Supervising Unethical Sales Force Behavior: How Strong is the Tendency to Treat Top Sales Performers Leniently?

Findings from prior research show that there is a general tendency to discipline top sales performers more leniently than poor sales performers for engaging in identical forms of unethical selling behavior. In this study, the authors attempt to uncover moderating factors that could override this general tendency and bring about more equal discipline for top sales performers and poor sales performers. Surprisingly, none were found. A company policy stating that the behavior in question was unacceptable nor a repeated pattern of unethical behavior offset the general tendency to treat top sales performers more leniently than poor sales performers. In an attempt to dig deeper to find a significant moderating effect, two follow-up experiments were conducted. In the first follow-up experiment, a specific training program designed to communicate top management's desire to treat ethical matters equally based on the severity of the act had no effect on equalizing the discipline between top sales performers and poor sales performers. In the second follow-up experiment, a stronger company policy that specified a prescribed level of punishment also failed to equalize the discipline. A superior sales performance record appears to induce more lenient forms of discipline, despite the presence of other factors and managerial actions that are specifically instituted to produce more equal forms of discipline. The answer to the question posed in the article title is, "apparently very strong!"     

Microfoundations of network exploration and exploitation capabilities in international opportunity recognition

While international entrepreneurship (IE) recognizes opportunity recognition (OR) as a central activity and the prominent role of network capabilities in OR, it is not informative as to how different network capabilities influence OR in international markets. We utilize dual network capability through the lens of exploration-exploitation to better understand how these two different capabilities influence the identification of international opportunities. Given that microfoundations perspective and prior experience in IE are under-developed and under-theorized, we explore founder’s prior experience as an essential microfoundation for the dual network capability. By employing structural equation modeling on a sample of 647 early internationalizing firms from a developing country, the study demonstrates that founders’ prior experience is a significant microfoundation of dual network capability in international OR. However, both exploration and exploitation capabilities fail to bring new opportunities in a changing market environment. A post-hoc analysis reveals that at a higher level of market change, younger firms benefit more from network exploration, whereas older firms achieve greater success when leveraging benefits from network exploitation. The study concludes with implications and future research avenues.     

Necessity and Opportunity Entrepreneurs and Their Duration in Self-employment: Evidence from German Micro Data

Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (GSOEP), we analyze whether necessity entrepreneurs differ from opportunity entrepreneurs in terms of self-employment duration. Using univariate statistics, we find that opportunity entrepreneurs remain in self-employment longer than necessity entrepreneurs. However, after controlling for the entrepreneurs’ education in the professional area where they start their venture, this effect is no longer significant. We therefore conclude that the difference observed is not an original effect but rather is due to selection. We then go on to discuss the implications of our findings for entrepreneurship-policy making, and give suggestions to improve governmental start-up programs.

Supervising Unethical Sales Force Behavior: Do Men and Women Managers Discipline Men and Women Subordinates Uniformly?

Using practicing sales managers as subjects, the results indicate that personal characteristics of gender may be used in making disciplinary judgments following episodes of a particular type of unacceptable work behavior, an unethical selling act. As hypothesized, saleswomen were disciplined less severely while salesmen were disciplined more severely. However, female sales managers did not administer discriminatory discipline. The discipline administered by female sales managers to salesmen and to saleswomen was quite uniform. Furthermore, the discipline administered by female sales managers to salesmen and saleswomen was quite close to the discipline administered by male sales managers to salesmen. The only outlying level of discipline administered in the study was more leniency shown by male sales managers toward saleswomen.     

同事非伦理行为对员工离职倾向的影响：一个有调节的中介模型

文章从伦理道德视角出发,通过研究之前学者所忽视的同事非伦理行为对员工离职倾向的影响,丰富了员工离职倾向的前因研究。基于社会比较理论,本文探究员工分配公平感在同事非伦理行为影响员工离职倾向过程中的中介作用,并考察员工自身非伦理行为对以上关系的调节作用。通过对271名企业员工开展两轮配对问卷调查,统计分析结果表明：（1）员工分配感在同事非伦理行为与员工离职倾向之间起完全中介作用;（2）员工非伦理行为显著调节了同事非伦理行为与员工分配公平感之间的关系;（3）员工非伦理行为显著调节了分配公平感在同事非伦理行为与员工离职倾向之间的中介作用。     

