IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v146y2017i3d10.1007_s10551-015-2913-9.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Dual-Processing Model of Moral Whistleblowing in Organizations

Author

Listed:
  • Logan L. Watts

    (University of Oklahoma)

  • M. Ronald Buckley

    (University of Oklahoma)

Abstract

A dual-processing model of moral whistleblowing in organizations is proposed. In this theory paper, moral whistleblowing is described as a unique type of whistleblowing that is undertaken by individuals that see themselves as moral agents and are primarily motivated to blow the whistle by a sense of moral duty. At the individual level, the model expands on traditional, rational models of whistleblowing by exploring how moral intuition and deliberative reasoning processes might interact to influence the whistleblowing behavior of moral agents. The model combines individual variables (e.g., moral identity), organizational variables (e.g., organizational culture), and external, societal variables (e.g., media perceptions) to explain the moral whistleblowing process and the impact of moral agents on organizations and society.

Suggested Citation

  • Logan L. Watts & M. Ronald Buckley, 2017. "A Dual-Processing Model of Moral Whistleblowing in Organizations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 146(3), pages 669-683, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:146:y:2017:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-015-2913-9
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-015-2913-9
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10551-015-2913-9
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-015-2913-9?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. Leslie Sekerka & Richard Bagozzi & Richard Charnigo, 2009. "Facing Ethical Challenges in the Workplace: Conceptualizing and Measuring Professional Moral Courage," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 89(4), pages 565-579, November.
    2. Henik, Erika, 2015. "Understanding whistle-blowing: a set-theoretic approach," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 442-450.
    3. Vadera, Abhijeet K. & Aguilera, Ruth V. & Caza, Brianna B., 2009. "Making Sense of Whistle-Blowing's Antecedents: Learning from Research on Identity and Ethics Programs," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 19(4), pages 553-586, October.
    4. Shao, Ruodan & Aquino, Karl & Freeman, Dan, 2008. "Beyond Moral Reasoning: A Review of Moral Identity Research and Its Implications for Business Ethics," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 18(4), pages 513-540, October.
    5. P. Cassematis & R. Wortley, 2013. "Prediction of Whistleblowing or Non-reporting Observation: The Role of Personal and Situational Factors," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 117(3), pages 615-634, October.
    6. Winterich, Karen Page & Zhang, Yinlong & Mittal, Vikas, 2012. "How political identity and charity positioning increase donations: Insights from Moral Foundations Theory," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 346-354.
    7. James E. Hunton & Jacob M. Rose, 2011. "Effects of Anonymous Whistle‐Blowing and Perceived Reputation Threats on Investigations of Whistle‐Blowing Allegations by Audit Committee Members," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(1), pages 75-98, January.
    8. Jason MacGregor & Martin Stuebs, 2014. "The Silent Samaritan Syndrome: Why the Whistle Remains Unblown," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 120(2), pages 149-164, March.
    9. Janet P. Near & Terry Morehead Dworkin & Marcia P. Miceli, 1993. "Explaining the Whistle-Blowing Process: Suggestions from Power Theory and Justice Theory," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 4(3), pages 393-411, August.
    10. Stanley G. Harris, 1994. "Organizational Culture and Individual Sensemaking: A Schema-Based Perspective," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 5(3), pages 309-321, August.
    11. Kath Peters & Lauretta Luck & Marie Hutchinson & Lesley Wilkes & Sharon Andrew & Debra Jackson, 2011. "The emotional sequelae of whistleblowing: findings from a qualitative study," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 20(19‐20), pages 2907-2914, October.
    12. Michael L. Barnett & Robert M. Salomon, 2012. "Does it pay to be really good? addressing the shape of the relationship between social and financial performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(11), pages 1304-1320, November.
    13. Brennan, Niamh & Kelly, John, 2007. "A study of whistleblowing among trainee auditors," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 61-87.
    14. Heungsik Park & John Blenkinsopp & Myeongsil Park, 2014. "The Influence of an Observer’s Value Orientation and Personality Type on Attitudes Toward Whistleblowing," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 120(1), pages 121-129, March.
    15. Marcia Miceli & Janet Near & Terry Dworkin, 2009. "A Word to the Wise: How Managers and Policy-Makers can Encourage Employees to Report Wrongdoing," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 86(3), pages 379-396, May.
    16. Jingyu Gao & Robert Greenberg & Bernard Wong-On-Wing, 2015. "Whistleblowing Intentions of Lower-Level Employees: The Effect of Reporting Channel, Bystanders, and Wrongdoer Power Status," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 126(1), pages 85-99, January.
    17. Michael T. Rehg & Marcia P. Miceli & Janet P. Near & James R. Van Scotter, 2008. "Antecedents and Outcomes of Retaliation Against Whistleblowers: Gender Differences and Power Relationships," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(2), pages 221-240, April.
    18. Stephanos Avakian & Joanne Roberts, 2012. "Whistleblowers in Organisations: Prophets at Work?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 110(1), pages 71-84, September.
    19. Sheng-min Liu & Jian-qiao Liao & Hongguo Wei, 2015. "Authentic Leadership and Whistleblowing: Mediating Roles of Psychological Safety and Personal Identification," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 131(1), pages 107-119, September.
    20. Seifert, Deborah L. & Sweeney, John T. & Joireman, Jeff & Thornton, John M., 2010. "The influence of organizational justice on accountant whistleblowing," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 35(7), pages 707-717, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Hennequin, Emilie, 2020. "What motivates internal whistleblowing? A typology adapted to the French context," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 38(5), pages 804-813.
    2. Shweta Mehrotra & R. K. Mishra & V. Srikanth & Govind Prasad Tiwari & E. V. Mahesh Kumar, 2020. "State of Whistleblowing Research: A Thematic Analysis," FIIB Business Review, , vol. 9(2), pages 133-148, June.
    3. Clark, Daniel R., 2023. "Embracing whistleblowing for enhanced firm self-regulation," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 66(6), pages 817-833.
    4. Lyndon Garvin Augustine, 2022. "Whistleblowing in Healthcare for Patient Safety: An Integrative Literature Review," International Journal of Human Resource Studies, Macrothink Institute, vol. 12(1), pages 1531-1531, December.
    5. Valentine, Sean & Godkin, Lynn, 2019. "Moral intensity, ethical decision making, and whistleblowing intention," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 277-288.
    6. Hengky Latan & Charbel Jose Chiappetta Jabbour & Ana Beatriz Lopes de Sousa Jabbour, 2019. "‘Whistleblowing Triangle’: Framework and Empirical Evidence," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 160(1), pages 189-204, November.
    7. Matthew D. Deeg & Douglas R. May, 2022. "The Benefits to the Human Spirit of Acting Ethically at Work: The Effects of Professional Moral Courage on Work Meaningfulness and Life Well-Being," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 181(2), pages 397-411, November.

