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The relationship between ethical and customer-oriented service provider behaviors

Journal of Business Ethics volume 13, pages 497–506 (1994)Cite this article

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between the ethical behavior and customer orientation of insurance sales agents engaged in the selling of complex services, e.g. health, life, auto, and property insurance. The effect of ethical and customer-oriented behavior, measured by the SOCO scale (Saxe and Weitz, 1982), on the annual premiums generated by the agents is also investigated. Customeroriented sales agents are found to engage in less unethical behavior than their sales-oriented counterparts. Further, sales-oriented agents are found to perceive greater levels of unethical behavior among their significant others. Alarmingly, higher levels of sales premiums are found among those agents who engage in unethical behavior.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cameron School of Business, University of North Carolina, 28403, Wilmington, NC, USA

    Vince Howe, K. Douglas Hoffman & Donald W. Hardigree

  2. The Institute for Insurance and Risk Management, University of Nevada, 89154, Las Vegas, NV, USA

    Vince Howe, K. Douglas Hoffman & Donald W. Hardigree

Authors
  1. Vince Howe
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  2. K. Douglas Hoffman
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  3. Donald W. Hardigree
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Additional information

Vince Howe is Associate Professor of Marketing and Chairman, Dept. of Management and Marketing, The University of North Carolina at Wilmington. He has published in several journals including:Personnel Psychology, Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, Journal of Risk & Insurance, Industrial Marketing Management andJournal of Direct Marketing. Former Market Management with Ford Motor Co., his major research and consulting interests are in Market Research and Marketing Strategy.

K. Douglas Hoffman is an Associate Professor of Marketing, a Cameron Research Fellow and the 1991–92 Chancellor's Award for Teaching Excellence recipient at The University of North Carolina at Wilmington. He has published in theJournal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, Journal of Health Care Marketing, Journal of Services Marketing, Journal of Professional Services Marketing, Marketing Education Review, andThe Journal of Marketing Education.

Donald W. Hardigree is the Nevada Insurance Education Foundation Chair of Insurance and the Director of the Institute for Insurance and Risk Management at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He has published in numerous journals includingCPCU Journal, Journal of Risk & Insurance, Journal of Insurance Issues, andJournal of Personal Selling and Sales Management. A former financial analyst for Ford Motor Co., he serves as a consultant for both insurers and corporate risk managers.

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Howe, V., Hoffman, K.D. & Hardigree, D.W. The relationship between ethical and customer-oriented service provider behaviors. J Bus Ethics 13, 497–506 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00881295

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00881295

Keywords

  • Economic Growth
  • Service Provider
  • Great Level
  • Ethical Behavior
  • Unethical Behavior