Doing Bad Things for Good Reasons: An Examination of Unethical Pro-Organizational Behavior among Professional Engineers
Publication: ASCE Inspire 2023
ABSTRACT
Unethical behavior at work can be extremely costly, and unethical pro-organizational behavior poses a unique challenge. It suggests that there is a “dark side” to constructs thought to be productive, like organizational identification. Recent research suggests that individuals who identify highly with their organization are more likely to engage in unethical pro-organizational behavior and that moral disengagement mediates this relationship. Based on a sample of 281 professional engineers, this study suggests that organizational identification by itself does not predict unethical pro-organizational behavior. The study validates previous findings of a significant relationship between moral identity and moral disengagement and between moral disengagement and unethical pro-organizational behavior. It also provides the first empirical evidence of a significant relationship between work engagement and moral disengagement. While offering recommendations for workforce development to prevent unethical behavior among professional engineers, the study highlights the complexity of predicting and responding to the dark side of organizational identification.
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ASCE Inspire 2023
Pages: 802 - 810
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Published online: Nov 14, 2023
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