Abstract
The goals of this research were to (1) explore the direct effects of and interactions between magnitude of consequences and various types of proximity – social, psychological, and physical – on the ethical decision-making process and (2) investigate the influence of empathy on the ethical decision-making process. A carpal tunnel syndrome vignette and questionnaire were administered to a sample of human resource management professionals to test the hypothesized relationships. Significant relationships were found for the main effects between magnitude of consequences and principle-based evaluation, cognitive empathy and principle-based evaluation, and empathy and moral intention. Physical proximity moderated the relationships between magnitude of consequences and utilitarian evaluation as well as magnitude of consequences and moral intention. Cognitive empathy moderated the relationships between magnitude of consequences and principle-based evaluation and physical proximity and utilitarian evaluation. Affective empathy marginally moderated the relationship between physical proximity and principle-based evaluation. Future research directions, management implications, and strengths and weaknesses of the research are discussed.
Article PDF
Explore related subjects
Discover the latest articles, news and stories from top researchers in related subjects.Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
Abbreviations
- EDM:
-
Ethical Decision-Making
References
Abelson R. P.: 1997, A Retrospective on the Significance Test Ban of 1999 (If There were no Significance Tests, They Would be Invented). In: L. L. Harlow, S. A. Mulaik, J. H. Steiger (eds), What If There were no Significance Tests?. Lawrence Erlbaum, Mahwah, NJ. pp. 117–141
Aiken L. S., S. G. West: 1991, Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions Sage. Newbury Park, CA
Allred K. G., J. S. Mallozzi, F. Matsui, C. P. Raia: 1997, The Influence of Anger and Compassion on Negotiation Performance. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 70, 175–187. doi:10.1006/obhd.1997.2705
Ariely D., D. Zakay: 2001, A Timely Account of the Role of Duration in Decision Making. Acta Psychologica 108, 187–207 doi:10.1016/S0001–6918(01)00034-8
Ashforth B. E., R. H. Humphrey: 1995, Emotion in the Workplace: A Reappraisal. Human Relations 48, 97–125. doi:10.1177/001872679504800201
Ashforth B. E., F. Mael: 1989, Social Identity Theory and the Organization. Academy of Management Review 14, 20–39. doi:10.2307/258189
Bagozzi R. P., D. J. Moore: 1994, Public Service Advertisements: Emotions and Empathy Guide Prosocial Behavior. Journal of Marketing 58, 56–70. doi:10.2307/1252251
Barak A.: 1990, Counselor Training in Empathy by a Game Procedure. Counselor Education and Supervision 29, 170–178
Barnett T. 2001, Dimensions of Moral Intensity and Ethical Decision Making: An Empirical Study. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 31, 1038–1057. doi:10.1111/j.1559–1816.2001.tb02661.x
Baron R. M., D. A. Kenny: 1986, The Moderator-Mediator Variable Distinction in Social Psychological Research: Conceptual, Strategic, and Statistical Considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 51, 1173–1182 doi:10.1037/0022–3514.51.6.1173
Bass K., T. Barnett, G. Brown: 1998, The Moral Philosophy of Sales Managers and Its Influence on Ethical Decision Making. Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management 18, 1–17
Batson C. D.: 1990, How Social an Animal? The Human Capacity for Caring. American Psychologist 45, 336–346. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.45.3.336
Baumeister R. F., A. M. Stillwell, T. F. Heatherton: 1995, Personal Narratives About Guilt: Role in Action Control and Interpersonal Relationships. Basic and Applied Social Psychology 17, 173–198. doi:10.1207/s15324834basp1701&2_10
Blasi A.: 1999, Emotions and Moral Motivation. Journal for the Theory of Social Behavior 29, 1–19. doi:10.1111/1468-5914.00088
Boldero J. 1995, The Prediction of Household Recycling of Newspapers: The Roles of Attitudes, Intentions, and Situational Factors. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 25, 440–462. doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.1995.tb01598.x
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS): 2007, Nonfatal Occupational Injuries and Illnesses Requiring Days Away from Work, 2006 (United States Department of Labor)
Butterfield K. D., L. K. Trevino, G. R. Weaver, 2000, Moral Awareness in Business Organizations: Influences of Issue-Related and Social Context Factors. Human Relations 53, 981–1018
Cameron, K. S., J. E. Dutton and R. E. Quinn: 2003, Positive Organizational Scholarship (Berrett-Koehler, San Francisco)
Carlson D. S., K. M. Kacmar, L. L. Wadsworth, 2002, The Impact of Moral Intensity Dimensions on Ethical Decision-making: Assessing the Relevance of Orientation. Journal of Managerial Issues 14, 15–30.
