IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jbrese/v203y2026ics0148296325006174.html

A meta-analysis of incremental, comparative, and conditional motivations of unethical pro-organizational behavior

Author

Listed:
  • Hu, Changya
  • Pham, Mai
  • Chen, Yen-Yu
  • Bruning, Patrick F.

Abstract

Unethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB) was originally described as employees’ unethical acts to benefit the organization, driven by pro-social and organization-focused motivations of organizational identification (OI). However, subsequent perspectives suggest it can emerge from supervisor-focused pro-social motivations of high-quality leader-member exchange (LMX) and be facilitated by employees’ pro-self motivation enabled by moral disengagement (MD). We meta-analyzed the effects of OI, LMX, and MD on UPB (K = 262; N = 88,787) to compare these types of motivation and provide a descriptive update on UPB’s nomological network. MD explained variance in UPB beyond that explained by OI and LMX, suggesting the unique relevance of pro-self motivation. Additionally, OI explained twice the variance in UPB compared to LMX, underscoring the importance of different pro-social motivations. Moderation analyses revealed that country corruption amplified the relationships between pro-social motivations (OI and LMX) but not pro-self motivations (MD) and UPB.

Suggested Citation

  • Hu, Changya & Pham, Mai & Chen, Yen-Yu & Bruning, Patrick F., 2026. "A meta-analysis of incremental, comparative, and conditional motivations of unethical pro-organizational behavior," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 203(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:203:y:2026:i:c:s0148296325006174
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115794
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296325006174
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115794?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shi, Yujie & Mao, Jih-Yu & Guo, Li & Mu, Xinyan & Liu, Wenxing & He, Weiqun, 2024. "License for Wrongdoing: Why better relationships with leaders lead to employee unethical behavior," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    2. Yuxiang Luan & Kai Zhao & Zheyuan Wang & Feng Hu, 2023. "Exploring the Antecedents of Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior (UPB): A Meta-Analysis," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 187(1), pages 119-136, September.
    3. Corinna Ewelt-Knauer & Anja Schwering & Sandra Winkelmann, 2022. "Doing Good by Doing Bad: How Tone at the Top and Tone at the Bottom Impact Performance-Improving Noncompliant Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 175(3), pages 609-624, January.
    4. Madhurima Mishra & Koustab Ghosh & Dheeraj Sharma, 2022. "Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior: A Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 179(1), pages 63-87, August.
    5. Benjamin A. Olken & Rohini Pande, 2012. "Corruption in Developing Countries," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 4(1), pages 479-509, July.
    6. Carnevale, Joel B. & Carson, Jack E. & Huang, Lei, 2021. "Greedy for thee or greedy for me? A contingency model of positive and negative reactions to leader greed," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 897-905.
    7. Nils Grashof & Dirk Fornahl, 2021. "“To be or not to be” located in a cluster?—A descriptive meta-analysis of the firm-specific cluster effect," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 67(3), pages 541-591, December.
    8. Schmidt, Frank L. & Oh, In-Sue, 2013. "Methods for second order meta-analysis and illustrative applications," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 121(2), pages 204-218.
    9. Karkoulian, Silva & Assaker, Guy & Hallak, Rob, 2016. "An empirical study of 360-degree feedback, organizational justice, and firm sustainability," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(5), pages 1862-1867.
    10. Rudolph, Cort W. & Allan, Blake & Clark, Malissa & Hertel, Guido & Hirschi, Andreas & Kunze, Florian & Shockley, Kristen & Shoss, Mindy & Sonnentag, Sabine & Zacher, Hannes, 2021. "Pandemics: Implications for research and practice in industrial and organizational psychology," Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Cambridge University Press, vol. 14(1-2), pages 1-35, June.
    11. Eileen Z. Taylor & Mary B. Curtis, 2018. "Mentoring: A Path to Prosocial Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 152(4), pages 1133-1148, November.
    12. Kristin Smith-Crowe & Danielle E. Warren, 2014. "The Emotion-Evoked Collective Corruption Model: The Role of Emotion in the Spread of Corruption Within Organizations," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 25(4), pages 1154-1171, August.
    13. Matthew Valle & K. Michele Kacmar & Suzanne Zivnuska, 2019. "Understanding the Effects of Political Environments on Unethical Behavior in Organizations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 156(1), pages 173-188, April.
