Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Ethical Context, Organizational Commitment, and Person-Organization Fit

  • Published:
Journal of Business Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the relationships among ethical context, organizational commitment, and person-organization fit using a sample of 304 young working adults. Results indicated that corporate ethical values signifying different cultural aspects of an ethical context were positively related to both organizational commitment and person-organization fit. Organizational commitment was also positively related to person-organization fit. The findings suggest that the development and promotion of an ethical context might enhance employees' workplace experiences, and companies should consider adopting ethical policies that support principled conduct, punish unethical actions, and increase individual perceptions of an ethical company environment.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abelson, M. A.: 1983, ‘The Impact of Goal Change on Permanent Perceptions and Behaviors of Employees’, Journal of Management 9, 65–79.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adams, J. S., A. Tashchian and T. Shore: 2001, ‘Codes of Ethics as Signals for Ethical Behavior’, Journal of Business Ethics 29, 199–211.

    Google Scholar 

  • Angle, H. L. and J. L. Perry: 1981, ‘An Empirical Assessment of Organizational Commitment and Organizational Effectiveness’, Administrative Science Quarterly 20, 1–14.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arbuckle, J. L. and W. Wothke: 1999, AMOS 4.0 User's Guide (SmallWaters Corporation, Chicago).

    Google Scholar 

  • Babin, B. J., J. S. Boles and D. P. Robin: 2000, ‘Representing the Perceived Ethical Work Climate among Marketing Employees’, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 28, 345–358.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bagozzi, R. P. and Y. Yi: 1988, ‘On the Evaluation of Structural Equation Models’, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 16, 74–94.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bourne, S. and J. D. Snead: 1999, ‘Environmental Determinants of Organizational Ethical Climate: A Community Perspective’, Journal of Business Ethics 21, 283–290.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowen, D. E., G. E. Ledford and B. R. Nathan: 1991, ‘Hiring for the Organization, Not the Job’, Academy of Management Executive 5, 35–50

    Google Scholar 

  • Cable, D. M. and T. A. Judge: 1994, ‘Pay Preferences and Job Search Decisions: A Person Organization Fit Perspective’, Personnel Psychology 47, 317–348.

    Google Scholar 

  • Caldwell, D. and C. O'Reilly: 1990, ‘Measuring Person-Job Fit Using a Profile Comparison Process’, Journal of Applied Psychology 75, 648–657.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen, A., R. Sawyers and P. Williams: 1997, ‘Reinforcing Ethical Decision Making Through Corporate Culture’, Journal of Business Ethics 16, 855–865.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chonko, L. B. and S. D. Hunt: 1985, ‘Ethics and Marketing Management: An Empirical Examination’, Journal of Business Research 13, 339–359.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clark, M. A. and S. L. Leonard: 1998, ‘Can Corporate Codes of Ethics Influence Behavior?’, Journal of Business Ethics 17, 619–630.

    Google Scholar 

  • Delaney, J. T. and D. Sockell: 1992, ‘Do Company Ethics Training Programs Make a Difference?’, Journal of Business Ethics 11, 719–727.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ferrell, O. C. and J. Fraedrich: 1994, Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases (Houghton Mifflin, Boston).

    Google Scholar 

  • Fogarty, T. J.: 1992, ‘Organizational Socialization in Accounting Firms: A Theoretical Framework and Agenda for Future Research’, Accounting, Organizations & Society 17, 129–149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ford, R. C. and W. D. Richardson: 1994, ‘Ethical Decision Making: A Review of the Empirical Literature’, Journal of Business Ethics 13, 205–221.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frederick, W.: 1992, ‘The Empirical Quest for Normative Meaning: Introduction and Overview’, Business Ethics Quarterly 2, 75–81.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fritz, J. M. H., R. C. Arnett and M. Conkel: 1999, ‘Organizational Ethical Standards and Organizational Commitment’, Journal of Business Ethics 20, 289–299.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hair, J. F., R. E. Anderson, R. L. Tatham and W. C. Black: 1998, Multivariate Data Analysis (Prentice Hall, New Jersey).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hammer, T., J. Landau and R. Stern: 1981, ‘Absenteeism When Workers Have a Voice: The Case of Employee Ownership’, Journal of Applied Psychology 66, 561–573.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hartman, E. M.: 1996, Organizational Ethics and the Good Life (Oxford University Press, New York).

