Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Ethnic Obligation and Deviant Behavior: A Dynamic Moral Economy Perspective

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Business Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

There is increased interest in deviant behavior in the workplace. However, research is lacking on the moral economy of such behavior. Moral economy is particularly important in contexts where syncretic forces impinge on deviant behavior. Consequently, we use moral economy reasoning to examine the relationship between ethnic obligation and deviant behavior in the African context. In Study 1, data (N = 27, 148) show an inverted U-shape effect of meta-agency and deviant behavior. In Study 2, difference-in-difference (DID) analysis of data (N = 25,387 in 2005 and N = 51,587 in 2013) shows significant DID effect of meta-agency. Primary data from Study 3 (N = 229) shows a U-shaped effect of agency and deviant behavior. In Study 4 (N = 333), a replication shows support for the U-shape effect in Study 3. The four studies thus show complex patterns that reflect U-shape and inverted U-shape relationships between ethnic obligation and deviant behavior as indicated by bribery, corruption, and unethicality. Robustness checks support the curvilinear relationships suggesting that the effects are not due to chance. We discuss implications for research and practice.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Source http://www.drdan.solutions/The_Pan_African_Union.html

Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. https://www.transparency.org/en/news/exporting-corruption-2022-top-trading-countries-foreign-bribery-enforcement-multinational-companies.

  2. It exists in Uganda among the Yoro tribe as ‘Mahano’; Senegal and Gambia among the Sérères as ‘Maad’; Mali among the Bambaras as ‘Sé’; Cameroun among the Bassa as ‘Mbog’; South Sudan among the Dinka as ‘Cieng’; Ghana among the Akans as ‘Nyansa po’ and South Africa among the Bantus as ‘Ntu’ (Bassong 2008; Obenga, 1990).

  3. As shown in Fig. 1, prior to the partition of Africa, ethnic groups were autonomous states or nations (see General History of Africa—UNESCO).

  4. www.afrobarometer.org.

  5. www.afrobarometer.org.

  6. That is my major interest; the other two controls are just for robustness of meta-agency.

  7. Other US Presidents visited Ghana (George Bush in 2008. https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2008/02/images/20080220-5_d-0245-7-684v.html; and Clinton in 1998. https://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/exhibits/show/africa-trip/africa-introduction).

  8. https://www.pulse.com.gh/news/local/capitals-of-the-newly-created-regions-in-ghana/y6lxsc5.

  9. Table is not reported due to space considerations. The results can be requested from the author.

  10. Academy of Management Journal, Administrative Science Quarterly, Organization Science, Journal of Applied Psychology.

References

  • Appelbaum, S. H., Iaconi, G. D., & Matousek, A. (2007). Positive and negative deviant workplace behaviors: Causes, impacts, and solutions. Corporate Governance: THe International Journal of Business in Society, 7(5), 586–598.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Appiah, K. A. (1998). Cosmopolitan patriots. Cultural. Politics, 14, 91–116.

    Google Scholar 

  • Appiah, K. A. (2010). The ethics of identity. Princeton University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Arezki, R. (2010). Asymmetric demographic shocks and institutions: The impact on international capital flows and welfare. https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/27683/. MPRA Paper No. 27683, posted 26 Dec 2010

  • Armah, A. K. (2018). Watnt shemsw: Myth, History, Philosophy and Literature. The African Record. Popenguine.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ashforth, B. E., Gioia, D. A., Robinson, S. L., & Trevino, L. K. (2008). Re-viewing organizational corruption. Academy of Management Review, 33(3), 670–684.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Austen, R. A. (1993). The moral economy of witchcraft: an essay in comparative history. Modernity and its malcontents: ritual and power in postcolonial Africa, 89–110

  • Austin, M. M., & Vidal-Naquet, P. (1977). Economic and social history of ancient Greece. Univ of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bassong, M. (2008). La méthode de la philosophie africaine: De l’expression de la pensée complexe en Afrique noire. L’Harmattan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bateman, T. S., & Porath, C. (2003). Transcendent behavior. In K. S. Cameron, J. E. Dutton, & R. E. Quinn (Eds.), Positive organizational scholarship: Foundations of a new discipline (pp. 122–137). Berrett-Koehler.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bates, R. H., & Yackovlev, I. (2002). 10 Ethnicity, capital formation, and conflict: evidence from Africa. The role of social capital in development, 310

  • Bell, R., & Meiselman, H. (1995). The role of eating environments in determining food choice. Food choice and the consumer., 292–310.