    14. Wang, Juehui & Chieh Chen, Chih & Shen, Tao & Fan, Fan & Fosh, Patricia & Guo, Yuxuan, 2024. "Family matters! Antecedents and boundary conditions of unethical pro-family behaviors," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    15. Cheng, Ken & Wei, Feng & Lin, Yinghui, 2019. "The trickle-down effect of responsible leadership on unethical pro-organizational behavior: The moderating role of leader-follower value congruence," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 34-43.
    16. Alvaro Cuervo-Cazurra, 2006. "Who cares about corruption?," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 37(6), pages 807-822, November.
    17. David Effelsberg & Marc Solga & Jochen Gurt, 2014. "Transformational Leadership and Follower’s Unethical Behavior for the Benefit of the Company: A Two-Study Investigation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 120(1), pages 81-93, March.
    18. Duanxu Wang & Xin Pi & Yuhao Pan, 2017. "The interpersonal diffusion mechanism of unethical behavior in groups: a social network perspective," Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 271-292, June.
    19. Uymaz, Ali Osman & Arslan, Serdar, 2022. "Unethical pro-organizational behavior as an outcome of servant leadership," Journal of Management & Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 28(1), pages 33-57, January.
    20. Jamie-Lee Campbell & Anja Göritz, 2014. "Culture Corrupts! A Qualitative Study of Organizational Culture in Corrupt Organizations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 120(3), pages 291-311, March.
    21. Tang, Pok Man & Yam, Kai Chi & Koopman, Joel, 2020. "Feeling proud but guilty? Unpacking the paradoxical nature of unethical pro-organizational behavior," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 160(C), pages 68-86.
    22. Aneeq Inam & Jo Ann Ho & Siew Imm Ng & Rosmah Mohamed, 2021. "Inhibiting unethical pro-organizational behavior: harnessing the effects of responsible leadership and leader–member exchange," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 42(7), pages 1183-1201, March.
    23. Elizabeth E. Umphress & John B. Bingham, 2011. "When Employees Do Bad Things for Good Reasons: Examining Unethical Pro-Organizational Behaviors," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(3), pages 621-640, June.
    24. Tomasz Gigol, 2021. "Leadership, religiousness, state ownership of an enterprise and unethical pro-organizational behavior: The mediating role of organizational identification," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(5), pages 1-27, May.
    25. Wenli Jiang & Yuping Xie, 2024. "How Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior Links to Actors’ and Observers’ Behaviors: A Meta-Analysis," SAGE Open, , vol. 14(3), pages 21582440241, August.
    26. Chen, Chao C. & Sheldon, Oliver J. & Chen, Mo & Reynolds, Scott J., 2024. "For the Sake of the Ingroup: The Double-Edged Effects of Collectivism on Workplace Unethical Behavior," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 34(4), pages 570-604, October.
    27. Dhruv Grewal & Nancy Puccinelli & Kent B. Monroe, 2018. "Meta-analysis: integrating accumulated knowledge," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 46(1), pages 9-30, January.
    28. Dan Nie & Anna-Maija Lämsä, 2015. "The Leader–Member Exchange Theory in the Chinese Context and the Ethical Challenge of Guanxi," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 128(4), pages 851-861, June.
    29. Johann Graf Lambsdorff, 2006. "Causes and Consequences of Corruption: What Do We Know from a Cross-Section of Countries?," Chapters, in: Susan Rose-Ackerman (ed.), International Handbook on the Economics of Corruption, chapter 1, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    30. Qiongjing Hu & Hajo Adam & Sreedhari Desai & Shenjiang Mo, 2024. "Turning a Blind Eye to Team Members’ Unethical Behavior: The Role of Reward Systems," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 194(2), pages 297-316, October.
    31. Kangmin Lee, 2023. "Leader-Member Exchange, Supervisor Identification, and Unethical Pro-Supervisor Behavior: The Mediating Role of Supervisor Identification," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, September.
    32. Alexander Newman & Huong Le & Andrea North-Samardzic & Michael Cohen, 2020. "Moral Disengagement at Work: A Review and Research Agenda," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 167(3), pages 535-570, December.
    33. Vivek Mishra & Varun Sharma & Nishant Uppal, 2024. "The curvilinear relationship between moral identity and unethical pro-organizational behavior: moderating role of organizational identification," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 45(6), pages 1245-1261, April.
    34. Hongyu Zhang & Xin Lucy Liu & Yahua Cai & Xiuli Sun, 2023. "Paved with Good Intentions: Self-regulation Breakdown After Altruistic Ethical Transgression," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 186(2), pages 385-405, August.
    35. Taolin Wang & Lirong Long & Yong Zhang & Wei He, 2019. "A Social Exchange Perspective of Employee–Organization Relationships and Employee Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior: The Moderating Role of Individual Moral Identity," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 159(2), pages 473-489, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Karim Mignonac & Marie Caussimont & Jennifer Boutant Lapeyre & Caroline Manville, 2025. "The Ethical Downside of Giving Employees the Trust They Want: When Trust Congruence Leads to Unethical Pro-supervisor Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 201(1), pages 63-92, October.
