377
Views
0
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Research Article

A systematic review of the link between public service motivation and ethical outcomes

, ORCID Icon, &

References

  • Ares, M., & Hernández, E. (2017). The corrosive effect of corruption on trust in politicians: Evidence from a natural experiment. Research & Politics, 4(2), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/2053168017714185
  • *Bashir, M., & Hassan, S. (2020). The need for ethical leadership in combating corruption. International Review of Administrative Sciences, 86(4), 673–690. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020852318825386
  • Bauhr, M., & Nasiritousi, N. (2012). Resisting transparency: Corruption, legitimacy, and the quality of global environmental policies. Global Environmental Politics, 12(4), 9–29. https://doi.org/10.1162/GLEP_a_00137
  • *Bednarczuk, M. (2018). Identity and vote overreporting by bureaucrats: Implications for public service motivation. The American Review of Public Administration, 48(2), 148–158. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074016672345
  • Bellé, N. (2013). Experimental evidence on the relationship between public service motivation and job performance. Public Administration Review, 73(1), 143–153. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2012.02621.x
  • Belle, N., & Cantarelli, P. (2017). What causes unethical behavior? a meta-analysis to set an agenda for public administration research. Public Administration Review, 77(3), 327–339. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.12714
  • Bellé, N., & Cantarelli, P. (2019). Do ethical leadership, visibility, external regulation, and prosocial impact affect unethical behavior? Evidence from a laboratory and a field experiment. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 39(3), 349–371. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X17721301
  • Bertelli, A. M., & Lynn, L. E. (2006). Madison’s managers: Public administration and the constitution. The Johns Hopkins University Press.
  • *Boruvka, E., & Perry, J. L. (2020). Understanding evolving public motivational practices: An institutional analysis. Governance, 33(3), 565–584. https://doi.org/10.1111/GOVE.12460
  • Brehm, J. O., & Gates, S. (1999). Working, shirking, and sabotage: Bureaucratic response to a democratic public. University of Michigan Press.
  • *Brewer, G. A., & Selden, S. C. (1998). Whistle blowers in the federal civil service: New evidence of the public service ethic. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 8(3), 413–440. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.jpart.a024390
  • *Briggs, L. (2009). Testing APS ethics: Where’s the integrity? Australian Journal of Public Administration, 68(2), 119–136. https://doi.org/10.1111/J.1467-8500.2009.00633.X
  • *Caillier, J. G. (2015). Transformational leadership and whistle-blowing attitudes: Is this relationship mediated by organizational commitment and public service motivation?. The American Review of Public Administration, 45(4), 458–475. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074013515299
  • *Caillier, J. G. (2017). Public service motivation and decisions to report wrongdoing in US Federal Agencies: Is this relationship mediated by the seriousness of the wrongdoing. The American Review of Public Administration, 47(7), 810–825. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074015626299
  • Camilleri, E., & Van Der Heijden, B. I. (2007). Organizational commitment, public service motivation, and performance within the public sector. Public Performance & Management Review, 31(2), 241–274. https://doi.org/10.2753/PMR1530-9576310205
  • *Cartier, G. (2018). Commissions of inquiry as vectors for change in public sector ethics: A few thoughts for further research. Canadian Public Administration, 61, 53–65. https://doi.org/10.1111/CAPA.12261
  • Chang, E. C., & Chu, Y. H. (2006). Corruption and trust: Exceptionalism in Asian democracies? The Journal of Politics, 68(2), 259–271. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2508.2006.00404.x
  • Choi, Y., & Chung, I. H. (2017). Attraction-selection and socialization of work values: Evidence from longitudinal survey. Public Personnel Management, 46(1), 66–88. https://doi.org/10.1177/0091026017696397
  • *Cho, Y. J., & Song, H. J. (2015). Determinants of whistleblowing within government agencies. Public Personnel Management, 44(4), 450–472. https://doi.org/10.1177/0091026015603206
  • *Christensen, R. K., & Wright, B. E. (2018). Public service motivation and ethical behavior: Evidence from three experiments. Journal of Behavioral Public Administration, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.30636/jbpa.11.18