  • Berman, B. J. (1998). Ethnicity, patronage, and the African state: The politics of uncivil nationalism. African Affairs, 97(388), 305–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Besser, T. (2013) Resilient small rural towns and community shocks. Journal of Rural and

  • Beteille, A. (1986). The concept of tribe with special reference to India. European Journal of

  • Bolton, S. C., Houlihan, M., & Laaser, K. (2012). Contingent work and its contradictions: Towards a moral economy framework. Journal of Business Ethics, 111(1), 121–132.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Booth, W. J. (1994). On the idea of the moral economy. American Political Science Review, 88(3), 653–667.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bratton, M., & Logan, C. (2013). From Elections to Accountability in Africa? (April 18, 2013). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2253676

  • Encyclopedia Britannica. (2014). Africa, continent. Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica. Available at http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/7924/Africa

  • Castrogiovanni, G. J. (1991). Environmental munihcence; a theoretical assessment. Academy of Management Review, 16(3), 542–565.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chironga, M., Leke, A., Lund, S., & van Wamelen, A. (2011). Cracking the next growth market: Africa. Harvard Business Review, 89(5), 117-+

  • Collier, P. (2007). The bottom billion. Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Collier, P., & Gunning, J. W. (1999). Explaining African economic performance. Journal of Economic Literature, 37(1), 64–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conway, S. (2004). Agency in the context of loss and bereavement: A moral economy of aging? (pp. 87–104). Old Age and Agency Nova Science.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crittenden, V. L., Hanna, R. C., & Peterson, R. A. (2009). The cheating culture: A global societal phenomenon. Business Horizons, 52(4), 337–346.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Daston, L. (1995). The moral economy of science. Osiris, 10, 2–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Sardan, J. O. (1999). A moral economy of corruption in Africa? The Journal of Modern African Studies, 37(1), 25–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Sardan, J. O. (1999b). A moral economy of corruption in Africa? Journal of Modern African Studies, 37(1), 25–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The" what" and" why" of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227–268.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeTienne, K. B., Ellertson, C. F., Ingerson, M. C., & Dudley, W. R. (2021). Moral development in business ethics: An examination and critique. Journal of Business Ethics, 170, 429–448.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Di Stefano, G., Scrima, F., & Parry, E. (2019). The effect of organizational culture on deviant behaviors in the workplace. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 30(17), 2482–2503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dia, M. (1996). Africa’s management in the 1990s and beyond: Reconciling indigenous and transplanted institutions. The World Bank.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Doris, J., Stich, S., Phillips, J., & Walmsley, L. (2006). Moral psychology: Empirical approaches.

  • Easterly, W. (1999). How did highly indebted poor countries become highly indebted? Reviewing two decades of debt relief. The World Bank.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Ekeh, P. P. (1975). Colonialism and the two publics in Africa: A theoretical statement. Comparative Studies in Society and History, 17(1), 91–112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Esteban, J., Mayoral, L., & Ray, D. (2012). Ethnicity and conflict: An empirical study. American Economic Review, 102(4), 1310–1342.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Evans-Pritchard, E. E. (1940). The Nuer: A description of the modes of livelihood and political institutions of a Nilotic people.

  • Fafchamps, M. (1992). Solidarity networks in preindustrial societies: Rational peasants with a moral economy. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 41(1), 147–174.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fanthorpe, R. (2003). Humanitarian aid in post-war Sierra Leone: the politics of moral economy. Power, Livelihoods and Conflict. HPG Report, 13

