Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

acceptedVersion

Publication Date

2-2008

Abstract

Corruption poisons corporations in America and around the world, and has devastating consequences for the entire social fabric. In this article, we focus on organizational corruption, described as the abuse of authority for personal benefit, and draw on Weber's three ideal-types of legitimate authority to develop a theoretical model to better understand the antecedents of different types of organizational corruption. Specifically, we examine the types of business misconduct that organizational leaders are likely to engage in, contingent on their legitimate authority, motives, and justifications. We conclude by suggesting managerial implications of our theoretical model and propose directions for future research. © 2007 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Keywords

Authority, Bureaucracy, Corruption, Justification, Motivation, Opportunity, Types of organizational corruption, Weber, White-collar crime

Discipline

Organizational Behavior and Theory

Research Areas

Organisational Behaviour and Human Resources

Publication

Journal of Business Ethics

Volume

77

Issue

4

First Page

431

Last Page

449

ISSN

0167-4544

Identifier

10.1007/s10551-007-9358-8

Publisher

Springer Verlag (Germany)

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-007-9358-8

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