Walking the thin white line : a role conflict model of ethical decision-making behavior in the marketing research process

Abstract

This research synthesized the work done to date on models of ethical decision-making behavior. It empirically examined the relative importance of many of the previously untested factors in these earlier models. It also extended the knowledge base in the field through the examination of the relationship between two central concepts: role stress and ethical decision-making behavior by participants in the marketing research process (marketing researchers working within a large corporation, managers of that corporation who utilize marketing research information, and researchers who work in external agencies that supply research information to the corporation). To explore the relationship between the two key constructs, three sets of variables were considered: (1) organizational variables, (2) task related variables, and (3) individual factors. It was found that unique models of the factors influencing unethical behavior had to be formulated for each of the three groups studied. The research established that there is a positive association between the level of role conflict and the level of unethical behavior. However, much of this relationship was found to be influenced by the variable labelled 'perceived ethicalness of the work group'. It was found that as the level of role conflict increased, the perceived ethicalness of the work group decreased. Decreases in the perceived ethicalness of the work group, had, in turn, a significant effect on increasing the level of unethical behavior. When the factors influencing the behavior were examined as sets, it was found that the organizational and task factors were much more influential in explaining the variance in unethical behavior than were the individual variables.