‘Consumers’ Evaluation of Unethical Marketing Behaviors: The Role of Customer Commitment’

While there is a significant amount of research investigating managerial ethical judgments, a limited amount examines consumer judgments of unethical corporate behavior and its impact on the marketplace. This study examines how consumers’ commitment to a company impacts not only their ethical judgment of corporate behavior but also the outcomes of that judgment. The authors test hypotheses with data from 334 consumers and find that consumers’ level of commitment attenuates the level of perceived fairness. More specifically, highly committed consumers may forgive companies for behaviors when perceived harm is low, but become progressively dissatisfied as the level of perceived harm increases. Results of the study point to the importance of considering ethical behavior from a consumer perspective. If corporate actions are perceived as unethical, the company stands to lose favor with their most committed customers. Considering that more time, effort and investment is required to gain a new customer as to retain an old, this study shows that engaging in behavior perceived as unethical by consumers risks alienating the most committed customers.     

Attitude Toward and Propensity to Engage in Unethical Behavior: Measurement Invariance across Major among University Students

This research examines business and psychology students’ attitude toward unethical behavior (measured at Time 1) and their propensity to engage in unethical behavior (measured at Time 1 and at Time 2, 4 weeks later) using a 15-item Unethical Behavior measure with five Factors: Abuse Resources, Not Whistle Blowing, Theft, Corruption, and Deception. Results suggested that male students had stronger unethical attitudes and had higher propensity to engage in unethical behavior than female students. Attitude at Time 1 predicted Propensity at Time 1 accurately for all five factors (concurrent validity): If students consider it to be unethical, then, they are less likely to engage in that unethical behavior. Attitude at Time 1 predicted only Factor Abuse Resources for Propensity at Time 2. Propensity at Time 1 was significantly related to Propensity at Time 2. Attitude at Time 1, Propensity at Time 1, and Propensity at Time 2 had achieved configural and metric measurement invariance across major (business vs. psychology). Thus, researchers may have confidence in using these measures in future research.Yuh-Jia Chen received his Ph.D. in Measurement, Evaluation, and Statistics at Teachers College, Columbia University (with a M.A. in Organizational Psychology and M.S. in Applied Statistics). His research interests lie in choice and decision making under risk, money attitude, and resource allocation behavior. Currently, he is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Middle Tennessee State University.Thomas Li-Ping Tang (Ph.D., Case Western Reserve University) is a Full Professor of Management in the Department of Management and Marketing, Jennings A. Jones College of Business at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), Murfreesboro, Tennessee, 37132. He has taught Industrial and Organizational Psychology at National Taiwan University and at MTSU. His primary research interests are in work motivation, compensation, money attitudes, the Love of Money, unethical behavior, pay satisfaction, turnover, stress, and cross-cultural issues. He has published more than 100 journal articles (e.g., Journal of Applied Psychology, Personnel Psychology, Human Relations, Journal of Management, Management Research, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and Journal of Business Ethics) and presented more than 180 papers in professional conferences and invited seminars around the world. He is (was) a member of the review board for 5 journals and serves as a reviewer for 26 journals around the world. He was the winner of two Outstanding Research Awards (1991, 1999) and Distinguished International Service Award (1999) at Middle Tennessee State University. He also received the Best Reviewer Award from the International Management Division of the Academy of Management in Seattle, WA (2003).     

“She did what? There is no way I would do that!” The Potential Interpersonal Harm Caused by Mispredicting One’s Behavior

When forecasting their own behavior, people are often inaccurate and tend to predict that they will engage in more socially desirable behavior than they actually do. The problem with inaccurate behavioral forecasts is that they can lead to negative consequences both for the self and for others. One particularly negative consequence may be that such errors can produce overly harsh evaluations and condemnation of others who do not act in a way that most people predict they themselves would act. This paper identifies these common behavioral forecasting errors, why they occur, and the negative interpersonal and unintended, unethical consequences they can have.     

