IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v145y2017i3d10.1007_s10551-015-2911-y.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

What Should a Manager Like Me Do in a Situation Like This? Strategies for Handling Ethical Problems from the Viewpoint of the Logic of Appropriateness

Author

Listed:
  • Minna-Maaria Hiekkataipale

    (JAMK University of Applied Sciences
    JSBE Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics)

  • Anna-Maija Lämsä

    (JSBE Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics)

Abstract

In this research, we argue that managers have various strategies for handling complex ethical problems and that these strategies are formed according to the logic of appropriateness. First, we will show through a qualitative empirical study the different strategies that are used for handling ethical problems. Five types of strategies are identified in this study: mediating, principled, isolation, teaching and bystanding. Secondly, we will investigate the types of ethical approaches which managers reveal when handling ethical problems. Thirdly, we will discuss which strategies seem to contribute to the overall ethicality of organisations. To conclude, we suggest that the decisions and actions of managers like the middle managers in this study are influenced by their interpretation of what is appropriate behaviour in the particular situation.

Suggested Citation

  • Minna-Maaria Hiekkataipale & Anna-Maija Lämsä, 2017. "What Should a Manager Like Me Do in a Situation Like This? Strategies for Handling Ethical Problems from the Viewpoint of the Logic of Appropriateness," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 145(3), pages 457-479, October.
  • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:145:y:2017:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-015-2911-y
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-015-2911-y
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10551-015-2911-y
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-015-2911-y?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 search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Marcus Selart & Svein Johansen, 2011. "Ethical Decision Making in Organizations: The Role of Leadership Stress," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 99(2), pages 129-143, March.
    2. Aviva Geva, 2006. "A Typology of Moral Problems in Business: A Framework for Ethical Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 69(2), pages 133-147, December.
    3. Catherine Marsh, 2013. "Business Executives’ Perceptions of Ethical Leadership and Its Development," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 114(3), pages 565-582, May.
    4. Jaana Woiceshyn, 2011. "A Model for Ethical Decision Making in Business: Reasoning, Intuition, and Rational Moral Principles," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 104(3), pages 311-323, December.
    5. Treviño, Linda Klebe & Butterfield, Kenneth D. & McCabe, Donald L., 1998. "The Ethical Context in Organizations: Influences on Employee Attitudes and Behaviors," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 8(3), pages 447-476, July.
    6. Collier, Jane, 1998. "Theorising the Ethical Organization," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 8(4), pages 621-654, October.
    7. Jana Craft, 2013. "A Review of the Empirical Ethical Decision-Making Literature: 2004–2011," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 117(2), pages 221-259, October.
    8. Mari Huhtala & Taru Feldt & Anna-Maija Lämsä & Saija Mauno & Ulla Kinnunen, 2011. "Does the Ethical Culture of Organisations Promote Managers’ Occupational Well-Being? Investigating Indirect Links via Ethical Strain," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 101(2), pages 231-247, June.
    9. Tommi Auvinen & Anna-Maija Lämsä & Teppo Sintonen & Tuomo Takala, 2013. "Leadership Manipulation and Ethics in Storytelling," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 116(2), pages 415-431, August.
    10. Messick, David M., 1999. "Alternative logics for decision making in social settings," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 11-28, May.
    11. Chase Thiel & Zhanna Bagdasarov & Lauren Harkrider & James Johnson & Michael Mumford, 2012. "Leader Ethical Decision-Making in Organizations: Strategies for Sensemaking," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 107(1), pages 49-64, April.
    12. Mari Huhtala & Taru Feldt & Katriina Hyvönen & Saija Mauno, 2013. "Ethical Organisational Culture as a Context for Managers’ Personal Work Goals," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 114(2), pages 265-282, May.
    13. Robin Middlehurst, 2010. "Sustaining leadership in challenging times," Higher Education Management and Policy, OECD Publishing, vol. 22(3), pages 1-19.
    14. Kaptein, Muel, 1999. "Integrity management," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 17(6), pages 625-634, December.
    15. V. Brand, 2009. "Empirical Business Ethics Research and Paradigm Analysis," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 86(4), pages 429-449, June.
    16. Treviño, Linda Klebe & Weaver, Gary R. & Brown, Michael E., 2008. "It’s Lovely at the Top: Hierarchical Levels, Identities, and Perceptions of Organizational Ethics," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 18(2), pages 233-252, April.
    17. Kathy Dean & Jeri Beggs & Timothy Keane, 2010. "Mid-level Managers, Organizational Context, and (Un)ethical Encounters," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 97(1), pages 51-69, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ulf Schaefer & Onno Bouwmeester, 2021. "Reconceptualizing Moral Disengagement as a Process: Transcending Overly Liberal and Overly Conservative Practice in the Field," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 172(3), pages 525-543, September.