  • Fiorito, J., & Bozeman, D. P. (1996). Fear and loathing (and bribery) in the workplace: worker perceptions of employer responses to union organizing. Journal of Individual Employment Rights, 5(2), 137.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Folkman, S., Lazarus, R. S., Dunkel-Schetter, C., DeLongis, A., & Gruen, R. J. (1986). Dynamics of a stressful encounter: Cognitive appraisal, coping, and encounter outcomes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50(5), 992.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fouksman, E. (2020). The moral economy of work: Demanding jobs and deserving money in South Africa. Economy and Society, 49(2), 287–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fumanti, M., & Werbner, P. (2010). The moral economy of the African diaspora: Citizenship, networking, and permeable ethnicity. African Diaspora, 3(1), 2–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garg, S. (2013). Venture boards: Distinctive monitoring implications for firm performance. Academy of Management Review, 38, 90–108.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • George, G., Corbishley, C., Khayesi, J. N., Haas, M. R., & Tihanyi, L. (2016). Bringing Africa in: Promising directions for management research. Academy of Management Journal, 59(2), 377–393.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gershenson, S., Holt, S. B., & Papageorge, N. W. (2016). Who believes in me? The effect of student–teacher demographic match on teacher expectations. Economics of Education Review, 52, 209–224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Univ of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gifford, R., & Nilsson, A. (2014). Personal and social factors that influence pro-environmental concern and behaviour: A review. International Journal of Psychology, 49(3), 141–157.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldberg, S. C. (2012). Epistemic extendedness, testimony, and the epistemology of instrument-based belief. Philosophical Explorations, 15(2), 181–197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gonin, M., Palazzo, G., & Hoffrage, U. (2012). Neither bad apple nor bad barrel: How the societal context impacts unethical behavior in organizations. Business Ethics: A European Review, 21(1), 31–46.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goode, W. J. (1960). Norm commitment and conformity to role-status obligations. American Journal of Sociology, 66(3), 246–258.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Götz, N. (2015). Moral economy: Its conceptual history and analytical prospects. Journal of Global Ethics, 11(2), 147–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gruys, M. L., & Sackett, P. R. (2003). Investigating the dimensionality of counterproductive work behavior. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 11(1), 30–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guldiken, O., & Darendeli, I. S. (2016). Too much of a good thing: Board monitoring and R&D investments. Journal of Business Research, 69(8), 2931–2938.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gunlu, E., Aksarayli, M., & Percin, N. Ş. (2010). Job satisfaction and organizational commitment of hotel managers in Turkey. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 22(5), 693–717.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gyekye, K. (1997). Tradition and modernity: Philosophical reflections on the African experience. Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Haan, W. D., Haefke, C., & Ramey, G. (2001). Shocks and institutions in a job matching model (No. w8463). National Bureau of Economic Research.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Haidt, J. (2013). Moral psychology for the twenty-first century. Journal of Moral Education, 42(3), 281–297.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hall, S. (1997). Culture and power. Radical Philosophy, 86(27), 24–41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heine, B., & Nurse, D. (Eds.). (2000). African languages: An introduction. Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Henle, C. A., Giacalone, R. A., & Jurkiewicz, C. L. (2005). The role of ethical ideology in workplace deviance. Journal of Business Ethics, 56, 219–230.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hickel, J. (2014). “ Xenophobia” in South Africa: Order, chaos, and the moral economy of witchcraft. Cultural Anthropology, 29(1), 103–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hickman, B. G., Huntington, H. G., & Sweeney, J. L. (1987). Macroeconomic impacts of energy shocks. 1987

  • Hilbig, B. E., Thielmann, I., Wührl, J., & Zettler, I. (2015). From Honesty-Humility to fair behavior–Benevolence or a (blind) fairness norm? Personality and Individual Differences, 80, 91–95.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holtbrügge, D. (2013). Indigenous management research. Management International Review, 53(1), 1–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hom, M. A., Joiner, T. E., Jr., & Bernert, R. A. (2016). Limitations of a single-item assessment of suicide attempt history: Implications for standardized suicide risk assessment. Psychological Assessment, 28(8), 1026.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hox, J. J., Moerbeek, M., Schoot, R., & v. d. Schoot (2018). Multilevel analysis: Techniques and applications (3rd ed.). Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hyden, G. (2006, March). Between state and community: Challenges to redesigning governance in Africa. In Working Conference on “Designing Constitutional Arrangements for Democratic Governance in Africa: Challenges and Possibilities,” held at the Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis, Indiana University Bloomington (pp. 30–31)