    2. Madhurima Mishra & Koustab Ghosh & Dheeraj Sharma, 2022. "Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior: A Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 179(1), pages 63-87, August.
    3. Alqhaiwi, Zaid Oqla, 2024. "A bright side to unethical pro-organizational behavior: Improving work performance by satisfying psychological needs," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    4. Wenli Jiang & Yuping Xie, 2024. "How Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior Links to Actors’ and Observers’ Behaviors: A Meta-Analysis," SAGE Open, , vol. 14(3), pages 21582440241, August.
    5. Tomasz Gigol, 2020. "Gender Differences in Engagement in Unethical Pro-Organizational Behavior—Two Studies in Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, December.
    6. Xue Zhang & Liang Liang & Guyang Tian & Yezhuang Tian, 2020. "Heroes or Villains? The Dark Side of Charismatic Leadership and Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(15), pages 1-16, July.
    7. Ken Cheng & Qianlin Zhu & Yinghui Lin, 2022. "Family-Supportive Supervisor Behavior, Felt Obligation, and Unethical Pro-family Behavior: The Moderating Role of Positive Reciprocity Beliefs," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 177(2), pages 261-273, May.
    8. Kangmin Lee, 2023. "Leader-Member Exchange, Supervisor Identification, and Unethical Pro-Supervisor Behavior: The Mediating Role of Supervisor Identification," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, September.
    9. Hao Zhou & Yang Ran, 2023. "The nonlinear impact of perceptions of organizational politics on unethical pro-organizational behavior in Chinese culture: Moderating role of Zhongyong," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(4), pages 1544-1566, September.
    10. Ming Kong & Jie Xin & Wenxiao Xu & Haonan Li & Dandan Xu, 2022. "The moral licensing effect between work effort and unethical pro-organizational behavior: The moderating influence of Confucian value," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 39(2), pages 515-537, June.
    11. Lin Xu & Jigan Wang, 2020. "Influence of Challenge–Hindrance Stressors on Unethical Pro-Organizational Behavior: Mediating Role of Emotions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-17, September.
    12. Ying Wang & Shufeng Xiao & Run Ren, 2022. "A Moral Cleansing Process: How and When Does Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior Increase Prohibitive and Promotive Voice," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 176(1), pages 175-193, February.
    13. Xuemei Liu & Ying Wang & Fan Yang & Qianyao Huang, 2024. "When the Punisher is Both Potential Victim and (Intended) Beneficiary: Investigating Observers’ Attitudinal and Behavioral Reactions Toward Organizational Punishment Severity for Unethical Pro-Organizational Behaviors," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 195(4), pages 859-877, December.
    14. Kangmin Lee, 2020. "The Effect of Supervisor Identification on Unethical Pro-Supervisor Behavior: The Moderating Role of Employability Perceptions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-16, December.
    15. Na Yang & Congcong Lin & Zhenyu Liao & Mei Xue, 2022. "When Moral Tension Begets Cognitive Dissonance: An Investigation of Responses to Unethical Pro-Organizational Behavior and the Contingent Effect of Construal Level," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 180(1), pages 339-353, September.
    16. Imran Hameed & Ghulam Ali Arain & Irfan Hameed & Ancy Gamage & Michael K. Muchiri, 2025. "How and When Does Employee Creativity Relate to Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior? Unmasking the Negative Side of Organizational Creativity," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 199(2), pages 331-349, June.
    17. Shike Li & Kriti Jain & Konstantina Tzini, 2022. "When Supervisor Support Backfires: The Link Between Perceived Supervisor Support and Unethical Pro-supervisor Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 179(1), pages 133-151, August.
    18. Junghyun Lee & Se-Hyung Oh & Sanghee Park, 2022. "Effects of Organizational Embeddedness on Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior: Roles of Perceived Status and Ethical Leadership," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 176(1), pages 111-125, February.
    19. Wan Jiang & Bingqian Liang & Linlin Wang, 2023. "The Double-Edged Sword Effect of Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior: The Relationship Between Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior, Organizational Citizenship Behavior, and Work Effort," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 183(4), pages 1159-1172, April.
    20. Hongyu Zhang & Xin Lucy Liu & Yahua Cai & Xiuli Sun, 2023. "Paved with Good Intentions: Self-regulation Breakdown After Altruistic Ethical Transgression," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 186(2), pages 385-405, August.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:203:y:2026:i:c:s0148296325006174. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jbusres .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.