How and when does employee creativity relate to unethical pro-organizational behavior?: unmasking the negative side of organizational creativity
In this research, we advance the behavioral ethics literature by explaining the underlying mechanism and conditions under which employee creativity relates to unethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB). Grounded in the self-interest motivation perspective of UPB and drawing from self-enhancement th...
| Authors: | ; ; ; ; |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2025
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| In: |
Journal of business ethics
Year: 2025, Volume: 199, Issue: 2, Pages: 331-349 |
| Further subjects: | B
Intrinsic Motivation
B Business Ethics B Employee creativity B Personnel Psychology B Work and Organizational Psychology B Symmetrical internal communication B Aufsatz in Zeitschrift B Unethical pro-organizational behavior B Psychological entitlement B Self-interest motive B Organizational Psychology B Creativity |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | In this research, we advance the behavioral ethics literature by explaining the underlying mechanism and conditions under which employee creativity relates to unethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB). Grounded in the self-interest motivation perspective of UPB and drawing from self-enhancement theory, we propose that employee creativity fosters psychological entitlement, which, in turn, motivates UPB. Furthermore, we propose that symmetrical internal communication (SIC) acts as a key contextual factor that moderates the mediating effect of psychological entitlement in the creativity-UPB relationship. Results from two field studies involving supervisor-employee dyads provide empirical support for our hypothesized model. Overall, our research not only contributes to the literature on UPB antecedents but also offers a novel counterproductive perspective on SIC. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings and offer interesting directions for future research. |
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| ISSN: | 1573-0697 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of business ethics
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1007/s10551-024-05822-9 |