  • Hyland, P. K., Lee, R. A., & Mills, M. J. (2015). Mindfulness at work: A new approach to improving individual and organizational performance. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 8(4), 576–602.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hymer, S. H. (1970). Economic forms in pre-colonial Ghana. The Journal of Economic History, 30(1), 33–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Illorah, R. (2009). Ethnic bias, favoritism, and development in Africa. Development Southern Africa, 26(5), 695–707.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, T. (2013). Reconstructing the indigenous in African management research. Management International Review, 53(1), 13–38.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • James, G. G. (1954). Stolen legacy: The Egyptian origins of western philosophy. Create Space Independent Publishing Platform.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jefferess, D. (2011). Benevolence, global citizenship, and post-racial politics. TOPIA: Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies, 25, 77–95.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, H. L. (1985). Bribery in international markets: Diagnosis, clarification, and remedy. Journal of Business Ethics, 4, 447–455.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnston, M. (2005). Syndromes of corruption: Wealth, power, and democracy. Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Johnston, R. J. (1986). Individual freedom and the world-economy (pp. 173–195). Unknown Journal.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones, T. M. (1991). Ethical decision making by individuals in organizations: An issue-contingent model. Academy of Management Review, 16(2), 366–395.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Julian, S. D., & Ofori-dankwa, J. C. (2013). Financial resource availability and corporate social responsibility expenditures in a sub-Saharan economy: The institutional difference hypothesis. Strategic Management Journal, 34(11), 1314–1330.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jundt, D. K., Shoss, M. K., & Huang, J. L. (2015). Individual adaptive performance in organizations: A review. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36(S1), S53–S71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Junior, L. E. P., Câmara, S. F., Rocha, L. G., & Brasil, A. (2018). Influence of corruption on state-owned enterprise expenditures. Brazilian Journal of Public Administration, 52(4), 695–711.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kakavand, B., Neveu, J. P., & Teimourzadeh, A. (2020). Workplace corruption: A resource conservation perspective. Personnel Review, 49(1), 250–264.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kant, I. (1785/1993). Grounding for the metaphysics of morals (3rd ed.) (J. W. Ellington, Trans.). Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing

  • Karenga, M. (2004). Maat. The moral ideal in ancient Egypt: A study in classical african ethics. Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Karstedt, S., & Farrall, S. (2006). The moral economy of everyday crime: Markets, consumers, and citizens. British Journal of Criminology, 46(6), 1011–1036.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kearney, M. (1995). The local and the global: The anthropology of globalization and transnationalism. Annual Review of Anthropology, 24(1), 547–565.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keller, N. (2013). Mobilizing through terror: The problematic relationship between terrorism and ethnicity in conflict situations. Columbia University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kellerman, B. (2004). Bad leadership: What it is, how it happens, why it matters. Harvard Business Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kotkin, J. (1993). Tribes: How race, religion, and identity determine success in the new global economy. Random House Incorporated.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kozlowski, S. W., & Klein, K. J. (2000). A multilevel approach to theory and research in organizations: Contextual, temporal, and emergent processes.

  • Krause, R., & Bruton, G. (2014). Agency and monitoring clarity on venture boards of directors. Academy of Management Review, 39(1), 111–114.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuba, R., & Lentz, C. (Eds.). (2005). Land and the politics of belonging in West Africa (Vol. 9). Brill.Logan, C. (2011). The Uses of the Afrobarometer in Policy Planning, Program Design and Evaluation. Afrobarometer Briefing Paper, (98)

  • Lacey, M. (2004). A decade after massacres, Rwanda outlaws ethnicity (p. 9). New York Times.

    Google Scholar 

  • Langan, M. (2012). Normative power Europe and the moral economy of Africa–EU ties: A conceptual reorientation of ‘normative power.’ New Political Economy, 17(3), 243–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lawrence, B. S., Shah, N. P. (2017) Homophily: Measures and meaning. Working paper, University of California

  • Le Billion, P. (2003). Buying peace or fuelling war: The role of corruption in armed conflicts. Journal of International Development: THe Journal of the Development Studies Association, 15(4), 413–426.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leamer, E.E. (1983). Model choice and specification analysis. In Z. Griliches and M.D. Intriligator (eds.) Handbook of econometrics, (pp. 285–330). Vol. 1

  • Lee, T. W., & Mitchell, T. R. (1994). An alternative approach: The unfolding model of voluntary employee turnover. Academy of Management Review, 19(1), 51–89.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lentz, C. (1995). Tribalism and ethnicity in Africa: A review of Four decades of anglophone research. Cahiers Des Sciences Humaines, 31(2), 303–328.