Casper W. J., K. E. Fox, T. M. Sitzmann, A. L. Landy, 2004, Supervisor Referrals to Work–Family Programs. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology 9, 136–151 doi:10.1037/1076-8998.9.2.136
Connelly S., W. Helton-Fauth, M. D. Mumford, 2004, A Managerial In-Basket Study of the Impact of Trait Emotions on Ethical Choice. Journal of Business Ethics 51(3), 245–267. doi:10.1023/B:BUSI.0000032494.51162.d3
Connolly T., L. Ordonez, 2003, Judgment and Decision Making. In: W. C. Borman, D. R. Ilgen, R. J. Klimoski (eds), Handbook of Psychology: Industrial and Organizational Psychology. John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken, NJ. pp. 493–517
Dane E., M. G. Pratt, 2007, Exploring Intuition and Its Role in Managerial Decision-Making. Academy of Management Review 32, 33–54
Davis M. H.: 1980, A Multidimensional Approach to Individual Differences in Empathy. JSAS Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology 10, 85
Davis M. H.: 1983, Measuring Individual Differences in Empathy: Evidence for a Multidimensional Approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 44, 113–126. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.44.1.113
Davis M. H., K. V. Mitchell, J. A. Hall, J. Lothert, T. Snapp, M. Meyer, 1999, Empathy, Expectations, and Situational Preferences: Personality Influences on the Decision to Participate in Volunteer Helping Behaviors. Journal of Personality 67, 469–503 doi:10.1111/1467-6494.00062
Eisenberg N. 2000, Emotion, Regulation, and Moral Development. Annual Review of Psychology 51, 665–697 doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.51.1.665
Ellemers N., R. Spears, B. Doosje, 2002, Self and Social Identity. Annual Review of Psychology 53, 161–186 doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.53.100901.135228
Estrada C. A., A. M. Isen, M. J. Young, 1994, Positive Affect Improves Creative Problem Solving and Influences Reported Source of Practice Satisfaction in Physicians. Motivation and Emotion 18, 285–299. doi:10.1007/BF02856470
Etzioni A.: 1988, Normative-Affective Factors: Toward a New Decision-Making Model. Journal of Economic Psychology 9, 125–150. doi:10.1016/0167-4870(88)90048-7
Ferrell O. C., L. G. Gresham, J. Fraedrich, 1989, A Synthesis of Ethical Decision Models for Marketing. Journal of Macromarketing 9(2), 55–64. doi:10.1177/027614678900900207
Fishbein M., I. Ajzen, 1975, Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research. Addison-Wesley, Readings, MA
Flannery B. L., D. R. May, 2000, Environmental Ethical Decision Making in the U. S. Metal-Finishing Industry. Academy of Management Journal 43, 642–662. doi:10.2307/1556359
Flynn B. S., G. S. Dana, A. O. Goldstein, K. E. Bauman, J. E. Cohen, N. H. Gottlieb, L. J. Solomon, M. C. Munger, 1997, State Legislators’ Intentions to Vote and Subsequent Votes on Tobacco Control Legislation. Health Psychology 16, 401–404 doi:10.1037/0278–6133.16.4.401
Fraedrich J. P., O. C. Ferrell, 1992, The Impact of Perceived Risk and Moral Philosophy Type on Ethical Decision Making in Business Organizations. Journal of Business Research 24, 283–295. doi:10.1016/0148-2963(92)90035-A
Franke G. R., D. F. Crown, D. F. Spake, 1997, Gender Differences in Ethical Perceptions of Business Practices: A Social Role Theory Perspective. Journal of Applied Psychology 82, 920–934 doi:10.1037/0021-9010.82.6.920