  • *Cooper, C. A. (2022). Encouraging bureaucrats to report corruption: human resource management and whistleblowing. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Administration, 44(2), 106–130. https://doi.org/10.1080/23276665.2021.1894955
  • *Davis, R. S., Stazyk, E. C., & Klingeman, C. M. (2020). Accounting for personal disposition and organizational context: Connecting role ambiguity, public service motivation, and whistle-blowing in federal agencies. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 31(10), 1313–1332. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2017.1402360
  • Democracy Index 2021: less than half the world lives in a democracy. (2022). Economist Intelligence Unit. https://www.eiu.com/n/democracy-index-2021-less-than-half-the-world-lives-in-a-democracy/
  • *De Waele, L., Weißmüller, K. S., & van Witteloostuijn, A. (2021). Bribery and the role and social value orientation: A multi-site experimental study in Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.655964
  • Felix, C., Ahmad, A. H. B., & Arshad, R. B. (2015). The moderating effect of religiosity and vertical individualism on transformational leadership style and ethical reasoning in the Nigerian public sector. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 70-76. https://doi.org/10.9790/0837-2010270776
  • *Gailmard, S. (2010). Politics, principal–agent problems, and public service motivation. International Public Management Journal, 13(1), 35–45. https://doi.org/10.1080/10967490903547225
  • *Gans-Morse, J. Self-selection into corrupt judiciaries. (2021). Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization, 38(2), 386–421. https://doi.org/10.1093/jleo/ewab006
  • *Gans-Morse, J., Kalgin, A., Klimenko, A., Vorobyev, D., & Yakovlev, A. (2021a). Public service motivation as a predictor of corruption, dishonesty, and altruism. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 32(2), 287–309. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muab018
  • *Gans-Morse, J., Kalgin, A., Klimenko, A., Vorobyev, D., & Yakovlev, A. (2021b). Self-selection into public service when corruption is widespread: The anomalous Russian case. Comparative Political Studies, 54(6), 1086–1128. https://doi.org/10.1177/0010414020957669
  • *Grand, J. L. (2010). Knights and knaves return: Public service motivation and the delivery of public services. International Public Management Journal, 13(1), 56–71. https://doi.org/10.1080/10967490903547290
  • Grant, A. M. (2008). Does intrinsic motivation fuel the prosocial fire? Motivational synergy in predicting persistence, performance, and productivity. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93(1), 48–58. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.93.1.48
  • Gründler, K., & Potrafke, N. (2019). Corruption and economic growth: New empirical evidence. European Journal of Political Economy, 60, 101810. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2019.08.001
  • *Heine, F., van Witteloostuijn, A., & Wang, T.-M. (2021). Self-sacrifice for the common good under risk and competition: An experimental examination of the impact of public service motivation in a volunteer’s dilemma game. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 32(1), 217–232. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muab017
  • Heinrich, C. J., & Marschke, G. (2010). Incentives and their dynamics in public sector performance management systems. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 29(1), 183–208. https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.20484
  • *Hsieh, C.-W. (2018). No one can serve two masters: Revisiting the interaction effect of love of money and public service motivation on job satisfaction. Public Performance & Management Review, 41(4), 745–767. https://doi.org/10.1080/15309576.2018.1462214.
  • Jackson, J., Asif, M., Bradford, B., & Zakria Zakar, M. (2014). Corruption and police legitimacy in Lahore, Pakistan. British Journal of Criminology, 54(6), 1067–1088. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azu069
  • *Jeon, S. H. (2017). Where to report wrongdoings? Exploring the determinants of internal versus external whistleblowing. International Review of Public Administration, 22(2), 153–171. https://doi.org/10.1080/12294659.2017.1315235
  • Johari, R. J., Rosnidah, I., Nasfy, S. S. A., & Hussin, S. A. H. S. (2020). The effects of ethical orientation, individual culture and ethical climate on ethical judgement of public sector employees in Malaysia. Economics & Sociology, 13(1), 132–145. https://doi.org/10.14254/2071-789X.2020/13-1/9
  • Junitasari, P. D. K., & Ariyanto, D. (2018). Ethical climate, motivation of public services and Machiavellianism in the intent of e-whistleblowing. International Journal of Sciences: Basic and Applied Research, 42(3), 135–146.
