Nonconscious Goal Activation and Unethical Behavior: Examining the Effects of Status Threat Cues on Over-Reporting Performance
Open Access
- Author:
- Gephart, Jennifer
- Graduate Program:
- Business Administration
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- May 12, 2010
- Committee Members:
- Linda K Trevino, Dissertation Advisor/Co-Advisor
Linda K Trevino, Committee Chair/Co-Chair
Barbara Louise Gray, Committee Member
David Harrison, Committee Member
Margaret Grace Meloy, Committee Member - Keywords:
- ethics
decision making
nonconscious
status - Abstract:
- Understanding (un)ethical decision-making has significant implications for the practices and initiatives of organizations. Yet, while researchers have learned much about deliberative and rational ethical decision-making, our understanding of the nonconscious processes behind unethical behavior is limited. Contributing to this literature, then, this dissertation attempts to help answer the general question: Do nonconscious processes influence unethical behavior in the workplace and if so, how? I consider nonconscious goal activation to be an underlying cognitive mechanism that influences unethical behavior, arguing that characteristics of an organization’s environment can inadvertently trigger goals that nonconsciously influence employee’s unethical behavior. In particular, I hypothesize that status threats may automatically elicit a nonconscious goal to maintain status and in certain circumstances, lead to unethical behavior. In addition, I suggest two individual-level moderators -- self-monitoring and narcissism -- that may exacerbate the effect of status threats on employee unethical behavior. To test these hypotheses, I conducted two experiments. In the first experiment, participants were exposed to a supraliminal prime designed to trigger status threat and a status protection goal. In the second study, participants’ status was threatened via poor performance feedback that suggested lower status membership in an upcoming group activity. After the priming manipulations, participants were provided with an opportunity to over-report their performance (and protect their status) on a final activity. Results from multiple statistical analyses did not provide support for the hypotheses. However, given the infancy of this area of research, many insights and opportunities for future research are discussed.