Abstract
Following on theoretical work and studies that assert a relationship between unethical activities and diminished well-being, and a common belief that those more ethically inclined experience greater well-being, the present study examined whether individual differences in ethical orientation may be associated with the experience of well-being. This paper reports the findings of two separate studies showing that individual differences in moral attentiveness, moral identity, idealism, relativism, and integrity were associated with differences in a wide range of well-being measures. Of particular significance is not all ethical orientations were found to contribute to well-being. In fact, some negatively impacted individual levels of well-being. Implications for integrating these new findings into existing ethical theory and considerations for future research are explored.
Notes
The idealism scale correlates .92 with the original subscale; the relativism scale correlates .89 with the original subscale.
References
Andreoli, N., & Lefkowitz, J. (2009). Individual and organizational antecedents of misconduct in organizations. Journal of Business Ethics, 85, 309–332.
Aquino, K., & Reed, A. (2002). The self-importance of moral identity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83, 1423–1440.
Bowling, N. A., & Beehr, T. A. (2006). Workplace harassment from the victim’s perspective: A theoretical model and meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91, 998–1012.
Britt, C. L. (2000). Health consequences of criminal victimization. International Review of Victimology, 8, 63–73.
Campbell, D. T., & Stanley, J. C. (1967). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for research. Chicago: Rand McNally.
Chen, F. F., Jing, Y., Hayes, A., & Lee, J. M. (2013). Two concepts or two approaches? A bifactor analysis of psychological and subjective well-being. Journal of Happiness Studies, 14, 1033–1068.
Choma, B. L., Busseri, M. A., & Sadava, S. W. (2009). Liberal and conservative political ideologies: Different routes to happiness? Journal of Research in Personality, 43, 502–505.
Day, A. L., Therrien, D. L., & Carroll, S. A. (2005). Predicting psychological health: Assessing the incremental validity of emotional intelligence beyond personality, type a behaviour, and daily hassles. European Journal of Personality, 19, 519–536.
Deckop, J. R., Jurkiewicz, C. L., & Giacalone, R. A. (2010). Effects of materialism on work-related personal well-being. Human Relations, 63, 1007–1030.
Diener, E., Emmons, R. A., Larsen, R. J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49, 71–75.
Diener, E., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Beyond money: Toward an economy of well-being. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 5, 1–31.
Din-Dzietham, R., Nembhard, W. N., Collins, R., & Davis, S. K. (2004). Perceived stress following race-based discrimination at work is associated with hypertension in African-Americans: The metro Atlanta heart disease study, 1999-2001. Social Science and Medicine, 58, 449–461.
Elovainio, M., Kivimaki, M., & Vahtera, J. (2002). Organizational justice: Evidence of a new psychosocial predictor of health. American Journal of Public Health, 92, 105–108.
Elovainio, M., Kivimaki, M., Vahtera, J., Keltikangas-Jarvinen, L., & Virtanen, M. (2003). Sleeping problems and health behaviors as mediators between organizational justice and health. Health Psychology, 22, 287–293.
Etheredge, J. M. (1999). The perceived role of ethics and social responsibility: An alternative scale structure. Journal of Business Ethics, 18, 51–64.
Eweje, G., & Brunton, M. (2010). Ethical perceptions of business students in a New Zealand university: Do gender, age and work experience matter? Business Ethics: A European Review, 19, 95–111.
Forsyth, D. R. (1980). A taxonomy of ethical ideologies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 39, 175–184.
Fusilier, M. R., Ganster, D. C., & Mayes, B. T. (1987). Effects of social support, role stress, and locus of control on health. Journal of Management, 13, 517–528.
Georgellis, Y., Tsitsianis, N., & Yin, Y. P. (2009). Personal values as mitigating factors in the link between income and life satisfaction: Evidence from the European social survey. Social Indicators Research, 91, 329–344.
Geronimus, A. T. (1992). The weathering hypothesis and the health of African-American women and infants: Evidence and speculations. Ethnicity and Disease, 2, 207–221.
Giacalone, R. A., & Jurkiewicz, C. L. (2003). Right from wrong: The influence of spirituality on perceptions of unethical business activities. Journal of Business Ethics, 46(1), 85–97.
Giacalone, R. A., & Promislo, M. D. (2010). Unethical and unwell: Decrements in well-being and unethical activity at work. Journal of Business Ethics, 91, 275–297.
Giacalone, R. A., & Promislo, M. D. (Eds.). (2012). Handbook of unethical work behavior: Implications for individual well-being. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe.
Gordon, M. E., Slade, L. A., & Schmitt, N. (1986). The ‘science of the sophomore’ revisited: From conjecture to empiricism. Academy of Management Review, 11, 191–207.
Greenberg, J. (1987). The college sophomore as guinea pig: Setting the record straight. Academy of Management Review, 12, 157–159.
Harrison, D. A., & McLaughlin, M. E. (1993). Cognitive processes in self-report responses: Tests of item context effects in work attitude measures. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78, 129–140.