  • *Kim, P., & Im, T. (2019). Comparing government performance indicators: A fuzzy-set analysis. Korean Journal of Policy Studies, 34(2), 1–28. https://hdl.handle.net/10371/174252
  • *Kim, J., Kang, H., & Lee, K. (2021). Transformational-transactional leadership and unethical pro-organizational behavior in the public sector: Does public service motivation make a difference?. Public Management Review, 25(2), 429–458. https://doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2021.1974714
  • *Kim, Y. J., & Kim, E. S. (2016). Exploring the interrelationship between public service motivation and corruption theories. Evidence-Based HRM, 4(2), 181–186. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBHRM-12-2015-0047
  • Kim, S., Vandenabeele, W., Wright, B. E., Andersen, L. B., Cerase, F. P., Christensen, R. K., Desmarais, C., Koumenta, M., Leisink, P., Liu, B., Palidauskaite, J., Pedersen, L. H., Perry, J. L., Ritz, A., Taylor, J., & De Vivo, P. (2013). Investigating the structure and meaning of public service motivation across populations: Developing an international instrument and addressing issues of measurement invariance. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 23(1), 79–102. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/mus027
  • Kjeldsen, A. M., & Jacobsen, C. B. (2013). Public service motivation and employment sector: Attraction or socialization? Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 23(4), 899–926. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/mus039
  • Kohlberg, L. (1981). The philosophy of moral development: Moral stages and the idea of justice. Harper & Row.
  • *Koppell, J. G. S., & Auer, J. C. (2012). Is there a spirit of governance? Public Administration Review, 72(s1), S24–S33. https://doi.org/10.1111/J.1540-6210.2012.02668.X
  • *Kwon, I. (2014). Motivation, discretion, and corruption. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 24(3), 765–794. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/mus062
  • *Lavena, C. F. (2016). Whistle-blowing: Individual and organizational determinants of the decision to report wrongdoing in the federal government. The American Review of Public Administration, 46(1), 113–136. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074014535241
  • Lindgreen, A. (2004). Corruption and unethical behavior: Report on a set of Danish guidelines. Journal of Business Ethics, 51(1), 31–39. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:BUSI.0000032388.68389.60
  • *Liu, B., & Tang, T. L. (2011). Does the love of money moderate the relationship between public service motivation and job satisfaction? the case of Chinese professionals in the public sector. Public Administration Review, 71(5), 718–727. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2011.02411.x
  • Liyanarachchi, G., & Newdick, C. (2009). The impact of moral reasoning and retaliation on whistle-blowing: New Zealand evidence. Journal of Business Ethics, 89(1), 37–57. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-008-9983-x
  • *Ljungholm, D. P. (2014). Intrinsic motivation among public sector workers. Geopolitics, History, and International Relations, 6(2), 7–12
  • Maesschalck, J., Van der Wal, Z., & Huberts, L. W. J. C. (2008). Public service motivation and ethical conduct. In J. L. Perry, & A. Hondeghem (Eds.), Motivation in public management: The call of public service (pp. 157–176). Oxford University Press.
  • *Meyer-Sahling, J.-H., Mikkelsen, K. S., & Schuster, C. (2019). The causal effect of public service motivation on ethical behavior in the public sector: Evidence from a large-scale survey experiment. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 29(3), 445–459. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muy071
  • Miceli, M. P., & Near, J. P. (1985). Characteristics of organizational climate and perceived wrongdoing associated with whistle‐blowing decisions. Personnel Psychology, 38(3), 525–544. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1985.tb00558.x
  • Miceli, M. P., Near, J. P., & Dworkin, T. M. (2008). Whistle-blowing in organizations. Psychology Press.
  • Miceli, M. P., Near, J. P., Rehg, M. T., & Van Scotter, J. R. (2012). Predicting employee reactions to perceived organizational wrongdoing: Demoralization, justice, proactive personality, and whistle-blowing. Human Relations, 65(8), 923–954. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726712447004
  • Miller, G. J. (2005). The political evolution of principal-agent models. Annual Review of Political Science, 8(1), 203–225. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.polisci.8.082103.104840
  • Mo, P. H. (2001). Corruption and economic growth. Journal of Comparative Economics, 29(1), 66–79. https://doi.org/10.1006/jcec.2000.1703
  • *Moloney, K., & Chu, H. Y. (2016). Linking Jamaica’s public service motivations and ethical climate. The American Review of Public Administration, 46(4), 436–458. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074014557022
  • *Montazeri, M., & Ghasemi, M. (2020). Developing anti-corruption strategies in public sector: Study of the role of public service motivation and employees’ commitment. Public Management Researches, 12(46), 255–278. https://doi.org/10.22111/JMR.2020.32040.4836
  • Morris, S. D., & Klesner, J. L. (2010). Corruption and trust: Theoretical considerations and evidence from Mexico. Comparative Political Studies, 43(10), 1258–1285. https://doi.org/10.1177/0010414010369072
  • Moynihan, D. P. (2008). The dynamics of performance management: Constructing information and reform. Georgetown University Press.
