1,218
Views
0
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Articles

Performance goal orientation and unethical pro-organizational behavior: a moderated mediation model

, , ORCID Icon, ORCID Icon, , & show all
Pages 3431-3463 | Received 10 Feb 2021, Accepted 12 Sep 2022, Published online: 26 Sep 2022

References

  • Aquino, K., & Reed, II, A. (2002). The self-importance of moral identity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(6), 1423–1440. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.83.6.1423
  • Ashforth, B. E., & Anand, V. (2003). The normalization of corruption in organizations. Research in Organizational Behavior, 25, 1–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-3085(03)25001-2
  • Bicchieri, C. (2006). The grammar of society: The nature and dynamics of social norms. Cambridge University Press.
  • Brett, J. F., & VandeWalle, D. (1999). Goal orientation and goal content as predictors of performance in a training program. Journal of Applied Psychology, 84(6), 863–873. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.84.6.863
  • Brislin, R. W. (1980). Translation and content analysis of oral and written material. In H. C. Triandis & J. W. Berry (Eds.), Handbook of cross-cultural psychology (Vol. 2, pp. 349–444). Allyn & Bacon.
  • Brown, M. E., Trevino, L. K., & Harrison, D. A. (2005). Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 97(2), 117–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2005.03.002
  • Button, S. B., Mathieu, J. E., & Zajac, D. M. (1996). Goal orientation in organizational research: A conceptual and empirical foundation. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 67(1), 26–48. https://doi.org/10.1006/obhd.1996.0063
  • Castille, C. M., Buckner, J. E., & Thoroughgood, C. N. (2018). Prosocial citizens without a moral compass: Examining the relationship between Machiavellianism and unethical pro-organizational behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 149(4), 919–930. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-016-3079-9
  • Chan, D. (1998). Functional relations among constructs in the same content domain at different levels of analysis: A typology of composition models. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83(2), 234–246. [Database] https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.83.2.234
  • Chen, M., & Chen, C. C. (2021). The moral dark side of performance pressure: How and when it affects unethical pro-organizational behavior. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 1–31. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1991434
  • Chen, M., Chen, C. C., & Sheldon, O. J. (2016). Relaxing moral reasoning to win: How organizational identification relates to unethical pro-organizational behavior. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 101(8), 1082–1096. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000111
  • Cheng, K., Wei, F., & Lin, Y. H. (2019). The trickle-down effect of responsible leadership on unethical pro-organizational behavior: The moderating role of leader-follower congruence. Journal of Business Research, 102, 34–43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.04.044
  • Cialdini, R. B. (2012). The focus theory of normative conduct. In P. van Lange, A. Kruglanski, & T. Higgins (Eds.), Handbook of theories of social psychology (Vol 2, pp. 295–312). Sage.
  • Cialdini, R. B., & Goldstein, N. J. (2004). Social influence: Compliance and conformity. Annual Review of Psychology, 55, 591–621.
  • Cialdini, R. B., Reno, R. R., & Kallgren, C. A. (1990). A focus theory of normative conduct: Recycling the concept of norms to reduce littering in public places. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58(6), 1015–1026. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.58.6.1015
  • Cialdini, R. B., & Trost, M. R. (1998). Social influences: Social norms, conformity, and compliance. In D. T. Gilbert, S. T. Fiske, & G. Lindzey (Eds.), The handbook of social psychology (pp. 151–192). McGraw-Hill.
  • Cohen, J., Cohen, P., West, S., & Aiken, L. (2003). Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences (3rd ed.). Erlbaum.
  • Dweck, C. S. (1986). Motivational processes affecting learning. American Psychologist, 41(10), 1040–1048. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.41.10.1040
  • Dweck, C., & Leggett, E. (1988). A social-cognitive approach to motivation and personality. Psychological Review, 95(2), 256–273. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.95.2.256
  • Elliot, A. J. (1999). Approach and avoidance motivation and achievement goals. Educational Psychologist, 34(3), 169–189. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep3403_3
  • Elliot, A. J., & Church, M. A. (1997). A hierarchical model of approach and avoidance achievement motivation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 72(1), 218–232. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.72.1.218
  • Elliot, A. J., & McGregor, H. A. (2001). A 2 × 2 achievement goal framework. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80(3), 501–519. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.80.3.501
  • Elliot, A. J., McGregor, H. A., & Gable, S. L. (1999). Achievement goals, study strategies, and exam performance: A mediational analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, 9, 549–563.
  • Elliot, A. J., & Sheldon, K. M. (1997). Avoidance achievement motivation: A personal goals analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73(1), 171–185.
