Abstract
Business schools play an instrumental role in laying the foundations for ethical behavior and socially responsible actions in the business community. Drawing on social learning and identity theories and using data collected from undergraduate business students (n = 318), we found that ethical climate was a significant predictor of unethical behavior, such that students with positive perceptions about their business school's ethical climate were more likely to refrain from unethical behaviors. Moreover, we found that high moral and institutional identities strengthened the effect of ethical climate on unethical behavior. In addition to novel theoretical contributions to the business ethics and socio-psychology literature, this study offers practical pathways through which business schools can nurture and instill the values and behaviors that ultimately help shape positive organizational ethics. Directions for future research are provided.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 283-294 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Journal of Business Ethics |
| Volume | 123 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Aug 2014 |
User-Defined Keywords
- Business education
- Ethical climate
- Institutional identity
- Moral identity
- Social learning
- Unethical behavior