IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v117y2013i2p221-259.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Review of the Empirical Ethical Decision-Making Literature: 2004–2011

Author

Listed:
  • Jana Craft

Abstract

This review summarizes the research on ethical decision-making from 2004 to 2011. Eighty-four articles were published during this period, resulting in 357 findings. Individual findings are categorized by their application to individual variables, organizational variables, or the concept of moral intensity as developed by Jones (Acad Manag Rev 16(2):366–395, 1991 ). Rest’s (Moral development: advances in research and theory, Praeger, New York, 1986 ) four-step model for ethical decision-making is used to summarize findings by dependent variable—awareness, intent, judgment, and behavior. A discussion of findings in each category is provided in order to uncover trends in the ethical decision-making literature. A summary of areas of suggested future research is provided. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013

Suggested Citation

  • Jana Craft, 2013. "A Review of the Empirical Ethical Decision-Making Literature: 2004–2011," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 117(2), pages 221-259, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:117:y:2013:i:2:p:221-259
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-012-1518-9
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s10551-012-1518-9
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-012-1518-9?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Russell Haines & Marc Street & Douglas Haines, 2008. "The Influence of Perceived Importance of an Ethical Issue on Moral Judgment, Moral Obligation, and Moral Intent," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 81(2), pages 387-399, August.
    2. Maurice Schweitzer & Donald Gibson, 2008. "Fairness, Feelings, and Ethical Decision- Making: Consequences of Violating Community Standards of Fairness," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 77(3), pages 287-301, February.
    3. Breda Sweeney & Fiona Costello, 2009. "Moral Intensity and Ethical Decision-making: An Empirical Examination of Undergraduate Accounting and Business Students," Accounting Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(1), pages 75-97.
    4. Marcus Selart & Svein Johansen, 2011. "Ethical Decision Making in Organizations: The Role of Leadership Stress," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 99(2), pages 129-143, March.
    5. Darin White & Emily Lean, 2008. "The Impact of Perceived Leader Integrity on Subordinates in a Work Team Environment," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 81(4), pages 765-778, September.
    6. Michael O’Fallon & Kenneth Butterfield, 2011. "Moral Differentiation: Exploring Boundaries of the “Monkey See, Monkey Do” Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 102(3), pages 379-399, September.
    7. C. Cullinan & Dennis Bline & Robert Farrar & Dana Lowe, 2008. "Organization-Harm vs. Organization-Gain Ethical Issues: An Exploratory Examination of the Effects of Organizational Commitment," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 80(2), pages 225-235, June.
    8. James Westerman & Rafik Beekun & Yvonne Stedham & Jeanne Yamamura, 2007. "Peers Versus National Culture: An Analysis of Antecedents to Ethical Decision-making," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 75(3), pages 239-252, October.
    9. Robin, Donald P. & Reidenbach, R. Eric & Forrest, P. J., 1996. "The perceived importance of an ethical issue as an influence on the ethical decision-making of ad managers," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 35(1), pages 17-28, January.
    10. Vidya Awasthi, 2008. "Managerial Decision-Making on Moral Issues and the Effects of Teaching Ethics," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 78(1), pages 207-223, March.
    11. A. Oumlil & Joseph Balloun, 2009. "Ethical Decision-Making Differences Between American and Moroccan Managers," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 84(4), pages 457-478, February.
    12. Mario Fernando & Rafi Chowdhury, 2010. "The Relationship Between Spiritual Well-Being and Ethical Orientations in Decision Making: An Empirical Study with Business Executives in Australia," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 95(2), pages 211-225, August.
    13. Breda Sweeney & Don Arnold & Bernard Pierce, 2010. "The Impact of Perceived Ethical Culture of the Firm and Demographic Variables on Auditors’ Ethical Evaluation and Intention to Act Decisions," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 93(4), pages 531-551, June.
    14. William E. Shafer & Richard S. Simmons, 2011. "Effects of organizational ethical culture on the ethical decisions of tax practitioners in mainland China," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 24(5), pages 647-668, June.
    15. Deborah Leitsch, 2006. "Using dimensions of moral intensity to predict ethical decision-making in accounting," Accounting Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(2), pages 135-149.
    16. Paul Bierly & Robert Kolodinsky & Brian Charette, 2009. "Understanding the Complex Relationship Between Creativity and Ethical Ideologies," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 86(1), pages 101-112, April.
    17. David Fritzsche & E. Oz, 2007. "Personal Values’ Influence on the Ethical Dimension of Decision Making," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 75(4), pages 335-343, November.