  • Enders, C. K., & Tofighi, D. (2007). Centering predictor variables in cross-sectional multilevel models: A new look at an old issue. Psychological Methods, 12(2), 121–138. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989X.12.2.121
  • Ethics and Compliance Initiative. (2018). The state of ethics & compliance in the workplace. https://www.ethics.org/download-the-2018-global-business-ethics-survey/
  • Fehr, R., Welsh, D., Yam, K. C., Baer, M., Wei, W., & Vaulont, M. (2019). The role of moral decoupling in the causes and consequences of unethical pro-organizational behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 153, 27–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2019.05.007
  • Figner, B., & Weber, E. U. (2011). Who takes risks when and why? Determinants of risk taking. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 20(4), 211–216. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721411415790
  • Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (1975). Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research. Addison-Wesley.
  • Furr M. R., Funder D. C. (2021). Persons, situations, and person-situation interaction. In John O. P., Robins R. W. (Eds.), Handbook of personality: Theory and research (4th Ed., pp. 667–685). Guilford Press.
  • Goldstein, N. J., & Cialdini, R. B. (2011). Managing normative influences in organizations. In D. De Cremer, R. van Dick, & J. K. Murnighan (Eds.), Social psychology and organizations (pp. 67–85). Routledge.
  • Gong, Y., & Fan, J. (2006). Longitudinal examination of the role of goal orientation in cross-cultural adjustment. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(1), 176–184. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.1.176
  • Gong, Y., Wang, M., Huang, J. C., & Cheung, S. Y. (2017). Toward a goal orientation-based feedback-seeking typology: Implications for employee performance outcomes. Journal of Management, 43(4), 1234–1260. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206314551797
  • Haslam, S. A., Reicher, S. D., & Platow, M. J. (2020). The new psychology of leadership: Identity, influence and power (2nd ed.). Psychology Press.
  • Heyman, G. D., & Dweck, C. S. (1992). Achievement goals and intrinsic motivation: Their relation and their role in adaptive motivation. Motivation and Emotion, 16(3), 231–247. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00991653
  • Hirst, G., Knippenberg, D. V., & Zhou, J. (2009). A cross-level perspective on employee creativity: Goal orientation, team learning behavior, and individual creativity. Academy of Management Journal, 52(2), 280–293. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2009.37308035
  • Hsieh, H. H., Hsu, H. H., Kao, K. Y., & Wang, C. C. (2020). Ethical leadership and employee unethical pro-organizational behavior: A moderated mediation model of moral disengagement and coworker ethical behavior. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 41(6), 799–812. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-10-2019-0464
  • Jacobson, R. P., Marchiondo, L. A., Jacobson, K. J. L., & Hood, J. N. (2020). The synergistic effect of descriptive and injunctive norm perceptions on counterproductive work behaviors. Journal of Business Ethics, 162(1), 191–209. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-018-3968-1
  • Jacobson, R. P., Mortensen, C. R., & Cialdini, R. B. (2011). Bodies obliged and unbound: Differentiated response tendencies for injunctive and descriptive social norms. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 100(3), 433–448. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021470
  • Johnson, K. J., Martineau, J. T., Kouame, S., Turgut, G., & Poisson-de-Haro, S. (2018). On the unethical use of privileged information in strategic decision-making: The effects of peers’ ethicality, perceived cohesion, and team performance. Journal of Business Ethics, 152(4), 917–929. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-018-3822-5
  • Johnson, H. H., & Umphress, E. E. (2019). To help my leader: Identification, moral identity, and unethical pro-leader behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 159(2), 519–534. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-018-3836-z
  • Jonas, E., Martens, A., Kayser, D. N., Fritsche, I., Sullivan, D., & Greenberg, J. (2008). Focus theory of normative conduct and terror-management theory: The interactive impact of mortality salience and norm salience on social judgment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95(6), 1239–1251. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013593
  • Jones, J. L., Davis, W. D., & Thomas, C. H. (2017). Is competition engaging? Examining the interactive effects of goal orientation and competitive work environment on engagement. Human Resource Management, 56(3), 389–405. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21773
  • Lee, A., Schwarz, G., Newman, A., & Legood, A. (2019). Investigating when and why psychological entitlement predicts unethical pro-organizational behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 154(1), 109–126. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-017-3456-z
  • Lin, Y., Yang, M., Quade, M. J., & Chen, W. (2022). Is the bottom line reached? An exploration of supervisor bottom-line mentality, team performance avoidance goal orientation and team performance. Human Relations, 75(2), 349–372. https://doi.org/10.1177/00187267211002917
  • Liu, X., Greenbaum, R. L., Allen, D., & Zhang, Z. (2022). A newcomer socialization perspective on the proliferation of unethical conduct in organizations: The influences of peer coaching practices and newcomers’ goal orientations. Journal of Business Ethics, 176(1), 73–88. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-020-04730-y
