IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v200y2025i1d10.1007_s10551-024-05881-y.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

From Deception to Rejection: Unraveling the Impact of Workplace Cheating Behavior on Coworker Ostracism

Author

Listed:
  • Yijiao Ye

    (Shenzhen University)

  • Long-Zeng Wu

    (Xiamen University)

  • Ho Kwong Kwan

    (Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management Department, China Europe International Business School (CEIBS))

  • Xinyu Liu

    (The University of Hong Kong)

Abstract

Given the prevalence of employees’ workplace cheating behavior (WCB) and its cost to organizations, considerable scholarly effort has been invested in identifying both its antecedents and intrapersonal consequences. However, its interpersonal repercussions, particularly how and when WCB influences coworker relationships, remain underexplored. Our paper enriches the WCB literature by using social information processing theory to examine the effect of employee WCB on coworker disliking and subsequent coworker ostracism. Through a field survey study and experimental studies, we found that coworker disliking mediates the positive relationship between WCB and coworker ostracism. Moreover, team ethical leadership strengthens the positive relationship between WCB and coworker disliking, and focal employees’ negative affectivity strengthens the positive relationship between coworker disliking and ostracism. Furthermore, team ethical leadership and focal employees’ negative affectivity strengthen the indirect effects of WCB on coworker ostracism via coworker disliking. Our findings have important theoretical and practical implications for the literature on WCB.

Suggested Citation

  • Yijiao Ye & Long-Zeng Wu & Ho Kwong Kwan & Xinyu Liu, 2025. "From Deception to Rejection: Unraveling the Impact of Workplace Cheating Behavior on Coworker Ostracism," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 200(1), pages 157-173, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:200:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s10551-024-05881-y
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-024-05881-y
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10551-024-05881-y
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-024-05881-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