    18. Sebnem Burnaz & M. Atakan & Y. Topcu & Anusorn Singhapakdi, 2009. "An Exploratory Cross-Cultural Analysis of Marketing Ethics: The Case of Turkish, Thai, and American Businesspeople," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 90(3), pages 371-382, December.
    19. Craig Smith, N. & Simpson, Sally S. & Huang, Chun-Yao, 2007. "Why Managers Fail to do the Right Thing: An Empirical Study of Unethical and Illegal Conduct," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 17(4), pages 633-667, October.
    20. Sean Valentine & Terri Rittenburg, 2007. "The Ethical Decision Making of Men and Women Executives in International Business Situations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 71(2), pages 125-134, March.
    21. Nicki Marquardt & Rainer Hoeger, 2009. "The Effect of Implicit Moral Attitudes on Managerial Decision-Making: An Implicit Social Cognition Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 85(2), pages 157-171, March.
    22. Julia Zhang & Randy Chiu & Liqun Wei, 2009. "Decision-Making Process of Internal Whistleblowing Behavior in China: Empirical Evidence and Implications," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(1), pages 25-41, April.
    23. Singhapakdi, Anusorn & Vitell, Scott J. & Kraft, Kenneth L., 1996. "Moral Intensity and Ethical Decision-Making of Marketing Professionals," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 36(3), pages 245-255, July.
    24. Robert Armstrong & Robert Williams & J. Barrett, 2004. "The Impact of Banality, Risky Shift and Escalating Commitment on Ethical Decision Making," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 53(4), pages 365-370, September.
    25. Joan McMahon & Robert Harvey, 2007. "The Effect of Moral Intensity on Ethical Judgment," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 72(4), pages 335-357, June.
    26. Pedro Marques & José Azevedo-Pereira, 2009. "Ethical Ideology and Ethical Judgments in the Portuguese Accounting Profession," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 86(2), pages 227-242, May.
    27. Satish Deshpande, 2009. "A Study of Ethical Decision Making by Physicians and Nurses in Hospitals," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 90(3), pages 387-397, December.
    28. Lynn K. Bartels & Edward Harrick & Kathryn Martell & Donald Strickland, 1998. "The Relationship between Ethical Climate and Ethical Problems within Human Resource Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 17(7), pages 799-804, May.
    29. Semra Karacaer & Raheel Gohar & Mehmet Aygün & Cem Sayin, 2009. "Effects of Personal Values on Auditor’s Ethical Decisions: A Comparison of Pakistani and Turkish Professional Auditors," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(1), pages 53-64, August.
    30. Mary Curtis, 2006. "Are Audit-related Ethical Decisions Dependent upon Mood?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 68(2), pages 191-209, October.
    31. B. Elango & Karen Paul & Sumit Kundu & Shishir Paudel, 2010. "Organizational Ethics, Individual Ethics, and Ethical Intentions in International Decision-Making," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 97(4), pages 543-561, December.
    32. Nicole Ruedy & Maurice Schweitzer, 2010. "In the Moment: The Effect of Mindfulness on Ethical Decision Making," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 95(1), pages 73-87, September.
    33. Conor O’Leary & Gladies Pangemanan, 2007. "The Effect of Groupwork on Ethical Decision-Making of Accountancy Students," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 75(3), pages 215-228, October.
    34. A. Greenfield & Carolyn Norman & Benson Wier, 2008. "The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 83(3), pages 419-434, December.
    35. Jennifer Mencl & Douglas May, 2009. "The Effects of Proximity and Empathy on Ethical Decision-Making: An Exploratory Investigation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 85(2), pages 201-226, March.
    36. Dennis Hwang & Blair Staley & Ying Te Chen & Jyh-Shan Lan, 2008. "Confucian culture and whistle-blowing by professional accountants: an exploratory study," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 23(5), pages 504-526, May.
    37. Jeffrey, Cynthia & Dilla, William & Weatherholt, Nancy, 2004. "The Impact of Ethical Development and Cultural Constructs on Auditor Judgments: A Study of Auditors in Taiwan," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 14(3), pages 553-579, July.
    38. Sefa Hayibor & David Wasieleski, 2009. "Effects of the Use of the Availability Heuristic on Ethical Decision-Making in Organizations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 84(1), pages 151-165, January.
    39. Joseph McKinney & Tisha Emerson & Mitchell Neubert, 2010. "The Effects of Ethical Codes on Ethical Perceptions of Actions Toward Stakeholders," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 97(4), pages 505-516, December.
    40. Church, Bryan & Gaa, James C. & Khalid Nainar, S. M. & Shehata, Mohamed M., 2005. "Experimental Evidence Relating to the Person-Situation Interactionist Model of Ethical Decision Making," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(3), pages 363-383, July.
    41. Sean Valentine & Connie Bateman, 2011. "The Impact of Ethical Ideologies, Moral Intensity, and Social Context on Sales-Based Ethical Reasoning," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 102(1), pages 155-168, August.