    Google Scholar 

  • Herndon, Jr., N. C., J. P. Fraedrich and Q. Yeh: 2001, ‘An Investigation of Moral Values and the Ethical Content of the Corporate Culture: Taiwanese Versus U.S. Sales People’, Journal of Business Ethics 30, 73–85.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hu, L. and P. M. Bentler: 1999, ‘Cutoff Criteria for Fit Indexes in Covariance Structure Analysis: Conventional Criteria Versus New Alternatives’, Structural Equation Modeling 6, 1–55.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hunt, S. D., L. B., Chonko and J. B. Wilcox: 1984, ‘Ethical Problems of Marketing Researchers’, Journal of Marketing Research 21, 304–324.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hunt, S. D., L. B. Chonko and V. R. Wood: 1985, ‘Organizational Commitment and Marketing’, Journal of Marketing 49, 112–126.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hunt, S. D., V. R. Wood and L. B. Chonko: 1989, ‘Corporate Ethical Values and Organizational Commitment in Marketing’, Journal of Marketing 53, 79–90.

    Google Scholar 

  • Izraeli, D.: 1988, ‘Ethical Beliefs and Behavior Among Managers: A Cross-Cultural Perspective’, Journal of Business Ethics 7, 263–271.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jose, A. and M. S. Thibodeaux: 1999, ‘Institutionalization of Ethics: The Perspective of Managers’, Journal of Business Ethics 22, 133–143.

    Google Scholar 

  • Key, S.: 1999, ‘Organizational Ethical Culture: Real or Imagined?’, Journal of Business Ethics 20, 217–225.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kristof, A. L.: 1996, ‘Person-Organization Fit: An Integrative Review of Its Conceptualizations, Measurement, and Implications’, Personnel Psychology 49, 1–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laufer, W. S. and D. C. Robertson: 1997, ‘Corporate Ethics Initiatives as Social Control’, Journal of Business Ethics 16, 1029–1048.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCabe, D. L., L. K. Trevino and K. D. Butterfield: 1996, ‘The Influence of Collegiate and Corporate Codes of Conduct on Ethics-Related Behavior in the Workplace’, Business Ethics Quarterly 6, 461–476.

    Google Scholar 

  • McDonald, G.: 1999, ‘Business Ethics: Practical Proposals for Organizations’, Journal of Business Ethics 19, 143–158.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meyer, J. P. and N. J. Allen: 1997, Commitment in the Workplace: Theory, Research, and Application (Sage, Thousand Oaks).

    Google Scholar 

  • Minkes, A. L., M. W. Small and S. R. Chatterjee: 1999, ‘Leadership and Business Ethics: Does It Matter? Implications for Management’, Journal of Business Ethics 20, 327–335.

    Google Scholar 

  • Montgomery, C. E.: 1996, ‘Organizational Fit is Key to Job Success’, HR Magazine 41, 94–96.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morris, J., and J. D. Sherman: 1981, ‘Generalizability of Organizational Commitment Model’, Academy of Management Journal 24, 512–526.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morrison, D. E.: 1994, ‘Psychological Contracts and Change’, Human Resource Management 33, 353–372.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mount, M. and P. Muchinsky: 1978, ‘Person-Environment Congruence and Employee Job Satisfaction: A Test of Holland's Theory’, Journal of Vocational Behavior 13, 84–100.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mowday, R. T., R. M. Steers and L. W. Porter: 1979, ‘The Measurement of Organizational Commitment’, Journal of Vocational Behavior 14, 224–247.

    Google Scholar 

  • Netemeyer, R. G., J. S. Boles, D. O. McKee and R. McMurrian: 1997, ‘An Investigation into the Antecedents of Organizational Citizenship Behaviors in a Personal Selling Context’, Journal of Marketing 61, 85–98.

    Google Scholar 

  • O'Reilly, C. A., J. Chatman and D. F. Caldwell: 1991, ‘People and Organizational Culture: A Profile Comparison Approach to Assessing Person-Organization Fit’, Academy of Management Journal 34, 487–516.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parker, S., and T. Wall: 1998, Job and Work Design: Organizing Work to Promote Well Being and Effectiveness (Sage, Thousand Oaks).

    Google Scholar 

  • Pervin, L. A: 1968, ‘Performance and Satisfaction as a Function of Individual Environment Fit’, Psychological Bulletin 69, 56–68.