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Franziska Zuber & Muel Kaptein, 2014. "Painting with the Same Brush? Surveying Unethical Behavior in the Workplace Using Self-Reports and Observer-Reports," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 125(3), pages 401-432, December.
    2. Angela J. Xu & Raymond Loi & Hang-yue Ngo, 2016. "Ethical Leadership Behavior and Employee Justice Perceptions: The Mediating Role of Trust in Organization," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 134(3), pages 493-504, March.
    3. Ye, Yijiao & Lyu, Yijing & Wu, Long-Zeng & Kwan, Ho Kwong, 2022. "Exploitative leadership and service sabotage," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    4. Annika Hillebrandt & Daniel L. Brady & Maria Francisca Saldanha & Laurie J. Barclay, 2023. "The Paradox of Paranoia: How One’s Own Self-Interested Unethical Behavior Can Spark Paranoia and Reduce Affiliative Behavior Toward Coworkers," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 184(1), pages 159-173, April.
    5. Jennifer A. Chatman & Francis J. Flynn, 2005. "Full-Cycle Micro-Organizational Behavior Research," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 16(4), pages 434-447, August.
    6. Amanda Christensen-Salem & Fred O. Walumbwa & Mayowa T. Babalola & Liang Guo & Everlyne Misati, 2021. "A Multilevel Analysis of the Relationship Between Ethical Leadership and Ostracism: The Roles of Relational Climate, Employee Mindfulness, and Work Unit Structure," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 171(3), pages 619-638, July.
    7. Aamir Chughtai & Marann Byrne & Barbara Flood, 2015. "Linking Ethical Leadership to Employee Well-Being: The Role of Trust in Supervisor," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 128(3), pages 653-663, May.
    8. Carolina Serrano Archimi & Emmanuelle Reynaud & Hina Mahboob Yasin & Zeeshan Ahmed Bhatti, 2018. "How Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility Affects Employee Cynicism: The Mediating Role of Organizational Trust," Post-Print hal-03510847, HAL.
    9. Ozgur Demirtas & A. Akdogan, 2015. "The Effect of Ethical Leadership Behavior on Ethical Climate, Turnover Intention, and Affective Commitment," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 130(1), pages 59-67, August.
    10. Mackey, Jeremy D., 2021. "Why and how predators pick prey: Followers’ personality and performance as predictors of destructive leadership," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 159-169.
    11. Chin-Shan Lu & Chi-Chang Lin, 2014. "The Effects of Ethical Leadership and Ethical Climate on Employee Ethical Behavior in the International Port Context," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 124(2), pages 209-223, October.
    12. Elias, Robert, 1986. "The Politics of Victimization: Victims, Victimology, and Human Rights," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780195039818.
    13. Jun Yang & Darren C. Treadway, 2018. "A Social Influence Interpretation of Workplace Ostracism and Counterproductive Work Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(4), pages 879-891, April.
    14. Brown, Michael E. & Mitchell, Marie S., 2010. "Ethical and Unethical Leadership: Exploring New Avenues for Future Research," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(4), pages 583-616, October.
    15. Akanksha Bedi & Can M. Alpaslan & Sandy Green, 2016. "A Meta-analytic Review of Ethical Leadership Outcomes and Moderators," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 139(3), pages 517-536, December.
    16. 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.
    17. Christine Henle & Michael Gross, 2014. "What Have I Done to Deserve This? Effects of Employee Personality and Emotion on Abusive Supervision," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 122(3), pages 461-474, July.
    18. Carolina Serrano Archimi & Emmanuelle Reynaud & Hina Mahboob Yasin & Zeeshan Ahmed Bhatti, 2018. "How Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility Affects Employee Cynicism: The Mediating Role of Organizational Trust," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 151(4), pages 907-921, September.
    19. Carolina Serrano-Archimi & Emmanuelle Reynaud & Hina Mahboob Yasin & Zeeshan Ahmed Bhatti, 2018. "How Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility Affects Employee Cynicism: The Mediating Role of Organizational Trust," Post-Print hal-01796415, HAL.
    20. Mingpeng Huang & Dong Ju & Kai Chi Yam & Shengming Liu & Xin Qin & Guangdi Tian, 2023. "Employee Humor Can Shield Them from Abusive Supervision," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 186(2), pages 407-424, August.
    21. Weihui Fu & Satish Deshpande, 2014. "The Impact of Caring Climate, Job Satisfaction, and Organizational Commitment on Job Performance of Employees in a China’s Insurance Company," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 124(2), pages 339-349, October.
    22. Suchuan Zhang, 2020. "Workplace Spirituality and Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior: The Mediating Effect of Job Satisfaction," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 161(3), pages 687-705, January.
    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. Jie Feng & Yucheng Zhang & Xinmei Liu & Long Zhang & Xiao Han, 2018. "Just the Right Amount of Ethics Inspires Creativity: A Cross-Level Investigation of Ethical Leadership, Intrinsic Motivation, and Employee Creativity," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(3), pages 645-658, December.
    2. Misbah Hayat Bhatti & Umair Akram & Muhammad Hasnat Bhatti & Hassan Rasool & Xin Su, 2020. "Unraveling the Effects of Ethical Leadership on Knowledge Sharing: The Mediating Roles of Subjective Well-Being and Social Media in the Hotel Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-20, October.
    3. Hao Zhou & Xinyi Sheng & Yulin He & Xiaoye Qian, 2020. "Ethical Leadership as the Reliever of Frontline Service Employees’ Emotional Exhaustion: A Moderated Mediation Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-13, February.
    4. Ridwan Saptoto & Desirée H. Dun & Celeste P. M. Wilderom, 2025. "How come followers can thrive despite leader incivility? The buffering effect of leader support on follower positive affect," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 24(2), pages 276-309, April.
    5. Guosen Miao & Guoping Chen & Fan Wang & Anupam Kumar Das, 2023. "The Effect of Corporate Greenwashing on Employees’ Environmental Performance: Person–Organization Values Fit Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-19, February.
    6. Dimple & Mamta Tripathi, 2024. "Bridging the Gap Between High-Performance Work System and Organizational Performance: Role of Organizational Agility, Transformational Leadership, and Human Resource Flexibility," Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, Springer;Global Institute of Flexible Systems Management, vol. 25(2), pages 369-393, June.
    7. Boisvert, Jean & Christodoulides, George & Sajid Khan, M., 2023. "Toward a better understanding of key determinants and consequences of masstige consumption," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    8. Hossein Esfandyari & Shahla Choobchian & Yadgar Momenpour & Hossein Azadi, 2023. "Sustainable rural development in Northwest Iran: proposing a wellness-based tourism pattern using a structural equation modeling approach," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-15, December.
    9. Felipe Lillo-Viedma & Pedro Severino-González & Valentin Santander-Ramírez & Leidy Y. García & Nataly Guiñez-Cabrera & Nicolás Astorga-Bustos, 2022. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Network Analysis: Unionized Workers’ Perceptions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-15, April.
    10. Maureen L. Ambrose & Darryl B. Rice & David M. Mayer, 2021. "Justice Climate and Workgroup Outcomes: The Role of Coworker Fair Behavior and Workgroup Structure," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 172(1), pages 79-99, August.
    11. Mohamed Fathy Agina & Hazem Ahmed Khairy & Mohamed A. Abdel Fatah & Youssef H. Manaa & Rabab M. Abdallah & Nadir Aliane & Jehad Afaneh & Bassam Samir Al-Romeedy, 2023. "Distributive Injustice and Work Disengagement in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry: Mediating Roles of the Workplace Negative Gossip and Organizational Cynicism," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-24, October.
    12. Muel Kaptein, 2019. "The Moral Entrepreneur: A New Component of Ethical Leadership," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 156(4), pages 1135-1150, June.
    13. Homoud Alhaidani & Hussam Al Halbusi & Khalid K. Alharbi & Waleed Alshaer, 2024. "Navigating Organizational Justice and Ethical Leadership: Empirical Evidence from Saudi Arabia," SAGE Open, , vol. 14(2), pages 21582440241, June.
    14. Huynh Thi Thuy Giang & Luu Tien Dung, 2022. "The effect of internal corporate social responsibility practices on firm performance: the mediating role of employee intrapreneurial behaviour," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 16(4), pages 1035-1061, May.
    15. Sun, Xiaochi & Foscht, Thomas & Eisingerich, Andreas B., 2021. "Does educating customers create positive word of mouth?," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    16. Mark Anthony Camilleri, 2021. "The Employees’ State of Mind during COVID-19: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-17, March.
    17. Dipankar Biswas & Rajib Sarkar, 2023. "Rise of marigold floriculture, a new stirring door walk through economic, social, and entertainment factors in Eastern India: a combined approach of multi-group structural equation modeling and cluste," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 57(1), pages 137-172, February.
    18. Park, Inyoung & Lee, Jieon & Lee, Daeho & Lee, Changjun & Chung, Won Young, 2022. "Changes in consumption patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic: Analyzing the revenge spending motivations of different emotional groups," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    19. Maria Saleem & Faisal Qadeer & Faisal Mahmood & Antonio Ariza-Montes & Heesup Han, 2020. "Ethical Leadership and Employee Green Behavior: A Multilevel Moderated Mediation Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-16, April.
    20. Sujata Khandai & Sonia Kataria & Harpuneet Singh Kohli & Renu Yadav & Jones Mathew, 2025. "Green choices and brand happiness: A recipe for brand evangelism," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(2), pages 2486-2501, April.

    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:kap:jbuset:v:200:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s10551-024-05881-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.