    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. Minna-Maaria Hiekkataipale & Anna-Maija Lämsä, 2019. "(A)moral Agents in Organisations? The Significance of Ethical Organisation Culture for Middle Managers’ Exercise of Moral Agency in Ethical Problems," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(1), pages 147-161, March.
    2. Maiju Kangas & Muel Kaptein & Mari Huhtala & Anna-Maija Lämsä & Pia Pihlajasaari & Taru Feldt, 2018. "Why Do Managers Leave Their Organization? Investigating the Role of Ethical Organizational Culture in Managerial Turnover," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(3), pages 707-723, December.
    3. Tongyu Meng & Jamie Newth & Christine Woods, 2022. "Ethical Sensemaking in Impact Investing: Reasons and Motives in the Chinese Renewable Energy Sector," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 179(4), pages 1091-1117, September.
    4. Rachel Fichter, 2018. "Do the Right Thing! Developing Ethical Behavior in Financial Institutions," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 151(1), pages 69-84, August.
    5. Mark S. Schwartz, 2016. "Ethical Decision-Making Theory: An Integrated Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 139(4), pages 755-776, December.
    6. Guillem C. Cabana & Muel Kaptein, 2021. "Team Ethical Cultures Within an Organization: A Differentiation Perspective on Their Existence and Relevance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 170(4), pages 761-780, May.
    7. Elina Riivari & Anna-Maija Lämsä, 2019. "Organizational Ethical Virtues of Innovativeness," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(1), pages 223-240, March.
    8. Wen-yeh Huang, 2018. "Influence of Transparency on Employees’ Ethical Judgments: A Case of Russia," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 152(4), pages 1177-1189, November.
    9. Maiju Kangas & Joona Muotka & Mari Huhtala & Anne Mäkikangas & Taru Feldt, 2017. "Is the Ethical Culture of the Organization Associated with Sickness Absence? A Multilevel Analysis in a Public Sector Organization," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 140(1), pages 131-145, January.
    10. Maiju Kangas & Taru Feldt & Mari Huhtala & Johanna Rantanen, 2014. "The Corporate Ethical Virtues Scale: Factorial Invariance Across Organizational Samples," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 124(1), pages 161-171, September.
    11. Tabea Franziska Hirth-Goebel & Barbara E. Weißenberger, 2019. "Management accountants and ethical dilemmas: How to promote ethical intention?," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 30(3), pages 287-322, October.
    12. Marcos Luís Procópio, 2022. "Qualitative empirical research on ethical decision-making in organizations: Revisiting Waters, Bird, and Chant’s pioneering methodological approach," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 56(3), pages 1661-1680, June.
    13. David Dawson, 2018. "Organisational Virtue, Moral Attentiveness, and the Perceived Role of Ethics and Social Responsibility in Business: The Case of UK HR Practitioners," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(4), pages 765-781, April.
    14. Lamberto Zollo & Massimiliano Matteo Pellegrini & Cristiano Ciappei, 2017. "What Sparks Ethical Decision Making? The Interplay Between Moral Intuition and Moral Reasoning: Lessons from the Scholastic Doctrine," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 145(4), pages 681-700, November.
    15. Christof Miska & Günter K. Stahl & Matthias Fuchs, 2018. "The Moderating Role of Context in Determining Unethical Managerial Behavior: A Case Survey," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(3), pages 793-812, December.
    16. Juliana Toro-Arias & Pablo Ruiz-Palomino & María Pilar Rodríguez-Córdoba, 2022. "Measuring Ethical Organizational Culture: Validation of the Spanish Version of the Shortened Corporate Ethical Virtues Model," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 176(3), pages 551-574, March.
    17. Raymond O. S. Zaal & Ronald J. M. Jeurissen & Edward A. G. Groenland, 2019. "Organizational Architecture, Ethical Culture, and Perceived Unethical Behavior Towards Customers: Evidence from Wholesale Banking," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 158(3), pages 825-848, September.
    18. Anna Lašáková & Anna Remišová & Ľubica Bajzíková, 2021. "Differences in Occurrence of Unethical Business Practices in a Post-Transitional Country in the CEE Region: The Case of Slovakia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-33, March.
    19. Brenda Nguyen & Mary Crossan, 2022. "Character-Infused Ethical Decision Making," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 178(1), pages 171-191, June.
    20. Guillaume Mercier & Ghislain Deslandes, 2017. "There are no Codes, Only Interpretations. Practical Wisdom and Hermeneutics in Monastic Organizations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 145(4), pages 781-794, November.

    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:kap:jbuset:v:145:y:2017:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-015-2911-y. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.