    42. Rutledge, Robert W. & Karim, Khondkar E., 1999. "The influence of self-interest and ethical considerations on managers' evaluation judgments," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 173-184, April.
    43. C. Chang & Sin-Hui Yen, 2007. "The Effects of Moral Development and Adverse Selection Conditions on Managers’ Project Continuance Decisions: A Study in the Pacific-Rim Region," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 76(3), pages 347-360, December.
    44. Gary Pflugrath & Nonna Martinov-Bennie & Liang Chen, 2007. "The impact of codes of ethics and experience on auditor judgments," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 22(6), pages 566-589, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Luca Casali, Gian & Perano, Mirko, 2021. "Forty years of research on factors influencing ethical decision making: Establishing a future research agenda," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 614-630.
    2. Ahmed Musbah & Christopher J. Cowton & David Tyfa, 2016. "The Role of Individual Variables, Organizational Variables and Moral Intensity Dimensions in Libyan Management Accountants’ Ethical Decision Making," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 134(3), pages 335-358, March.
    3. Peter Mudrack & E. Mason, 2013. "Ethical Judgments: What Do We Know, Where Do We Go?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 115(3), pages 575-597, July.
    4. Jana Craft, 2013. "Living in the Gray: Lessons on Ethics from Prison," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 115(2), pages 327-339, June.
    5. Jana L. Craft, 2018. "Common Thread: The Impact of Mission on Ethical Business Culture. A Case Study," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 149(1), pages 127-145, April.
    6. Jocelyn Husser & Jean-Marc Andre & Véronique Lespinet-Najib, 2019. "The Impact of Locus of Control, Moral Intensity, and the Microsocial Ethical Environment on Purchasing-Related Ethical Reasoning," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 154(1), pages 243-261, January.
    7. Valentine, Sean & Godkin, Lynn, 2019. "Moral intensity, ethical decision making, and whistleblowing intention," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 277-288.
    8. Yeoh Khar Kheng & Sethela June, 2016. "The Ethical Decision Ma king Intention of Small & Medium Entrepreneurs in Malaysia," Quarterly Journal of Business Studies, Research Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 2(4), pages 181-192.
    9. Hengky Latan & Charbel Jose Chiappetta Jabbour & Ana Beatriz Lopes de Sousa Jabbour, 2019. "Ethical Awareness, Ethical Judgment and Whistleblowing: A Moderated Mediation Analysis," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(1), pages 289-304, March.
    10. Wen-yeh Huang, 2018. "Influence of Transparency on Employees’ Ethical Judgments: A Case of Russia," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 152(4), pages 1177-1189, November.
    11. Mark S. Schwartz, 2016. "Ethical Decision-Making Theory: An Integrated Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 139(4), pages 755-776, December.
    12. Peter Mudrack & E. Mason, 2013. "Dilemmas, Conspiracies, and Sophie’s Choice: Vignette Themes and Ethical Judgments," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 118(3), pages 639-653, December.
    13. Barbara Culiberg & Domen Bajde, 2014. "Do You Need a Receipt? Exploring Consumer Participation in Consumption Tax Evasion as an Ethical Dilemma," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 124(2), pages 271-282, October.
    14. Tabea Franziska Hirth-Goebel & Barbara E. Weißenberger, 2019. "Management accountants and ethical dilemmas: How to promote ethical intention?," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 30(3), pages 287-322, October.
    15. Karen Winterich & Andrea Morales & Vikas Mittal, 2015. "Disgusted or Happy, It is not so Bad: Emotional Mini-Max in Unethical Judgments," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 130(2), pages 343-360, August.
    16. Fuan Li & Mike Chen-ho Chao & Nancy Yi-feng Chen & Sixue Zhang, 2018. "Moral judgment in a business setting: The role of managers’ moral foundation, ideology, and level of moral development," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 35(1), pages 121-143, March.
    17. Zou, Lili Wenli & Chan, Ricky Y.K., 2019. "Why and when do consumers perform green behaviors? An examination of regulatory focus and ethical ideology," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 113-127.
    18. Raymond O. S. Zaal & Ronald J. M. Jeurissen & Edward A. G. Groenland, 2019. "Organizational Architecture, Ethical Culture, and Perceived Unethical Behavior Towards Customers: Evidence from Wholesale Banking," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 158(3), pages 825-848, September.
    19. Jacqueline C. Wisler, 2018. "U.S. CEOs of SBUs in Luxury Goods Organizations: A Mixed Methods Comparison of Ethical Decision-Making Profiles," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 149(2), pages 443-518, May.
    20. Cathy Beaudoin & Anna Cianci & George Tsakumis, 2015. "The Impact of CFOs’ Incentives and Earnings Management Ethics on their Financial Reporting Decisions: The Mediating Role of Moral Disengagement," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 128(3), pages 505-518, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:117:y:2013:i:2:p:221-259. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.