    Google Scholar 

  • Randall, D. M.: 1987, ‘Commitment and the Organization: The Organization Man Revisited’, Academy of Management Review 12, 460–471.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rousseau, D. M.: 1995, Psychological Contracts in Organizations (Sage, Thousand Oaks).

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, B.: 1987, ‘The People Make the Place’, Personnel Psychology 40, 437–453.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schwepker, C. H.: 1999, ‘The Relationship between Ethical Conflict, Organizational Commitment and Turnover Intentions in the Salesforce’, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management 19, 43–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sims, R. R.: 1991, ‘The Institutionalization of Organizational Ethics’, Journal of Business Ethics 10, 493–506.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sims, R. L. and K. G. Kroeck: 1994, ‘The Influence of Ethical Fit on Employee Satisfaction, Commitment, and Turnover’, Journal of Business Ethics 13, 939–947.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singhapakdi, A. and S. J. Vitell: 1990, ‘Marketing Ethics: Factors Influencing Perceptions of Ethical Problems and Alternatives’, Journal of Macromarketing 12, 4–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singhapakdi, A., S. J. Vitell and G. R. Franke: 1999, ‘Antecedents, Consequences, and Mediating Effects of Perceived Moral Intensity and Personal Moral Philosophies’, Academy of Marketing Science 27, 19–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevens, B.: 1999, ‘Communicating Ethical Values: A Study of Employee Perceptions’, Journal of Business Ethics 20, 113–120.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tom, V. R.: 1971, ‘The Role of Personality and Organizational Images in the Recruiting Process’, Organizational Behavior and Human Performance 6, 573–592.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turban, D. B. and T. L. Keon: 1993, ‘Organizational Attractiveness: An Interactionalist Perspective’, Journal of Applied Psychology 78, 184–193.

    Google Scholar 

  • Valentine, S. and T. Barnett: 2002, ‘Ethics Codes and Sales Professionals' Perceptions of Their Organizations' Ethical Values’, Journal of Business Ethics, forthcoming.

  • Valentine, S., K. Young, L. Bailey, N. Barhoum, S. LaBure, N. Glover and P. Isaac: 2001, ‘Expressing Organizational Dissent: The Role of Ethical Ideology and Corporate Ethical Values’, Journal of Business Strategies 18, 71–89.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vancouver, J. B., R. E. Millsap and P. A. Peters: 1994, ‘Multilevel Analysis of Organizational Goal Congruence’, Journal of Applied Psychology 79, 666–679.

    Google Scholar 

  • Victor, B. and J. B. Cullen: 1988, ‘The Organizational Bases of Ethical Work Climates’, Administrative Science Quarterly 33, 101–125.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vidaver-Cohen, D.: 1998, ‘Moral Climate in Business Firms: A Conceptual Framework for Analysis and Change,' Journal of Business Ethics 17, 1211–1226.

    Google Scholar 

  • Werhane, P. H. and R. E. Freeman: 1999, ‘Business Ethics: The State of the Art’, International Journal of Management Reviews 1, 1–16.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wheaton, B., B. Muthen, D. F. Alwin and G. F. Summers: 1977, ‘Assessing Reliability and Stability in Panel Models’, in D. R. Heise (ed) Sociological methodology 1977 (Jossey Bass, San Francisco), 84–136.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wimbush, J. C. and J. M. Shepard: 1994, ‘Toward an Understanding of Ethical Climate: Its Relationship to Ethical Behavior and Supervisory Influence’, Journal of Business Ethics 13, 637–645.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Management and Marketing, University of Wyoming, P.O. Box 3275, Laramie, Wyoming, 82071, U.S.A.

    Sean Valentine

  2. Department of Management and Marketing, Lamar University, P.O. Box 10025, Beaumont, Texas, 77710, U.S.A.

    Lynn Godkin

  3. Department of Management and Marketing, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 6300 Ocean Drive FC 124, Corpus, Christi, Texas, 78412, U.S.A.

    Margaret Lucero

Authors
  1. Sean Valentine
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Lynn Godkin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Margaret Lucero
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Valentine, S., Godkin, L. & Lucero, M. Ethical Context, Organizational Commitment, and Person-Organization Fit. Journal of Business Ethics 41, 349–360 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021203017316

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021203017316

Search

Navigation