Jaramillo, F., Mulki, J. P., & Solomon, P. (2006). The role of ethical climate on salesperson’s role stress, job attitudes, turnover intention, and job performance. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 26, 271–282.
Jones, A., & Crandall, R. (1986). Validation of a short index of self-actualization. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 12, 63–73.
Jurkiewicz, C. L. (2000). The Trouble with ethics: Results from a National Survey of Healthcare Executives. HEC Forum, 12(2), 101–123.
Jurkiewicz, C. L. (2012). Advancing ethical competency through pedagogy. In T. L. Cooper & D. C. Menzel (Eds.), Achieving ethical competence for public service leadership (pp. 131–154). Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe.
Kasser, T. (2002). The high price of materialism. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Kasser, T., & Ryan, R. M. (1993). A dark side of the American dream: Correlates of financial success as a central life aspiration. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 410–422.
Kasser, T., & Ryan, R. M. (1996). Further examining the American dream: Differential correlates of intrinsic and extrinsic goals. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 280–287.
Kasser, T., & Ryan, R. M. (2001). Be careful what you wish for: Optimal functioning and the relative attainment of intrinsic and extrinsic goals. In P. Schmuck & K. Sheldon (Eds.), Life goals and well-being: Towards a positive psychology of human striving (pp. 116–131). Gottingen: Hogrefe.
Kivimaki, M., Ferrie, J. E., Brunner, E., Head, J., Shipley, M. J., Vahtera, J., et al. (2005). Justice at work and reduced risk of coronary heart disease among employees: The Whitehall II study. Archives of Internal Medicine, 165, 2245–2251.
Landrine, H., Klonoff, E. A., Corral, I., Fernandez, S., & Roesch, S. (2006). Conceptualizing and measuring ethnic discrimination in health research. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 29, 79–94.
Leymann, H., & Gustafsson, A. (1996). Mobbing at work and the development of post-traumatic stress disorders. European Journal of Work & Organizational Psychology, 5, 251–275.
Lipkus, I. M., Dalbert, C., & Siegler, I. C. (1996). The importance of distinguishing the belief in a just world for self versus for others: Implications for psychological well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 666–677.
Lucas, T., Alexander, S., Firestone, I., & Lebreton, J. M. (2008). Just world beliefs, perceived stress, and health behavior: The impact of a procedurally just world. Psychology and Health, 23, 849–865.
Lyons, R., Tivey, H., & Ball, C. (1995). Bullying at work: How to tackle it. A guide for MSF representatives and members. London: Manufacturing Science Finance.
Lyubomirsky, S., & Lepper, H. (1999). A measure of subjective happiness: Preliminary reliability and construct validation. Social Indicators Research, 46, 137–155.
Maslow, A. (1954). Motivation and personality. New York: Harper.
Miller, M. L., & Schlenker, B. R. (2011). Integrity and identity: Moral identity differences and preferred interpersonal reactions. European Journal of Personality, 25, 2–15.
Moradi, B., & Subich, L. M. (2004). Examining the moderating role of self-esteem in the link between experiences of perceived sexist events and psychological distress. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 51, 50–56.
Mulki, J., Jaramillo, J., & Locander, W. (2008). Effect of ethical climate on turnover intention: Linking attitudinal- and stress theory. Journal of Business Ethics, 78, 559–574.
Mustillo, S., Krieger, N., Gunderson, E. P., Sidney, S., McCreath, H., & Kiefe, C. I. (2004). Self-reported experiences of racial discrimination and black–White differences in preterm and low-birthweight deliveries: The CARDIA study. American Journal of Public Health, 94, 2125–2131.
Nunnally, J. C. (1978). Psychometric theory (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Ormel, J., & Wohlfarth, T. (1991). How neuroticism, long-term difficulties, and life situation change influence psychological distress: A longitudinal model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60, 744–755.
Otto, K., Glaser, D., & Dalbert, C. (2009). Mental health, occupational trust, and quality of working life: Does belief in a just world matter? Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 39, 1288–1315.
Pavalko, E. K., Mossakowski, K. N., & Hamilton, V. J. (2003). Does perceived discrimination affect health? Longitudinal relationships between work discrimination and women’s physical and emotional health. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 44, 18–33.
Probst, J. C., Wang, J. Y., Moore, C. G., Powell, M. P., & Martin, A. B. (2008). Continuity of health insurance coverage and perceived health at age 40. Medical Care Research and Review, 65, 450–477.
Promislo, M., Deckop, J., Giacalone, R. A., & Jurkiewicz, C. L. (2010). Valuing money more than people: The effects of materialism on work–family conflict. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 83, 935–953.
Promislo, M., Giacalone, R. A., & Welch, J. (2012). Consequences of concern: Ethics, social responsibility, and well-being (p. 21). Business Ethics: A European Review.
Reynolds, S. J. (2008). Moral attentiveness: Who pays attention to the moral aspects of life? Journal of Applied Psychology, 93, 1027–1041.
Robitschek, C. (1998). Personal growth initiative: The construct and its measure. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 30, 183–198.