  • *Moynihan, D. P. (2010). A workforce of cynics? The effects of contemporary reforms on public service motivation. International Public Management Journal, 13(1), 24–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/10967490903547167
  • *Mussagulova, A., der Wal Zeger, V., & Chen, C.-A. (2019). What is wrong with job security? Public Administration and Development, 39(3), 121–132. https://doi.org/10.1002/PAD.1863
  • Nieto-Morales, F., & Ríos, V. (2021). Human resource management as a tool to control corruption: Evidence from Mexican municipal governments. Public Administration, 0, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1111/padm.12782
  • North, D. C., & North, D. C. (1992). Transaction costs, institutions, and economic performance. ICS Press.
  • Oberfield, Z. W. (2014). Becoming bureaucrats: Socialization at the front lines of government service. University of Pennsylvania Press.
  • *Olsen, A. L., Hjorth, F., Harmon, N., & Barfort, S. (2019). Behavioral dishonesty in the public sector. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 29(4), 572–590. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muy058
  • *Pande, S., & Jain, N. (2014). Relation between personal values and corruption permissiveness of government servants in India and the moderating role of dissatisfaction with the financial condition of the family. International Review of Public Administration, 19(2), 126–142. https://doi.org/10.1080/12294659.2014.915475
  • *Pedersen, L. H., Pedersen, R. T., & Bhatti, Y. (2018). When less is more: On politicians’ attitudes to remuneration. Public Administration, 96(4), 668–689. https://doi.org/10.1111/PADM.12547
  • Perry, J. L. (1996). Measuring public service motivation: An assessment of construct reliability and validity. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 6(1), 5–22. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.jpart.a024303
  • Perry, J. L., & Wise, L. R. (1990). The motivational bases of public service. Public Administration Review, 50(3), 367–373. https://doi.org/10.2307/976618
  • Petrovsky, N., Ritz, A., Homberg, F., Tabvuma, V., & Heine, K. (2014). Public service motivation and performance: A critical perspective. Evidence-Based HRM, 2(1), 57–79. http://org/10.1108/EBHRM-07-2013-0020
  • *Potipiroon, W., & Wongpreedee, A. (2020). Ethical climate and whistleblowing intentions: Testing the mediating roles of public service motivation and psychological safety among local government employees. Public Personnel Management, 50(3), 327–355. https://doi.org/10.1177/0091026020944547
  • *Prysmakova, P., & Evans, M. D. (2022). Whistleblowing motivation and gender: Vignette-based study in a local government. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 42(1), 165–190. https://doi.org/10.7343/71X20967982
  • *Rayner, J., Williams, H. M., Lawton, A., & Allinson, C. W. (2011). Public service ethos: Developing a generic measure. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 21(1), 27–51. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muq016
  • Rest, J. R. (1986). Moral development: Advances in research and theory. Praeger.
  • Reynolds, S. J., & Ceranic, T. L. (2007). The effects of moral judgment and moral identity on moral behavior: An empirical examination of the moral individual. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92(6), 1610. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.92.6.1610
  • *Ripoll, G. (2019). In charge of safeguarding the public interest: The role of goal clarity in shaping public service motivation and the acceptance of unethical behaviours. International Review of Administrative Sciences, 88(1), 43–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020852319878255
  • *Ripoll, G., & Ballart, X. (2020). Judging unethical behavior: The different effects of external and public service motivation. International Public Management Journal, 23(5), 631–649. https://doi.org/10.1080/10967494.2019.1588811
  • *Ripoll, G., & Breaugh, J. (2019). At their wits’ end? Economic stress, motivation and unethical judgement of public servants. Public Management Review, 21(10), 1516–1537. https://doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2018.1561929
  • *Ripoll, G., & Schott, C. (2020). Does public service motivation foster justification of unethical behavior? Evidence from survey research among citizens. International Public Management Journal, 26(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/10967494.2020.1825576
  • Ritz, A., Brewer, G. A., & Neumann, O. (2016). Public service motivation: A systematic literature review and outlook. Public Administration Review, 76(3), 414–426. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.12505
  • Rubin, E. V. (2015). Holding employees accountable for the accomplishment of organizational goals: The case of the US federal government. International Journal of Organization Theory & Behavior, 18(1), 75–104. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOTB-18-01-2015-B005
  • *Rutgers, M. R. (2010). The oath of office as public value guardian. The American Review of Public Administration, 40(4), 428–444. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074009349598.
