Issue-contingent effects on ethical decision making: A cross-cultural comparison

Mark A. Davis, Nancy Brown Johnson, Douglas G. Ohmer

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

115 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

This experiment examined the effects of three elements comprising Jones' (1991) moral intensity construct, (social consensus, personal proximity, and magnitude of consequences) in a cross-cultural comparison of ethical decision making within a human resource management (HRM) context. Results indicated social consensus had the most potent effect on judgments of moral concern and judgments of immorality. An analysis of American, Eastern European, and Indonesian responses also indicted socio-cultural differences were moderated by the type of HRM ethical issue. In addition, individual differences in personal ethical ideology (relativism and idealism) varied reliably with moral judgments after controlling for issue characteristics and socio-cultural background.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)373-389
Number of pages17
JournalJournal of Business Ethics
Volume17
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 1998

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Business and International Management
  • General Business, Management and Accounting
  • Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous)
  • Economics and Econometrics
  • Law

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