Do ethics matter? Impact of ethics on organizational citizenship behavior: a meta-analysis

Abstract

Ethical constructs have been identified as a direct, effective, and economical way to influence organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Although numerous studies have demonstrated the critical role of ethical factors in inhibiting or promoting OCB, a comprehensive quantitative synthesis remains lacking. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to quantitatively synthesize 125 independent studies (28 ethical factors, 331 effect values, and 158,336 participants) and propose a theoretical framework for the relationship between ethics and OCB. The results revealed that 24 ethics factors were significantly and positively related to OCB, whereas moral disengagement was significantly and negatively associated with OCB. Furthermore, we found that ethical responsibility is indirectly associated with OCB through multiple pathways. Specifically, it is positively linked to OCB through ethical leadership and ethical climate (e.g., paths CSR → EC → OCB, CSR → EL → OCB, CSR → EC → MI → OCB, CSR → EL → EC → OCB, and CSR → EL → EC → MI → OCB). Conversely, it shows a negative link to OCB through ethical identity (e.g., paths CSR → MI → OCB and CSR → EL → MI → OCB). Our analysis highlights the important connection between ethical factors and OCB and provides suggestions for future research.