  • Matherne, C. F., III, Ring, J. K., & Farmer, S. (2018). Organizational moral identity centrality: Relationships with citizenship behaviors and unethical prosocial behaviors. Journal of Business and Psychology, 33(6), 711–726. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-017-9519-4
  • Mayer, D. M., Kuenzi, M., Greenbaum, R., Bardes, M., & Salvador, R. (2009). How low does ethical leadership flow? Test of a trickle-down model. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 108(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2008.04.002
  • May, D. R., Chang, Y. K., & Shao, R. (2015). Does ethical membership matter? Moral identification and its organizational implications. Journal of Applied Psychology, 100(3), 681–694. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038344
  • McGee, P., Shubber, K., & Woodhouse, A. (2019). SEC sues Volkswagen and ex-chief Winterkorn over diesel scandal. The Financial Times. Retrieved July 18, 2019, from https://www.ft.com/content/d1feb854-46eb-11e9-b168-96a37d002cd3
  • Miao, Q., Newman, A., Yu, J., & Xu, L. (2013). The relationship between ethical leadership and unethical pro-organizational behavior: Linear or curvilinear effects. Journal of Business Ethics, 116(3), 641–653. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1504-2
  • Mishra, M., Ghosh, K., & Sharma, D. (2022). Unethical pro-organizational behavior: A systematic review and future research agenda. Journal of Business Ethics, 179(1), 63–87. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-021-04764-w
  • Mo, S. J., Lupoli, M. J., Newman, A., & Umphress, E. E. (2022). Good intentions, bad behavior: A review and synthesis of the literature on unethical prosocial behavior (UPB) at work. Journal of Organizational Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2617
  • Morris, M. W., Hong, Y. Y., Chiu, C. Y., & Liu, Z. (2015). Normology: Integrating insights about social norms to understand cultural dynamics. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 129, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2015.03.001
  • Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (1998–2017). Mplus user’s guide (8th ed.). Muthén&Muthén.
  • Neville, F. G., Templeton, A., Smith, J. R., & Louis, W. R. (2021). Social norms, social identities and the COVID-19 pandemic: Theory and recommendations. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 15(5), e12596.
  • O’Reilly, C. A., Chatman, J., & Caldwell, D. F. (1991). People and organizational culture: A profile comparison approach to assessing person-organization fit. Academy of Management Journal, 34, 487–516.
  • Ordóñez, L. D., Schweitzer, M. E., Galinsky, A. D., & Bazerman, M. H. (2009). Goals gone wild: The systematic side effects of overprescribing goal setting. Academy of Management Perspectives, 23(1), 6–16. https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.2009.37007999
  • Ordóñez, L. D., & Welsh, D. T. (2015). Immoral goals: How goal setting may lead to unethical behavior. Current Opinion in Psychology, 6, 93–96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2015.06.001
  • Pekrun, R., Elliot, A. J., & Maier, M. A. (2009). Achievement goals and achievement emotions: Testing a model of their joint relations with academic performance. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(1), 115–135. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013383
  • Peng, A. C., & Kim, D. (2020). A meta-analytic test of the differential pathways linking ethical leadership to normative conduct. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 41(4), 348–368. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2427
  • Porath, C. L., & Bateman, T. S. (2006). Self-regulation: From goal orientation to job performance. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(1), 185–192. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.1.185
  • Porter, C. O. L. H. (2005). Goal orientation: Effects on backing up behavior, performance, efficacy and commitment in teams. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 90(4), 811–818. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.90.4.811
  • Rawsthorne, L. J., & Elliot, A. J. (1999). Achievement goal and intrinsic motivation: A meta-analytic review. Personality and Social Psychology Review : An Official Journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc, 3(4), 326–344.
  • Reno, R. R., Cialdini, R. B., & Kallgren, C. A. (1993). The transsituational influence of social norms. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 64(1), 104–112. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.64.1.104
  • Rhee, Y. W., & Choi, J. N. (2017). Knowledge management behavior and individual creativity: Goal orientations as antecedents and in-group social status as moderating contingency. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 38(6), 813–832. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2168
  • Schilpzand, P., Houston, L., & Cho, J. (2018). Not too tired to be proactive: Daily empowering leadership spurs next-morning employee proactivity as moderated by nightly sleep quality. Academy of Management Journal, 61(6), 2367–2387. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2016.0936
  • Selig, J. P., & Preacher, K. J. (2008). Monte Carlo method for assessing mediation: An interactive tool for creating confidence intervals for indirect effects [Computer software]. http://quantpsy.org/.
  • Snijders, T., & Bosker, R. (1999). Multilevel analysis: An introduction to basic and advanced multilevel modeling. Sage Publications.
