Hoarding and Opportunistic Behavior During Covid-19 Pandemics: A Conceptual Model of Non-Ethical Behavior

Abstract

Self-interest, selfishness, and greed are some of the most negative personality traits. Greedy individuals often engage in unethical behaviors regardless of the existing legal regulations and moral imperatives. During the pandemic of COVID-19 individuals are engaging in behaviors that can be characterized as deceptive and unethical, such as hoarding of products and profiteering. The current study discusses a thesis that greed is a driver of unethical behavior and examines the hoarding of products and profiteering in the greed-unethical behavior context. The conclusions suggest that greed and opportunism are critical factors behind humans behaving self-interestedly and engaging in hoarding and profiteering behavior. The current study contributes to the understanding of human behavior, particularly unethical behavior, and provides insight into the effects of the COVID-19 crisis in terms of the individual actions of hoarding products and profiteering by selling scarce products with a considerable profit margin.