Fredrickson B. L.: 2001, The Role of Positive Emotions in Positive Psychology: The Broaden-and-Build Theory of Positive Emotions. American Psychologist 56, 218–226 doi:10.1037/0003-066X.56.3.218
Frijda N. H.: 1988, The Laws of Emotion. American Psychologist 43, 349–358 doi:10.1037/0003-066X.43.5.349
Fritzsche D. J., H. Becker, 1984, Linking Management Behavior to Ethical Philosophy: An Empirical Investigation. Academy of Management Journal 27, 166–175. doi:10.2307/255964
Gaudine A., L. Thorne, 2001, Emotion and Ethical Decision-Making in Organizations. Journal of Business Ethics 31(2), 175–187. doi:10.1023/A:1010711413444
Gigerenzer G., D. G. Goldstein, 1996, Reasoning the Fast and Frugal Way: Models of Bounded Rationality. Psychological Review 103, 650–669. doi:10.1037/0033-295X.103.4.650
Gray E. K., D. Watson, 2001, Emotion, Mood, and Temperament: Similarities, Differences, and a Synthesis. In: R. L. Payne, C. L. Cooper (eds), Emotions at Work: Theory, Research and Applications in Management. Wiley, New York. pp. 21–43
Haidt J.: 2003, The Moral Emotions. In: R. J. Davidson, K. R. Scherer, H. H. Goldsmith (eds), Handbook of Affective Sciences. Oxford University Press, New York. pp. 852–870
Hanoch Y.: 2002, Neither an Angel nor an Ant: Emotion as an Aid to Bounded Rationality. Journal of Economic Psychology 23, 1–25. doi:10.1016/S0167-4870(01)00065-4
Hardy S. A.: 2006, Identity, Reasoning, and Emotion: An Empirical Comparison of Three Sources of Moral Motivation. Motivation and Emotion 30, 207–215. doi:10.1007/s11031-006-9034-9
Hoffman M. L.: 1987, The Contribution of Empathy to Justice and Moral Judgment. In N. Eisenberg, J. Strayer (eds), Empathy and Its Development. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England. pp. 47–80
Hoffman M. L.: 1990, Empathy and Justice Motivation. Motivation and Emotion 14, 151–172. doi:10.1007/BF00991641
Hojat M., J. S. Gonnella, S. Mangione, T. J. Nasca, et al.: 2002, Empathy in Medical Students as Related to Academic Performance, Clinical Competence and Gender. Medical Education 36, 522–527 doi:10.1046/j.1365-2923.2002.01234.x
Hunt S., S. Vitell, 1986, A General Theory of Marketing Ethics. Journal of Macromarketing 6(1), 5–16. doi:10.1177/027614678600600103
Ilieva J., S. Baron, N. M. Healey, 2002, Online Surveys in Marketing Research: Pros and Cons. International Journal of Market Research 44, 361–376
Isen A. M.: 1993, Positive Affect and Decision Making. In: M. Lewis, J. M. Haviland (eds), Handbook of Emotions, Guilford Press, New York, pp. 261–277
Jones T. M.: 1991, Ethical Decision Making by Individuals in Organizations: An Issue-Contingent Model. Academy of Management Review 16, 366–395. doi:10.2307/258867
Kahn B. E., A. M. Isen 1993, The Influence of Positive Affect on Variety Seeking Among Safe, Enjoyable Products. Journal of Consumer Research 20, 257–270. doi:10.1086/209347
Kalliopuska M.: 1983, Relationship Between Moral Judgment and Empathy. Psychological Reports 53, 575–578
Kaptein M.: 2004, Business Codes of Multinational Firms: What do They Say? Journal of Business Ethics 50, 13–31. doi:10.1023/B:BUSI.0000021051.53460.da
Kohlberg L.: 1969, Stage and Sequence: The Cognitive-Developmental Approach to Socialization. In: D. A. Goslin (eds), Handbook of Socialization Theory and Research. Rand McNally, Chicago, pp. 347–480
Lambert M. J., D. E. Barley, 2001, Research Summary on the Therapeutic Relationship and Psychotherapy Outcome. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, Training 38, 357–361