  • Song, Y., Fang, Y., Wang, M., & Shi, J. (2020). A multiplex view of leadership structure in management teams. Personnel Psychology, 73(4), 615–640. https://doi.org/10.1111/peps.12388
  • Steele-Johnson, D., Beauregard, R. S., Hoover, P. B., & Schmidt, A. M. (2000). Goal orientation and task demand effects on motivation, affect, and performance. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 85(5), 724–738. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.85.5.724
  • Sullivan, D. M., Mitchell, M. S., & Uhl-Bien, M. (2003). The new conduct of business: How LMX can help capitalize on cultural diversity. In G. B. Graen (Ed.), Dealing with diversity (pp. 183–218.). Information Age.
  • Taylor, S. G., Locklear, L. R., Kluemper, D. H., & Lu, X. (2022). Beyond targets and instigators: Examining workplace incivility in dyads and the moderating role of perceived incivility norms. Journal of Applied Psychology. Online First, 107(8), 1288–1302. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000910
  • Thau, S., Derfler-Rozin, R., Pitesa, M., Mitchell, M. S., & Pillutla, M. M. (2015). Unethical for the sake of the group: Risk of social exclusion and pro-group unethical behavior. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 100(1), 98–113. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036708
  • Toirova, M., & Baek, Y. (2021). Why narcissistic individuals engage in unethical pro-organizational behavior. Testing a moderated mediation model. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration, 13(3), 320–334. https://doi.org/10.1108/APJBA-11-2020-0396
  • Trevino, L. K., & Weaver, G. R. (2001). Organizational justice and ethics program “follow-through”: Influences on employees’ harmful and helpful behavior. Business Ethics Quarterly, 11(4), 651–671. https://doi.org/10.2307/3857765
  • Umphress, E. E., & Bingham, J. B. (2011). When employees do bad things for good reasons: Examining unethical pro-organizational behaviors. Organization Science, 22(3), 621–640. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1100.0559
  • Umphress, E. E., Bingham, J. B., & Mitchell, M. S. (2010). Unethical behavior in the name of the company: The moderating effect of organizational identification and positive reciprocity beliefs on unethical pro-organizational behavior. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(4), 769–780. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019214
  • VandeWalle, D. (1997). Development and validation of a work domain goal orientation instrument. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 57(6), 995–1015. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164497057006009
  • VandeWalle, D. (2001). Why wanting to look successful doesn’t always lead to success. Organizational Dynamics, 30(2), 162–171. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0090-2616(01)00050-X
  • VandeWalle, D., Nerstad, C. G. L., & Dysvik, A. (2019). Goal orientation: A review of the miles traveled and the miles to go. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 6(1), 115–144. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-041015-062547
  • Vandewalle, D., Brown, S. P., Cron, W. L., & Slocum, J. W. (1999). The influence of goal orientation and self-regulation tactics on sales performance: A longitudinal field test. Journal of Applied Psychology, 84(2), 249–259. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.84.2.249
  • Vlasic, B. (2017). Volkswagen engineer gets prison in diesel cheating case. The New York Times. Retrieved August 3, 2019, from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/25/business/volkswagen-engineer-prison-diesel-cheating.html
  • Watson, A. M., Thompson, L. F., Rudolph, J. V., Whelan, T. J., Behrend, T. S., & Gissel, A. L. (2013). When big brother is watching: Goal orientation shapes reactions to electronic monitoring during online training. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 98(4), 642–657. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0032002
  • Wedell-Wedellsborg, M. (2019). The psychology behind unethical behavior. Harvard Business Review, 12, 2–6.
  • Welsh, D. T., & Ordóñez, L. D. (2014). The dark side of consecutive high-performance goals: Linking goal setting, depletion, and unethical behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 123(2), 79–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2013.07.006
  • Westaby, J. D., & Lowe, J. K. (2005). Risk-taking orientation and injury among youth workers: Examining the social influence of supervisors, coworkers, and parents. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 90(5), 1027–1035. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.90.5.1027
  • Xu, T., & Lv, Z. (2018). HPWS and unethical pro-organizational behavior: A moderated mediation model. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 33(3), 265–278. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMP-12-2017-0457
  • Yao, Z., Luo, J., Fu, N., Zhang, X., & Wan, Q. (2021). Rational counterattack: The impact of workplace bullying on unethical pro-organizational and pro-family behaviors. Journal of Business Ethics, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-021-04918-w
  • Yasemin, Z. K., & Burcu, G. C. (2016). Do auditing and reporting standards affect firms’ ethical behaviors? The moderating role of national culture. Journal of Business Ethics, 139(1), 55–75.
  • Yuan, F. R., & Woodman, R. W. (2010). Innovative behavior in the workplace: The role of performance and image outcome expectations. Academy of Management Journal, 53(2), 323–342. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2010.49388995
  • Zhang, G., Wang, H., Ma, R., & Li, M. (2022). High performance yet ethically risky? A self-regulation perspective on the double-edged sword effects of the performance-oriented human resource system. Business Ethics, the Environment & Responsibility, 31(2), 495–507. https://doi.org/10.1111/beer.12397

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.