    Google Scholar 

  • Logan, C.(2011). The Roots of Resilience: Exploring Popular Support for African Traditional Authorities. Afrobarometer Working Paper No. 128.

  • Lu, X., & White, H. (2014). Robustness checks and robustness tests in applied economics. Journal of Econometrics, 178, 194–206.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MacClean, T. L., & Behnam, M. (2010). The dangers of decoupling: The relationship between compliance programs, legitimacy perceptions, and institutionalized misconduct. Academy of Management Journal, 53(6), 1499–1520.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mamdani, M. (1996). Indirect rule, civil society, and ethnicity: The African dilemma. Social Justice, 23(1/2 (63–64), 145–150

  • Mangione, T. W., & Quinn, R. P. (1975). Job satisfaction, counterproductive behavior, and drug use at work. Journal of Applied Psychology, 60(1), 114.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mbaku, J. M. (2004). Institutions and development in Africa. Africa World Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mbembe, A. (2001). On the postcolony (Vol. 41). Univ of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • McPherson, M., Smith-Lovin, L., & Cook, J. M. (2001). Birds of a feather: Homophily in social networks. Annual Review of Sociology, 27(1), 415–444.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meier, L. L., Semmer, N. K., & Spector, P. (2013). Unethical work behavior as a stressor (pp. 168–179). Handbook of Unethical Work Behavior.

    Google Scholar 

  • Metz, T., & Gaie, J. B. (2010). The African ethic of Ubuntu/Botho: Implications for research on morality. Journal of Moral Education, 39(3), 273–290.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meyerson, D. E. (2008). Rocking the boat: How tempered radicals effect change without making trouble. Harvard Business Review Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Michalopoulos, S., & Papaioannou, E. (2015). On the ethnic origins of African development: Chiefs and precolonial political centralization. Academy of Management Perspectives, 29(1), 32–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mikloš, I. (2021). Three models of post-communist transformation and lessons learned. Central European Business Review, 10(2), 43–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell, J.C. (1970). Tribe and Social Change in South Central Africa: A Situational

  • Morey, N. C., & Luthans, F. (1984). An emic perspective and ethnoscience methods for organizational research. Academy of Management Review, 9(1), 27–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muehleman, J. T., Bruker, C., & Ingram, C. M. (1976). The generosity shift. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 34(3), 344.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nattrass, N. (2004). The moral economy of AIDS in South Africa. Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ndulu, B. J. (2006). Ramping up African growth: Lessons from five decades of growth experience. Economic Affairs, 26(4), 5–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nkomo, S. M., Zoogah, D., & Acquaah, M. (2015). Why Africa journal of management and why now? Africa Journal of Management, 1(1), 4–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Norris, P., & Mattes, R. (2003). Does ethnicity determine support for the governing party? The structural and attitudinal basis of partisan identification in 12 African nations. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=385209

  • Nye, J. S. (1967). Corruption and political development: A cost-benefit analysis. American Political Science Review, 61(2), 417–427.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Obenga, T. (1990). The African origin of philosophy. Presence Africaine.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ofori-Dankwa, J., & Julian, S. D. (2013). Dynamism, capital structure, and performance in a sub-Saharan economy: Extending the institutional difference hypothesis. Organization Science, 24(5), 1422–1438.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Onyewuenyi, I. C. (1993). The African origin of Greek philosophy: An exercise in Afrocentrism. The University of Nigeria Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parker, S. C., Gamble, E. N., Moroz, P. W., & Branzei, O. (2019). The impact of B lab certification on firm growth. Academy of Management Discoveries, 5(1), 57–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peterson, D. K. (2002). The relationship between unethical behavior and the dimensions of the ethical climate questionnaire. Journal of Business Ethics, 41(4), 313–326.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pierce, L., & Snyder, J. A. (2020). Historical origins of firm ownership structure: The persistent effects of the African slave trade. Academy of Management Journal, 63(6), 1687–1713.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Lee, J. Y., & Podsakoff, N. P. (2003). Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5), 879.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Polanyi, K. (1977). The Livelihood of Man. Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Postmes, T., Haslam, S. A., & Jans, L. (2013). A single-item measure of social identification: Reliability, validity, and utility. British Journal of Social Psychology, 52(4), 597–617.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ramose, M. (2003). I doubt, therefore African philosophy exists. South African Journal of Philosophy, 22(2), 113–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raver, J. L., & Nishii, L. H. (2010). Once, twice, or three times as harmful? Ethnic harassment, gender harassment, and generalized workplace harassment. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(2), 236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ripoll, G., & Ballart, X. (2020). Judging unethical behavior: The different effects of external and public service motivation. International Public Management Journal, 23(5), 631–649.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robinson, S. L., & Greenberg, J. (1998). Employees behaving badly: Dimensions, determinants, and dilemmas in the study of workplace deviance. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 1986–1998, 1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sayer, A. (2007). Moral economy and employment. Searching for the human in human resource management: Theory, practice, and workplace contexts, 21–40

