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Self-Construal and Unethical Behavior

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Abstract

We suggest that understanding unethical behavior in organizations involves understanding how people view themselves and their relationships with others, a concept known as self-construal. Across multiple studies, employing both field and laboratory settings, we examine the impact of three dimensions of self-construal (independent, relational, and collective) on unethical behavior. Our results show that higher levels of relational self-construal relate negatively to unethical behavior. We also find that differences in levels of relational self for men and women mediate gender differences in unethical behavior. We discuss both the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.

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Abbreviations

CFA:

Confirmatory factor analysis

SRMR:

Standardized root mean square residual

RMSEA:

Root mean square error of approximation

CFI:

Comparative fit index

PANAS:

Positive and negative affect schedule

MEV:

Measure of ethical viewpoints

Bca CI:

Bias corrected and accelerated confidence interval

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Acknowledgment

This research was funded by Grant PTDC/EGE-GES/098856/2008 of the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) with funds co-financed by the state budget through the program PIDDAC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Católica Lisbon School of Business and Economics, Universidade Catolica Portuguesa, Palma de Cima, 1649-023, Lisbon, Portugal

    Irina Cojuharenco

  2. Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, Evanston, USA

    Garriy Shteynberg

  3. Department of Psychology, University of Maryland at College Park, College Park, USA

    Michele Gelfand

  4. College of Business Administration, University of Central Florida, Orlando, USA

    Marshall Schminke

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  1. Irina Cojuharenco
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  2. Garriy Shteynberg
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  3. Michele Gelfand
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  4. Marshall Schminke
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Correspondence to Irina Cojuharenco.

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Cojuharenco, I., Shteynberg, G., Gelfand, M. et al. Self-Construal and Unethical Behavior. J Bus Ethics 109, 447–461 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-1139-8

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