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The Impact of Individual Ethics on Reactions to Potentially Invasive HR Practices

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Abstract

In recent years, the practices of work organizations have raised increasing concerns regarding individual privacy at work. It is clear that people expect and value privacy in their personal lives. However, the extent to which privacy perceptions influence individuals’ work attitudes is less clear. Research has explored the extent to which employee perceptions of privacy derive from characteristics of the programs themselves. However, there is a paucity of research that examines how the characteristics of the individual employee may influence perceptions of these programs. In this study we seek to shed light on this issue, as we examine how the individual ethical orientation of employees influences perceptions of a variety of human resource programs that have the potential to be perceived as invasive. Results indicate that ethical orientation exerts direct effects on perceived invasiveness of programs and exerts both direct and indirect effects on perceived appropriateness of programs. Implications for research and for managers adopting privacy-related programs are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Business Administration, University of Central Florida, P.O. Box 161400, Orlando, FL, 32816-1400, USA

    G. Stoney Alder, Marshall Schminke & Terry W. Noel

Authors
  1. G. Stoney Alder
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  2. Marshall Schminke
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  3. Terry W. Noel
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marshall Schminke.

Additional information

G. Stoney Alder is Assistant Professor of Management in the College of Business at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He received his Ph. D. from the University of Colorado at Boulder. His research interests include organizational justice, electronic monitoring, and business ethics. Dr. Alder's work␣has appeared in a number of journals including Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Information & Management, Human Resource Management Review, Journal of Business Ethics, and the Journal of High Technology Management Research among others.

Marshall Schminke is currently a Professor of Management at the University of Central Florida. His research interests include organizational justice, ethics, and work climate. He has published a book on business ethics, and over 40 articles and chapters in journals such as the Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Applied Psychology, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Research in Organizational Behavior, Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management, Business Ethics, Quarterly, and the Journal of Business Ethics. He has served as Associate Editor of the Academy of Management Journal and as a visiting scholar at Oxford University.

Terry W. Noel is Associate Professor of Management at California State University, Chico. He teaches classes in entrepreneurship and manages the Center for Enterpreneurship. Dr. Noel's work has been published in such places as The Academy of Management Journal, the Journal of Management Education, and the Journal of Enterpreneurship Education. His research focuses on the process of enterpreneurial learning and how entrepreneurial thinking can benefit both start ups and established organizations. He also does research in the field of employee reactions to computer monitoring.

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Alder, G.S., Schminke, M. & Noel, T.W. The Impact of Individual Ethics on Reactions to Potentially Invasive HR Practices. J Bus Ethics 75, 201–214 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-006-9247-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-006-9247-6

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