Ryan, R. M., & Frederick, C. (1997). On energy, personality, and health: Subjective vitality as a dynamic reflection of well-being. Journal of Personality, 65, 529–565.
Schlenker, B. R. (2008). Integrity and character: Implications of principled and expedient ethical ideologies. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 27, 1078–1125.
Schneider, K. T., Swan, S., & Fitzgerald, L. F. (1997). Job-related and psychological effects of sexual harassment in the workplace: Empirical evidence from two organizations. Journal of Applied Psychology, 82, 401–415.
Schwepker, C. H. J. (1999). Research note: The relationship between ethical conflict, organizational commitment and turnover intentions in the salesforce. The Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 19, 43–49.
Segerstrom, S. C., Taylor, S. E., Kemeny, M. E., & Fahey, J. L. (1998). Optimism is associated with mood, coping and immune change in response to stress. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 1646–1655.
Sheldon, K. M., & Kasser, T. (1998). Pursuing personal goals: Skills enable progress, but not all progress is beneficial. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 24, 1319–1331.
Sheldon, K. M., & Kasser, T. (2001). Getting older, getting better? Personal strivings and psychological maturity across the life span. Developmental Psychology, 37, 491–501.
Sims, R. L., & Kroeck, K. G. (1994). The influence of ethical fit on employee satisfaction, commitment and turnover. Journal of Business Ethics, 13, 939–947.
Singhapakdi, A., Vitell, S. J., Rallapalli, K. C., & Kraft, K. L. (1996). The perceived role of ethics and social responsibility: A scale development. Journal of Business Ethics, 15, 1131–1140.
Smith, R. D., DeBode, J. D., & Walker, A. G. (2013). The influence of age, sex, and theism on ethical judgments. Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion, 10, 67–89.
Snyder, C. R., Sympson, S. C., Ybasco, F. C., Borders, T. F., Babyak, M. A., & Higgins, R. L. (1996). Development and validation of the state hope scale. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2, 321–335.
Spector, P. E., & Jex, S. M. (1998). Development of four self-report measures of job stressors and strain: Interpersonal conflict at work scale, organizational constraints scale, quantitative workload inventory, and physical symptoms inventory. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 3, 356–367.
Steger, M., Oishi, S., & Kaler, M. (2006). The meaning in life questionnaire: Assessing the presence of and search for meaning in life. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 53, 80–93.
Stewart, R., Volpone, S., Avery, D., & McKay, P. (2011). You support diversity, but are you ethical? Examining the interactive effects of diversity and ethical climate perceptions on turnover intentions. Journal of Business Ethics, 100, 581–593.
Subramanian, S. V., Huijts, T., & Perkins, J. M. (2009). Association between political ideology and health in Europe. European Journal of Public Health, 19, 455–457.
Tepper, B. J. (2001). Health consequences of organizational injustice: Tests of main and interactive effects. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 86, 197–215.
Thomas, K. S., Bardwell, W. A., Ancoli-Israel, S., & Dimsdale, J. E. (2006). The toll of ethnic discrimination on sleep architecture and fatigue. Health Psychology, 25, 635–642.
Troxel, W. M., Matthews, K. A., Bromberger, J. T., & Sutton-Tyrrell, K. (2003). Chronic stress burden, discrimination, and subclinical carotid artery disease in African American and Caucasian women. Health Psychology, 22, 300–309.
Tunnell, G. B. (1977). Three dimensions of naturalness: An expanded definition of field research. Psychological Bulletin, 84, 426–437.
Valentine, S. (2014). Organizational ethics and stakeholder well-being in the business environment. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Press.
Valentine, S., & Barnett, T. (2002). Ethics codes and sales professionals’ perceptions of their organizations’ ethical values. Journal of Business Ethics, 40, 191–200.
Valentine, S., & Fleischman, G. (2008). Ethics programs, perceived corporate social responsibility and job satisfaction. Journal of Business Ethics, 77, 159–172.
Valentine, S., Godkin, L., Fleischman, G., & Kidwell, R. (2011). Corporate ethical values, group creativity, job satisfaction and turnover intention: The impact of work context on work response. Journal of Business Ethics, 98, 353–372.
Valentine, S., Godkin, L., & Lucero, M. (2002). Ethical context, organizational commitment, and person-organization fit. Journal of Business Ethics, 41, 349–360.
Viswesvaran, C., Deshpande, S. P., & Joseph, J. (1998). Job satisfaction as a function of top management support for ethical behavior: A study of Indian managers. Journal of Business Ethics, 17, 365–371.
Watson, D., & Clark, L. A. (1984). Negative affectivity: The disposition to experience aversive emotional states. Psychological Bulletin, 96, 465–490.
Williams, G. C., Cox, E. M., Hedberg, V. A., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Extrinsic life goals and health-risk behaviors in adolescents. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 30, 1756–1771.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Giacalone, R.A., Jurkiewicz, C.L. & Promislo, M. Ethics and Well-Being: The Paradoxical Implications of Individual Differences in Ethical Orientation. J Bus Ethics 137, 491–506 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2558-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2558-8