中小企业资源空间、软权力与机会实现的关系研究

在当前互联网时代,中小企业可用资源已超出极为有限的自有资源范畴而拓展至外部环境,形成由认同边界、能力边界、效率边界共同界定的资源空间,影响着机会的实现。由于硬权力小、行动灵活高等原因,中小企业尤为倚重与擅长基于软权力开展合作、利用资源以及识别或开发机会。分维度、分类别分析,并以科技型中小企业为样本证实:资源认同、能力边界的拓展有助于中小企业成功识别机会,资源效率边界则有助于机会开发;社会层面软权力增强资源认同、能力边界对机会识别的作用,组织层面软权力则正向调节资源能力边界对机会开发的影响;两类软权力均会减弱对方的作用。研究结果从机会识别与开发的角度,为有针对性地拓展多维度资源边界、合理获取与应用不同类别的软权力等提供细致的行动参考。     

Leaders as Moral Role Models: The Case of John Gutfreund at Salomon Brothers

The paper describes and discusses unethical behavior in organizations, as a result of (interacting) disputable leadership and ethical climate. This paper presents and analyzes the well-known bond trading scandal at Salomon Brother to demonstrate the development of an unethical organizational culture under the leadership of John Gutfreund. The paper argues that leaders shape and reinforce an ethical or unethical organizational climate by what they pay attention to, how they react to crises, how they behave, how they allocate rewards, and how they hire and fire individuals.     

University Students’ Perceptions Regarding Ethical Marketing Practices: Affecting Change Through Instructional Techniques

Many believe that colleges of business have a role to play in improving the level of marketing ethics practiced in the business world, while others believe that by the time students reach the level of university education, their ethical beliefs are so ingrained as to be virtually unalterable. The purpose of this study is to add to the literature regarding university students’ ethical value judgments. It utilizes scenario studies to assess base line ethical values of junior level undergraduate business administration students, then techniques are employed to influence students’ perceptions of the ethics of various marketing practices, and students’ values are reassessed. A total of 667 junior and senior level students majoring in business administration (52% female; 48% male; 72% 22-years old or younger) participated in the pre-tests and 525 students (47% female; 53% male; 70% 22-years-old or younger) participated in the post-tests. The results of the before/after studies indicate that some experimental techniques are more effective than others in affecting change, but it is difficult to affect long-run change in those predisposed to unethical behavior. Charles D. Bodkin, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Marketing, The Belk College of Business, The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Dr. Bodkin has been published in Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Journal of Business Ethics, and Marketing Education Review. His areas of research interests include consumer behavior, retailing, e-business, and ethics. Thomas H. Stevenson, Ph.D. Charles E. Cullen Professor of Marketing, The Belk College of Business, The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Dr. Stevenson has been published in Industrial Marketing Management, Business Horizons, California Management Review, Journal of Advertising, Journal of Business Research, Journal of International Marketing, and the Journal of Current Issues and Research in Advertising. His research interests include salesperson management, ethics, business-to-business marketing, and advertising.     

领导排斥对员工亲组织非伦理行为的影响：自我提升动机的中介作用

基于自我提升理论,从自我提升动机和马基雅维利主义视角出发,探讨了领导排斥对员工亲组织非伦理行为的作用机制。通过对两阶段收集的451份问卷进行数据分析,结果发现:领导排斥对员工亲组织非伦理行为具有显著正向影响;员工自我提升动机在领导排斥与员工亲组织非伦理行为关系中起中介作用;员工马基雅维利主义调节了其自我提升动机与亲组织非伦理行为间的关系,即员工马基雅维利主义水平越高,其自我提升动机对亲组织非伦理行为的正向影响越强;员工马基雅维利主义正向调节员工自我提升动机在领导排斥与亲组织非伦理行为间的中介作用,即员工马基雅维利主义水平越高,其自我提升动机的中介作用越强。研究结论不仅拓展了领导排斥理论的研究,也为管理者正确认识领导排斥、管理员工遭受领导排斥后的认知与行为提供了新思路。     

The Influence of Distributive Justice on Lying for and Stealing from a Supervisor

In a controlled laboratory experiment, we found evidence for our predictions that participants who received fair distributive treatment were more likely to lie to give a supervisor a good performance evaluation than those treated unfairly, and those who received unfair distributive treatment were more likely to steal money from a supervisor than those treated fairly. We further proposed that the presence of an ethical code of conduct would moderate these relationships such that when the code was present these relationships would be weaker than when the code was absent, but we failed to find support for these moderating effects. Our findings suggest that the relationship between distributive justice and unethical behavior is likely more complex than previously considered. Both researchers and managers may benefit from a broader understanding of the factors that motivate and inhibit unethical behaviors intended to benefit and harm supervisors and/or organizations.     