  • Sayer, A. (2001). For a critical cultural political economy. Antipode, 33(4), 687–708.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sayer, A. (2003). (De) commodification, consumer culture, and moral economy. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 21(3), 341–357.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seibert, S. E., Nielsen, J. D., & Kraimer, M. L. (2021). Awakening the entrepreneur within: Entrepreneurial identity aspiration and the role of displacing work events. Journal of Applied Psychology, 106(8), 1224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shah, M., & Steinberg, B. M. (2017). Drought of opportunities: Contemporaneous and long-term impacts of rainfall shocks on human capital. Journal of Political Economy, 125(2), 527–561.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shin, J., & Grant, A. M. (2018). Bored by interest: How intrinsic motivation in one task can reduce performance on other tasks. Academy of Management Journal, 62(2), 415–436. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2017.0735

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sims, R. R. (1992). The challenge of ethical behavior in organizations. Journal of Business Ethics, 11(7), 505–513.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Soyinka, W. (2012). Of Africa. Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spreitzer, G. M., & Sonenshein, S. (2004). Toward the construct definition of positive deviance. American Behavioral Scientist, 47(6), 828–847.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tchouta, M. A. F. (2020). Corruption in Organizations in a Materialistic Social Context: How to Make People Aware of Its Criminal Character Through a Feeling of Guilt. Psychology, 10(4), 140–150.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tepper, B. J. (2000). Consequences of abusive supervision. Academy of Management Journal, 43, 178–190.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Terjesen, A. (2011). Adam Smith cared, so why can’t modern economics?: the foundations for care ethics in early economic theory. Applying care ethics to business, 55–72

  • Tettey, W. J. (2012). Africa’s leadership deficit: Exploring pathways to good governance and transformative politics (pp. 18–53). Rethinking development challenges for public policy.

    Google Scholar 

  • Teubner, G. (2019). The Law before its law: Franz Kafka on the (im) possibility of Law’s self-reflection. In Critical theory and legal autopoiesis (pp. 84–102). Manchester University Press

  • Thompson, E. P. (1971). The moral economy of the English crowd in the eighteenth century. Past & Present, 50(1), 76–136.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson, E. P. (1991). The moral economy reviewed (pp. 259–351). Customs in common.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tittle, C. R. (1995). Control balance: Toward a general theory of deviance. Westview.

    Google Scholar 

  • Torsello, D. (2021). The morality of corruption in organizations. Civitas-Revista De Ciências Sociais, 20, 399–407.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trevino, L. K. (1992). The social effects of punishment in organizations: A justice perspective. Academy of Management Review, 17(4), 647–676.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ukah, A. (2022). Moral economy: The afterlife of a nebulous concept. Journal for the Study of Religion, 35(2), 1–15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vallejo, M. C., & Langa, D. (2010). Effects of family socialization in the organizational commitment of the family firms from the moral economy perspective. Journal of Business Ethics, 96(1), 49–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van den Berghe, P. L. (1973). Power and privilege at an African university. Transaction Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van den Berghe, P. L. (1987). The Ethnic Phenomenon. Westport. Greenwood Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ventelou, B. (2002). Corruption in a model of growth: Political reputation, competition, and shocks. Public Choice, 110(1–2), 23–40.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vonai, C., & Mildred, M. (2012). An analysis of the causes and impact of deviant behaviour in the workplace. The case of secretaries in state universities in Zimbabwe. Journal of Emerging Trends in Economics and Management Sciences (JETEMS), 3 (5), 415–421