Lance C. E., M. M. Butts, L. C. Michels, 2006, The Sources of Four Commonly Reported Cutoff Criteria: What did They Really Say? Organizational Research Methods 9, 202–220. doi:10.1177/1094428105284919
Lazarus R. S., Cohen-Charash, Y.: 2001, Discrete Emotions in Organizational Life. In: R. L. Payne, C. L. Cooper (eds), Emotions at Work: Theory, Research and Applications in Management. Wiley, New York. pp. 45–81
LeBar M.: 2001, Simulation, Theory, and Emotion. Philosophical Psychology 14, 423–434. doi:10.1080/09515080120088094
Leith K. P., R. F. Baumeister, 1998, Empathy, Shame, Guilt, and Narratives of Interpersonal Conflicts: Guilt-Prone People are Better at Perspective Taking. Journal of Personality 66, 1–37. doi:10.1111/1467-6494.00001
Lerner J. S., D. Keltner, 2000, Beyond Valence: Toward a Model of Emotion-Specific Influences on Judgment and Choice. Cognition and Emotion 14, 473–493. doi:10.1080/026999300402763
Lieberman M. D.: 2000, Intuition: A Social Cognitive Neuroscience Approach. Psychological Bulletin 126, 109–137 doi:10.1037/0033-2909.126.1.109
Loe T. W., L. Ferrell, P. Mansfield, 2000, A Review of Empirical Studies Assessing Ethical Decision Making in Business. Journal of Business Ethics 25(3), 185–204. doi:10.1023/A:1006083612239
Lurie Y.: 2004, Humanizing Business Through Emotions: On the Role of Emotions in Ethics. Journal of Business Ethics 49(1), 1–11. doi:10.1023/B:BUSI.0000013851.16825.51
Luthans F.: 2002, The Need for and Meaning of Positive Organizational Behavior. Journal of Organizational Behavior 23, 695–706. doi:10.1002/job.165
Mayo M. A., L. J. Marks, 1990, An Empirical Investigation of a General Theory of Marketing Ethics. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 18, 163–171
May, D. R., J. Mencl and C. Li: 2006, ‹The Ethics of Meaningful Work: Types and Magnitude of Job- Related Harm and the Ethical Decision-Making Process’, Paper Presented at the National Academy of Management Meeting, Atlanta, GA
May D. R., K. P. Pauli, 2002, The Role of Moral Intensity in Ethical Decision Making. A Review and Investigation of Moral Recognition, Evaluation, and Intention. Business and Society 41, 85–118. doi:10.1177/0007650302041001006
May D. R., C. E. Schwoerer, 1994, Employee Health by Design: Using Employee Involvement Teams in Ergonomic Job Redesign. Personnel Psychology 47, 861–876. doi:10.1111/j.1744-6570.1994.tb01582.x
McMahon J. M., R. J. Harvey, 2006, An Analysis of the Factor Structure of Jones’ Moral Intensity Construct. Journal of Business Ethics 64(4), 381–404. doi:10.1007/s10551-006-0006-5
Mellers B. A., A. Schwartz, D. J. Cooke, 1998, Judgment and Decision Making. Annual Review of Psychology 49, 447–477. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.49.1.447
Meyer J. P., D. J. Stanley, L. Herscovitch, L. Topolnytsky, 2001, Affective, Continuance, and Normative Commitment to the Organization: A Meta-Analysis of Antecedents, Correlates, and Consequences. Journal of Vocational Behavior 61, 20–52. doi:10.1006/jvbe.2001.1842
Miner M., A. Petocz, 2003, Moral Theory in Ethical Decision Making: Problems, Clarifications and Recommendations from a Psychological Perspective. Journal of Business Ethics 42(1), 11–25. doi:10.1023/A:1021654015232