民营企业家创新行为的本质分析

企业家的创新行为对于现代经济的增长具有非常重要的作用,而民营企业家由于所处的主客观环境的差异,其创新行为既具有一般企业家创新行为的共性,同时又呈现出自己显著的特点.本文采用从一般到特殊的分析方法,在剖析了创新的经济学含义后,仔细评介了有关企业家创新行为本质的一般理论,在此基础上,进一步探讨我国民营企业家创新行为的本质,即在内涵上是对原有思维结构和思维定势的突破,在动机上是源于民营企业家的物质需要,在原因上是出于环境所迫,在资源上要以人力资源为核心,在特征上是有创新的思维成果出现.     

Fairness,Feelings, and Ethical Decision- Making: Consequences of Violating Community Standards of Fairness

In this article, we describe the influence of violations of community standards of fairness (Kahneman, Knetsch, and Thaler, 1986a) on subsequent ethical decision-making and emotions. Across two studies, we manipulated explanations for a common action, and we find that explanations that violate community standards of fairness (e.g., by taking advantage of an in crease in market power) lead to greater intentions to behave unethically than explanations that are consistent with community standards of fairness (e.g., by passing along a price increase). We find that perceptions of justifiability mediate this relationship. We also find that individuals derive significant psychological benefits (greater satisfaction, greater happiness, and reduced anger) from engaging in unethical behavior following perceived violations of fairness. Maurice Schweitzer is an Associate Professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on the negotiation process, and he is interested in deception, trust, and emotions. His work has appeared in several journals including the Academy of Management Journal, Management Science, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Donald E. Gibson is an Associate Professor at the Dolan School of Business, Fairfield University. His research focuses on emotions in the workplace, specifically anger. He also does research on organizational role models and social comparison processes. His work has appeared in journals including Organization Science, Journal of Management, Journal of Applied Social Psychology, and Journal of Vocational Behavior.     

The Aftermath of Organizational Corruption: Employee Attributions and Emotional Reactions

Employee attributions and emotional reactions to unethical behavior of top leaders in an organization recently involved in a highly publicized ethics scandal were examined. Participants (n = 76) from a large southern California government agency completed an ethical climate assessment. Secondary data analysis was performed on the written commentary to an open-ended question seeking employees’ perceptions of the ethical climate. Employees attributed the organization’s poor ethical leadership to a number of causes, including: lack of moral reasoning, breaches of trust, hypocrisy, and poor ethical behavior role modeling. Emotional reactions to corruption included cynicism, optimism, pessimism, paranoia and fear, and were targeted at top leaders, organizational practices (i.e., the old boy network, nepotism, and cronyism) and ethics interventions. Implications for leadership training and other organizational ethics interventions are discussed. Kathie L. Pelletier is a doctoral student in the School of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences at Claremont Graduate University, 123 East Eighth Street, Claremont, CA 91711; e-mail: kathie.pelletier@cgu.edu. Her research interests include organizational ethics, ethical leadership, and toxic leadership. Michelle C. Bligh is an assistant professor of Organizational Behavior in the School of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences at Claremont Graduate University, 123 East Eighth Street, Claremont, CA 91711; e-mail: michelle.bligh@cgu.edu. Her research interests include charismatic leadership, political and executive leadership, and organizational culture.     

人格因素影响机遇决策行为的实证研究

机遇决策行为属于一种非常规决策,决策时间敏感,决策信息动态关联,因而需要决策者发挥主观能动性,并承担一定的风险.文章提出,不同人格特质的决策者在面临相同机遇决策情境时会产生不同的心理与行为反应,人格因素中的果敢性和安详机警性与机遇决策水平之间呈显著的正相关关系,而内外向性与机遇决策水平之间的相关性较差.