  • Voors, M. J., Bulte, È. H., & Damania, R. (2011). Income shocks and corruption in Africa: Does a virtuous cycle exist? Journal of African Economies, 20(3), 395–418.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walsh, G. (2014). Biopharmaceutical benchmarks 2014. Nature Biotechnology, 32(10), 992–1000.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wanous, J. P., & Reichers, A. E. (1996). Estimating the reliability of a single-item measure. Psychological Reports, 78(2), 631–634.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yarahmadi, H., Pourezat, A., Kia Kajori, D., & Taghipouriani Gilani, Y. (2020). A Systematic review of driving and reversing forces of corruption in organizations using a meta-synthesis method. Strategic Studies Quarterly, 23(88), 33–56.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yenkey, C. B. (2015). Mobilizing a market: Ethnic segmentation and investor recruitment into the Nairobi Securities Exchange. Administrative Science Quarterly, 60(4), 561–595.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yenkey, C. B. (2018). Fraud and market participation: Social relations as a moderator of organizational misconduct. Administrative Science Quarterly, 63(1), 43–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yerkes, R. M., & Dodson, J. D. (1908). The relation of strength of stimulus to rapidity of habit-formation.

  • Zemba, Y., Young, M. J., & Morris, M. W. (2006). Blaming leaders for organizational accidents: Proxy logic in collective-versus individual-agency cultures. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 101(1), 36–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zoogah, D. B. (2018). Ethnos oblige and Individual well-being. Paper presented at the Africa Academy of Management Annual Conference, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

  • Zoogah, D. B., Agbola, R. M., Wee, G. S., & Matenge, T. (2019, July). Unethical behavior in organizations: A test of strain, interest, and ethnos oblige theories. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2019, No. 1, p. 12797). Briarcliff Manor, NY 10510: Academy of Management

  • Zoogah, D. B. (2010). Why should I be left behind? Employees’ perceived relative deprivation and participation in development activities. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(1), 159.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zoogah, D. B. (2014). Dynamic analysis and strategy in Africa Management. In D. B. Zoogah (Ed.), Advancing research methodology in the African context: Techniques, methods, and designs (pp. 99–132). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Zoogah, B. D. (2021). Historicizing management and organization in Africa. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 20(3), 382–406

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zoogah, B. D. (2022). Ethnos oblige: Theory and evidence. Emerald Publishing Limited.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Zoogah, D. B., Gomes, E., & Cunha, M. P. (2020). Autochthonous management knowledge/knowledge management in Africa. Journal of Knowledge Management, 24(6), 1493–1512.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zoogah, D. B., Peng, M. W., & Woldu, H. (2015). Institutions, resources, and organizational effectiveness in Africa. Academy of Management Perspectives, 29(1), 7–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zoogah, D. B., & Zoogah, R. B. (2020). Benevolence and negative deviant behavior in Africa: The moderating role of centralization. Journal of Business Ethics, 161(4), 783–813.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Degroote School of Business, Mcmaster University, 1280 Main Street, Hamilton, ON, L8S 4M4, Canada

    Baniyelme D. Zoogah

  2. College of Humanities & Social Science, Knust School of Business, Knust, Kumasi, PMB, Ghana

    Phyllis Swanzy-Krah

Authors
  1. Baniyelme D. Zoogah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Phyllis Swanzy-Krah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Baniyelme D. Zoogah.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors have no competing interest to declare.

Research Involving Human Participants and Animals

Consented.

Informed Consent

Granted.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Editors at the Journal of Business Ethics are blinded from decisions on manuscripts on which they are listed as authors. Such manuscripts are handled by an independent editor at the journal and subject to peer review processes.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary file1 (DOCX 180 KB)

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Zoogah, B.D., Swanzy-Krah, P. Ethnic Obligation and Deviant Behavior: A Dynamic Moral Economy Perspective. J Bus Ethics (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-024-05626-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-024-05626-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation