., Agle, B. R., and Wood, D. J. 1997. “Toward a Theory of Stakeholder Identification and Salience: Defining the Principle of Who and What Really Counts.” Academy of Management Review, 22(4): 853886.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moorman, R. H. 1991. “Relationship between Organizational Justice and Organizational Citizenship Behaviors: Do Fairness Perceptions Influence Employee Citizenship?” Journal of Applied Psychology, 76(6): 845855.Google Scholar
Moorman, R. H., Niehoff, B. P., and Organ, D. W. 1993. “Treating Employees Fairly and Organizational Citizenship Behavior: Sorting the Effects of Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment, and Procedural Justice.” Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 6(3): 209225.Google Scholar
Mueller, D. J. and Wornhoff, S. A. 1990. “Distinguishing Personal and Social Values.” Educational and Psychological Measurement, 50: 691699.Google Scholar
Muncy, J. A. and Vitell, S. J. 1992. “Consumer Ethics: An Investigation of the Ethical Beliefs of the Final Consumer.” Journal of Business Research, 24: 297311.Google Scholar
Niebuhr, R. 1946. Moral Man and Immoral Society A Study in Ethics and Politics. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.Google Scholar
Niehoff, B., Enz, C. A., and Grover, R. A. 1990. “The Impact of Top Management Actions on Employee Attitudes and Perceptions.” Group & Organizational Studies, 15(3): 337352.Google Scholar
Nystrom, P. C. 1990. “Differences in Moral Values between Corporations.” Journal of Business Ethics, 9: 971979.Google Scholar
O’Reilly, C. A. I., Chatman, J., and Caldwell, D. F. 1991. “People and Organizational Culture: A Profile Comparison Approach to Assessing Person-Organization Fit.” Academy of Management Journal, 34(3): 487516.Google Scholar
Peters, T. J. and Waterman, R. H. 1982. In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America’s Best Run Companies. New York: Harper & Row.Google Scholar
Ravlin, E. C. and Meglino, B. M. 1987a. “Effect of Values on Perception and Decision Making: A Study of Alternative Work Values Measures.” Journal of Applied Psychology, 72(4): 666673.Google Scholar
Ravlin, E. C. and Meglino, B. M. 1987b. “Issues in Work Values Measurement.” Research in Corporate Social Performance and Policy, 9: 153183.Google Scholar
Rawls, J. 1971. A Theory of Justice. Cambridge, Mass.: The Belknap Press.Google Scholar
Robinson, S. L. and Greenberg, J. 1998. “Employees Behaving Badly: Dimensions, Determinants and Dilemmas in the Study of Workplace Deviance.” In Trends in Organizational Behavior, (eds.) Cooper, C. L. and Rousseau, D. M., 130. New York: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.Google Scholar
Rokeach, M. 1973. The Nature of Human Values. New York: The Free Press.Google Scholar
Rounds, J. B., Dawis, R. V., and Lofquist, L. H. 1987. “Measurement of Person-Environment Fit and Prediction of Satisfaction in the Theory of Work Adjustment.” Journal of Vocational Behavior, 31: 297318.Google Scholar
Rousseau, D. M. 1985. “Issues of Level in Organizational Research: Multi-Level and Cross-Level Perspectives.” Research in Organizational Behavior, 7: 137.Google Scholar
Schein, E. H. 1991. “What is Culture?” In Reframing Organizational Culture, (ed.) Frost, P. J., 243253. Newbury Park, Calif.: Sage.Google Scholar
Schein, E. H. 1992. Organizational Culture and Leadership (2d ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.Google Scholar
Schneider, B. 1987. “The People Make the Place.” Personnel Psychology, 40: 437453.Google Scholar
Scott, E. D. 2000a. “Moral Values Fit: Do Applicants Really Care?Teaching Business Ethics, 4: 405435.Google Scholar
Scott, E. D. 2000b. “Moral Values: Situationally Defined Individual Differences.” Business Ethics Quarterly, 10(2).Google Scholar
