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Unethical leadership and crimes of obedience: A moral awareness perspective
Author(s) -
Javaid Muhammad Fahad,
Raoof Rabeeya,
Farooq Mariam,
Arshad Muhammad
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
global business and organizational excellence
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.227
H-Index - 16
eISSN - 1932-2062
pISSN - 1932-2054
DOI - 10.1002/joe.22011
Subject(s) - obedience , commit , perspective (graphical) , social psychology , psychology , milgram experiment , public relations , political science , database , artificial intelligence , computer science
As illustrated by the outcomes of recent corporate scandals, crimes of obedience—an individuals' passive response to unethical requests from organizational leaders—can pose a significant threat. How can this threat be avoided? A study based on data collected from employees in public and private sector organizations in Pakistan shows how unethical leadership can influence crimes of obedience and how this effect can be moderated by a sense of moral awareness. The study showed that unethical leadership positively influences the tendency for employees to commit crimes of obedience, but that a sense of moral awareness dampened this effect. Through theoretical justification and empirical testing, the study offers guidance to employers concerning ways to prevent employees committing crimes of obedience and, in addition, contributes to the emerging debate about the influence of unethical leadership in organizations.