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Hierarchies, Power Inequalities, and Organizational Corruption

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Abstract

This article uses social dominance theory (SDT) to explore the dynamic and systemic nature of the initiation and maintenance of organizational corruption. Rooted in the definition of organizational corruption as misuse of power or position for personal or organizational gain, this work suggests that organizational corruption is driven by the individual and institutional tendency to structure societies as group-based social hierarchies. SDT describes a series of factors and processes across multiple levels of analysis that systemically contribute to the initiation and maintenance of social hierarchies and associated power inequalities, favoritism, and discrimination. I posit that the same factors and processes also contribute to individuals’ lower awareness of the misuse of power and position within the social hierarchies, leading to the initiation and maintenance of organizational corruption. Specifically, individuals high in social dominance orientation, believing that they belong to superior groups, are likely to be less aware of corruption because of their feeling of entitlement to greater power and their desire to maintain dominance even if that requires exploiting others. Members of subordinate groups are also likely to have lower awareness of corruption if they show more favoritism toward dominant group members to enhance their sense of worth and preserve social order. Institutions contribute to lower awareness of corruption by developing and enforcing structures, norms, and practices that promote informational ambiguity and maximize focus on dominance and promotion. Dynamic coordination among individuals and institutions is ensured through the processes of person-environment fit and legitimizing beliefs, ideologies, or rationalizations.

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Notes

  1. Eliot Spitzer has made his name as New York State’s Attorney General from 1998 to 2006. He pursued high-profile lawsuits targeting organizational corruption, pollution, occupational safety and prostitution. In 2007, Spitzer was inaugurated Governor of New York. He abruptly resigned in 2008 after being caught as a client of an elite prostitution ring. As a son of a New York real estate magnate, Spitzer was also accused of inappropriately funding his political campaigns with his father’s contributions, while insisting that he did not receive any family aid (Dicker et al. 2008; Lowenstein 2006).

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  1. Shidler College of Business, University of Hawai’i, Manoa, 2404 Maile Way, C-301, Honolulu, HI, 96815, USA

    Valerie Rosenblatt

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Rosenblatt, V. Hierarchies, Power Inequalities, and Organizational Corruption. J Bus Ethics 111, 237–251 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1204-y

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