Mischel W.: 1977, The Interaction of Person and Situation. In: D. Magnusson, N. S. Endler (Eds), Personality at the Crossroads: Current Issues in Interactional Psychology Erlbaum. Hillsdale, NJ. pp. 333–352
Moore B. S.: 1990, The Origins and Development of Empathy. Motivation and Emotion 14, 75–80. doi:10.1007/BF00991636
Morris S. A., R. A. McDonald, 1995, The Role of Moral Intensity in Moral Judgments: An Empirical Investigation. Journal of Business Ethics 14(9), 715–726. doi:10.1007/BF00872325
Mumby D. K., L. L. Putnam, 1992, The Politics of Emotion: A Feminist Reading of Bounded Rationality. Academy of Management Review 17, 465–485. doi:10.2307/258719
Nunnally J.: 1978, Psychometric Theory. McGraw-Hill, New York
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), U.S. Department of Labor: 2002, ‹Ergonomics: FAQs’, http://www.osha-slc.gov/SLTC/ergonomics/faqs.html
O’Fallon M. J., Butterfield, K. D.: 2005, A Review of the Empirical Ethical Decision-Making Literature: 1996–2003. Journal of Business Ethics 59(4), 375–413. doi:10.1007/s10551-005-2929-7
Parker S. K., C. M. Axtell, 2001, Seeing Another Viewpoint: Antecedents and Outcomes of Employee Perspective Taking. Academy of Management Journal 44, 1085–1100. doi:10.2307/3069390
Pauli, K. P. and D. R. May: 2002, ‹Ethics and the Digital Dragnet: Magnitude of Consequences, Accountability, and the Ethical Decision Making of Information Systems Professionals’, Best Paper Electronic Proceedings of the Academy of Management, Denver, CO
Pedhazur, E. J.: 1997, Multiple Regression in Behavioral Research: Explanation and Prediction, 3rd Edition (Harcourt Brace, Orlando, FL)
Perlow L. A., G. A. Okhuysen, N. P. Repenning, 2002. The Speed Trap: Exploring the Relationship between Decision Making and Temporal Context. Academy of Management Journal 45, 931–955. doi:10.2307/3069323
Pizarro D. A.: 2000, Nothing more than Feelings? The Role of Emotions in Moral Judgment. Journal for the Theory of Social Behavior 30, 355–375. doi:10.1111/1468-5914.00135
Pizarro D. A., P. Salovey, 2002, Being and Becoming a Good Person: The Role of Emotional Intelligence in Moral Development and Behavior. In: J. Aronson (ed), Improving Academic Achievement. Academic Press, San Diego. pp. 247–266
Premeaux S. R.: 2004, The Current Link Between Management Behavior and Ethical Philosophy. Journal of Business Ethics 51(3), 349–357. doi:10.1023/B:BUSI.0000032495.53772.42
Rest J. R.: 1986, The Major Components of Morality. In: W. M. Kurtines, J. L. Gerwitz (eds), Morality, Moral Behavior, and Moral Development. Wiley, New York. pp. 24–38
Robinson D. N.: 2004, The Reunification of Rational and Emotional Life. Theory and Psychology 14, 283–293. doi:10.1177/0959354304043637
Rosenfield P. J., L. Jones, 2004, Striking a Balance: Training Medical Students to Provide Empathetic Care. Medical Education 38, 927–933. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2929.2004.01931.x
Schafer J. L., J. W. Graham, 2002, Missing Data: Our View of the State of the Art. Psychological Methods 7, 147–177. doi:10.1037/1082-989X.7.2.147
Scott S. G., R. A. Bruce, 1995, Decision-Making Style: The Development and Assessment of a New Measure. Educational and Psychological Measurement 55, 818–831. doi:10.1177/0013164495055005017
Shipley P.: 1998, The Ethical Turn and the Workplace. Ergonomics 41, 1–19. doi:10.1080/001401398187288
Simon H. A.: 1987, Making Management Decisions: The Role of Intuition and Emotion. Academy of Management Executive 1, 57–64.