  • Saks, A. M., & Ashforth, B. E. (1997). Organizational socialization: Making sense of the past and present as a prologue for the future. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 51(2), 234–279. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.1997.1614
  • *Scheetz, A. M., & Wilson, A. B. (2019). Are not-for-profit employees more willing (or likely) to be whistleblowers? Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management, 31(1), 2–25. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPBAFM-06-2018-0054
  • Seligson, M. A. (2002). The impact of corruption on regime legitimacy: A comparative study of four Latin American countries. The Journal of Politics, 64(2), 408–433. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2508.00132
  • Semukhina, O., & Reynolds, K. M. (2014). Russian citizens’ perceptions of corruption and trust of the police. Policing and Society, 24(2), 158–188. https://doi.org/10.1080/10439463.2013.784290
  • *Shareef, R. (2008). Teaching public sector ethics to graduate students: The public values/public failure decision-making model. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 14(3), 285–295. https://doi.org/10.1080/15236803.2008.12001526
  • Stewart, F. (1985). Planning to meet basic needs. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-17731-8
  • *Tavares, G. M., Lima, F. V., & Michener, G. (2021). To blow the whistle in Brazil: The impact of gender and public service motivation. Regulation & Governance, https://doi.org/10.1111/REGO.12418
  • *Terai, K., & Glazer, A. (2019). Why principals tolerate biases of inaccurate agents. Economics & Politics, 31(1), 97–111. https://doi.org/10.1111/ECPO.12119
  • *Ugaddan, R. G., & Park, S. M. (2018). Do trustful leadership, organizational justice, and motivation influence whistle-blowing intention? Evidence from federal employees. Public Personnel Management, 48(1), 56–81. https://doi.org/10.1177/0091026018783009
  • Vandenabeele, W., & Penning de Vries, J. (2016). A global measure of public service motivation: Comparing a global scale of PSM to the Kim et al. measure. Panel on Public Service Motivation (B106) at the Annual 2016 IRSPM Conference, April, Hong Kong.
  • Van Maanen, J. E., & Schein, E. H. (1977). Toward a theory of organizational socialization (No. 960-77.). Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Sloan School of Management.
  • *Vogel, R., Homberg, F., & Gericke, A. (2016). Abusive supervision, public service motivation, and employee deviance: The moderating role of employment sector. Evidence-based HRM, 4(3), 214–231. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBHRM-08-2015-0034
  • *Wal, Z., Van, D., Mussagulov A, A., & Chen, C.-A. (2021). Path-dependent public servants: Comparing the influence of traditions on administrative behavior in developing Asia. Public Administration Review, 81(2), 308–320. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13218
  • Weingast, B. R., & Moran, M. J. (1983). Bureaucratic discretion or congressional control? Regulatory policymaking by the federal trade commission. Journal of Political Economy, 91(5), 765–800. https://doi.org/10.1086/261181
  • *Weißmüller, K. S., De Waele, L., & van Witteloostuijn, A. (2020). Public service motivation and prosocial rule-breaking: An international vignettes study in Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 42(2), 258–286. https://doi.org/10.7343/71X20973441
  • *Wheeland, C. M. (2013). Gregory G. smith: A township manager effectively managing ethical dilemmas. Public Integrity, 15(3), 265–282. https://doi.org/10.2753/PIN1099-9922150303
  • Wimalasiri, J. S., Pavri, F., & Jalil, A. A. (1996). An empirical study of moral reasoning among managers in Singapore. Journal of Business Ethics, 15(12), 1331–1341. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00411818
  • *Wright, B. E., & Christensen, R. K. (2021). Additional intervention evidence on the relationship between public service motivation and ethical behavior. Journal of Behavioral Public Administration, 4(1), https://doi.org/10.30636/jbpa.41.134
  • *Wright, B. E., Hassan, S., & Park, J. (2016). Does a public service ethic encourage ethical behaviour? Public service motivation, ethical leadership and the willingness to report ethical problems. problems. Public Administration, 94(3), 647–663. https://doi.org/10.1111/padm.12248
  • *Zamir, E., & Sulitzeanu-Kenan, R. (2018). Explaining self-interested behavior of public-spirited policy makers. Public Administration Review, 78(4), 579–592. https://doi.org/10.1111/PUAR.12825
  • *Zhang, Y., Kuo, M., Guo, J., & Wang, C. (2019). How do intrinsic motivations, work-related opportunities, and well-being shape bureaucratic corruptibility? Public Administration Review, 79(4), 552–564. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13034

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.