    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. Verschuuren, Pim, 2020. "Whistleblowing determinants and the effectiveness of reporting channels in the international sports sector," Sport Management Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 142-154.
    2. Hengky Latan & Christian M. Ringle & Charbel Jose Chiappetta Jabbour, 2018. "Whistleblowing Intentions Among Public Accountants in Indonesia: Testing for the Moderation Effects," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 152(2), pages 573-588, October.
    3. Lee, Gladys & Xiao, Xinning, 2018. "Whistleblowing on accounting-related misconduct: A synthesis of the literature," Journal of Accounting Literature, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 22-46.
    4. Barbara Culiberg & Katarina Katja Mihelič, 2017. "The Evolution of Whistleblowing Studies: A Critical Review and Research Agenda," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 146(4), pages 787-803, December.
    5. Hengky Latan & Charbel Jose Chiappetta Jabbour & Ana Beatriz Lopes de Sousa Jabbour, 2021. "To Blow or Not to Blow the Whistle: The Role of Rationalization in the Perceived Seriousness of Threats and Wrongdoing," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 169(3), pages 517-535, March.
    6. Valentine, Sean & Godkin, Lynn, 2019. "Moral intensity, ethical decision making, and whistleblowing intention," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 277-288.
    7. Sheng-min Liu & Jian-qiao Liao & Hongguo Wei, 2015. "Authentic Leadership and Whistleblowing: Mediating Roles of Psychological Safety and Personal Identification," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 131(1), pages 107-119, September.
    8. Kate Kenny & Marianna Fotaki, 2023. "The Costs and Labour of Whistleblowing: Bodily Vulnerability and Post-disclosure Survival," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 182(2), pages 341-364, January.
    9. Jawad Khan & Imran Saeed & Muhammad Zada & Amna Ali & Nicolás Contreras-Barraza & Guido Salazar-Sepúlveda & Alejandro Vega-Muñoz, 2022. "Examining Whistleblowing Intention: The Influence of Rationalization on Wrongdoing and Threat of Retaliation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(3), pages 1-20, February.
    10. Saera R. Khan & Lauren C. Howe, 2021. "Concern for the Transgressor’s Consequences: An Explanation for Why Wrongdoing Remains Unreported," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 173(2), pages 325-344, October.
    11. P. Cassematis & R. Wortley, 2013. "Prediction of Whistleblowing or Non-reporting Observation: The Role of Personal and Situational Factors," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 117(3), pages 615-634, October.
    12. Elka Johansson & Peter Carey, 2016. "Detecting Fraud: The Role of the Anonymous Reporting Channel," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 139(2), pages 391-409, December.
    13. Fangjun Xiao & Bernard Wong-On-Wing, 2022. "Employee Sensitivity to the Risk of Whistleblowing via Social Media: The Role of Social Media Strategy and Policy," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 181(2), pages 519-542, November.
    14. Jamie-Lee Campbell & Anja Göritz, 2014. "Culture Corrupts! A Qualitative Study of Organizational Culture in Corrupt Organizations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 120(3), pages 291-311, March.
    15. Hengky Latan & Charbel Jose Chiappetta Jabbour & Ana Beatriz Lopes de Sousa Jabbour, 2021. "Social Media as a Form of Virtual Whistleblowing: Empirical Evidence for Elements of the Diamond Model," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 174(3), pages 529-548, December.
    16. Hengky Latan & Charbel Jose Chiappetta Jabbour & Ana Beatriz Lopes de Sousa Jabbour, 2019. "‘Whistleblowing Triangle’: Framework and Empirical Evidence," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 160(1), pages 189-204, November.
    17. Paul Andon & Clinton Free & Radzi Jidin & Gary S. Monroe & Michael J. Turner, 2018. "The Impact of Financial Incentives and Perceptions of Seriousness on Whistleblowing Intention," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 151(1), pages 165-178, August.
    18. Olayinka Erin & Omololu Adex Bamigboye, 2020. "Does whistleblowing framework influence earnings management? An empirical investigation," International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 17(2), pages 111-122, September.
    19. Clarissa Kirschbichler, 2022. "Ethical Leadership And Its Impact On Whistleblowing," Economy & Business Journal, International Scientific Publications, Bulgaria, vol. 16(1), pages 262-272.
    20. Nadia Smaili & Paulina Arroyo, 2019. "Categorization of Whistleblowers Using the Whistleblowing Triangle," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 157(1), pages 95-117, June.

    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:146:y:2017:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-015-2913-9. 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.