Scott, E. D. and Jehn, K. A. 1999. “Ranking Rank Behaviors: A Comprehensive Situation-Based Definition of Dishonesty.” Business and Society, 38(3): 299328.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Selznick, P. 1992. The Moral Commonwealth. Berkeley: The University of California Press.Google Scholar
Shapiro, D. L. 1991. “The Effects of Explanations on Negative Reactions to Deceit.” Administrative Science Quarterly, 36(4): 614630.Google Scholar
Shapiro, D. L., Treviño, L. K., and Victor, B. 1995. “Correlates of Employee Theft: A Multi-Dimensional Justice Perspective.” The International Journal of Conflict Management, 6(4): 404414.Google Scholar
Shaver, K. G. 1985. The Attribution of Blame: Causality, Responsibility, and Blameworthiness. New York: Springer-Verlag.Google Scholar
Simon, H. A. 1976. Administrative Behavior. New York: The Free Press.Google Scholar
Sykes, G. and Matza, D. 1957. “Techniques of Neutralization: A Theory of Delinquency.” American Sociological Review, 22: 640670.Google Scholar
Tansky, J. W. 1993. “Justice and Organizational Citizenship Behavior: What Is the Relationship?Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 6(3): 195207.Google Scholar
Tjosvold, D. 1990. “Flight Crew Collaboration to Manage Safety Risks.” Group & Organization Studies, 15(2): 177191.Google Scholar
Tjosvold, D. and Wong, C. 1994. “Working with Customers: Cooperation and Competition in Relational Marketing.” Journal of Marketing Management, 10: 297310.Google Scholar
Vancouver, J. B. and Schmitt, N. W. 1991. “An Exploratory Examination of Person-Organization Fit: Organizational Goal Congruence.” Personnel Psychology, 44: 333352.Google Scholar
VanMaanen, J. 1991. “The Smile Factory: Work at Disneyland.” In Reframing Organizational Culture, (ed.) Frost, P. J., 5876. Newbury Park, Calif.: Sage.Google Scholar
Velasquez, M. G. 1983. “Why Corporations Are Not Morally Responsible for Anything They Do.” Business and Professional Ethics Journal, 2(3).Google Scholar
Velasquez, M. G. 2000. “Debunking Corporate Moral Responsibility.” Society for Business Ethics Annual Meeting. Toronto, Ontario, Canada, August.Google Scholar
Victor, B. and Cullen, J. B. 1987. “A Theory and Measure of Ethical Climate in Organizations.” Research in Corporate Social Performance and Policy, 9: 5171.Google Scholar
Victor, B. and Cullen, J. B. 1988. “The Organizational Bases of Ethical Work Climates.” Administrative Science Quarterly, 33: 101125.Google Scholar
Wartick, S. L. 1995. “Organizational Cultures in Transnational Companies: An Empirical Analysis of Shared Managerial Values.” In Social Issues in Management Division. Academy of Management, August.Google Scholar
Weber, C. E. 1995. Stories of Virtue in Business. New York: University Press Of America.Google Scholar
Weber, J. 1996. “Influences upon Managerial Moral Decision Making: Nature of the Harm and Magnitude of Consequences.” Human Relations, 49(1): 122.Google Scholar
Weiner, B. 1986. An Attributional Theory of Motivation and Emotion. New York: Springer-Verlag.Google Scholar
Weiner, B. 1995. “Attribution Theory in Organizational Behavior: A Relationship of Mutual Benefit.” In Attribution Theory: An Organizational Perspective, (ed.) Martinko, M. J., 36. Delray Beach, FL: St. Lucie Press.Google Scholar
Werhane, P. 1983. “Individual Rights in Business.” In Just Business, (ed.) Regan, T., 100129. Philadelphia, Pa.: Temple University Press.Google Scholar
Woods, L. and Roberts, P. 2000. “Generating Theory and Evidence from Qualitative Computerised Software.” Nurse Researcher, Winter.Google Scholar
Zelizer, V. A. 1978. “Human Values and the Market: The Case of Life Insurance and Death in 19th-Century America.” American Journal of Sociology, 84: 591610.Google Scholar