The relationship between organizational ethics and job satisfaction: a study of managers in Malaysia

Abstract

This empirical study investigates the association between four measures of organizational ethics (namely, top management support for ethical behavior, ethical climate in the organization, the association between ethical behavior and career success, and moral awareness) with job satisfaction. The results obtained from 123 managers in Malaysia confirmed that two measures of organizational ethics showed significant relationship with job satisfaction. The link between organizational ethics and job satisfaction is argued from Koh and Boo’s (2001) organizational justice and cognitive dissonance theories. These findings imply that organizational leaders can favorably influence organizational outcomes by engaging in, supporting and rewarding ethical behavior. Another existing study by VanSandt, Shepard and Zappe (2006) had shown that there is connection between organization’s ethical climate and moral awareness. Results of the study provide evidence that ethical work climate is a primary predictor of individual moral awareness. In order to fill a gap in the existing literature and to make this study more interesting, a theoretical connection between an individual cognitive element of moral behavior (moral awareness) and job satisfaction is studied.