Singhapakdi A., S. J. Vitell, K. L. Kraft, 1996, Moral Intensity and Ethical Decision-Making of Marketing Professionals. Journal of Business Research 36, 245–255. doi:10.1016/0148-2963(95)00155-7
Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM): n.d., ‹SHRM Code of Ethical and Professional Standards in Human Resource Management’, retrieved March 26, 2008, from http://www.shrm.org/ethics/code-of-ethics.asp
Sutton R. I.: 1991, Maintaining Norms About Expressed Emotions: The Case of Bill Collectors. Administrative Science Quarterly 36, 245–268. doi:10.2307/2393355
Tabachnick, B. G. and L. S. Fidell: 2001, Using Multivariate Statistics, 4th Edition (Allyn and Bacon, Needham Heights, MA)
Tajfel H., J. Turner, 1979, An Integrative Theory of Intergroup Conflict. In: W. G. Austin, S. Worchel (eds), The Social Psychology of Intergroup Relations. Brooks-Cole, Monterey, CA
Tangney J. P.: 1991, Moral Affect: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 61, 598–607. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.61.4.598
Tangney J. P., R. L. Dearing, 2002, Shame and Guilt. Guilford Press, New York
Taylor S., P. Todd, 1997, Understanding the Determinants of Consumer Composting Behavior. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 27, 602–628. doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.1997.tb00651.x
Thunholm P.: 2004, Decision-Making Style: Habit, Style or Both?. Personality and Individual Differences 36, 931–944. doi:10.1016/S0191-8869(03)00162-4
Trevino L. K.: 1986. Ethical Decision Making in Organizations: A Person-Situation Interactionist Model. Academy of Management Review 11, 601–617. doi:10.2307/258313
Trevino L. K., G. R. Weaver, S. J. Reynolds, 2006, Behavioral Ethics in Organizations: A Review. Journal of Management 32, 951–990. doi:10.1177/0149206306294258
Trevino L. K., S. A. Youngblood, 1990, Bad Apples in Bad Barrels: A Causal Analysis of Ethical Decision-Making Behavior. Journal of Applied Psychology 75, 378–385. doi:10.1037/0021-9010.75.4.378
Tyrer S. P.: 1999, Repetitive Strain Injury. Pain Reviews 6, 155–166. doi:10.1191/096813099666153710
Vetlesen A. J.: 1994, Perception, Empathy, and Judgment: An Inquiry into the Preconditions of Moral Performance. Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park, PA
Vitell S. J., S. D. Hunt, 1990, The General Theory of Marketing Ethics: A Partial Test of the Model. In: J. N. Sheth (ed), Research in Marketing, Vol 10. JAI Press, Greenwich, CT. pp. 237–265
Watley L. D., D. R. May, 2004, Enhancing Moral Intensity: Personal and Consequential Information in Ethical Decision-Making. Journal of Business Ethics 50(2), 105–126. doi:10.1023/B:BUSI.0000022147.41538.ba
Watson D., A. Tellegen, 1985, Toward a Consensual Structure of Mood. Psychological Bulletin 98, 219–235. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.98.2.219
Weber J.: 1996, Influences upon Managerial Moral Decision Making: Nature of the Harm and Magnitude of Consequences. Human Relations 49, 1–22. doi:10.1177/001872679604900101
Weber B. J., G. B. Chapman, 2005, The Combined Effects of Risk and Time on Choice: Does Uncertainty Eliminate the Immediacy Effect? Does Delay Eliminate the Certainty Effect?. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 96, 104–118. doi:10.1016/j.obhdp.2005.01.001
Wright T. A.: 2003, Positive Organizational Behavior: An Idea Whose Time has Truly Come. Journal of Organizational Behavior 34, 437–442. doi:10.1002/job.197
Zey, M.: 1992, Criticisms of Rational Choice Models. In: M. Zey (ed.), Decision Making (Sage, Newbury Park, CA), pp. 9–31
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Mencl, J., May, D.R. The Effects of Proximity and Empathy on Ethical Decision-Making: An Exploratory Investigation. J Bus Ethics 85, 201–226 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-008-9765-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-008-9765-5