The effects of ethical climates on trust in supervisor and trust in organization in a Polish context

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the effects of ethical climate types on two components of organizational trust, i.e. trust in supervisor and trust in organization. Design/methodology/approach – A sample of 178 managerial employees from seven hospitals in Poland was used to investigate the specific relationships between ethical climates (i.e. egoistic, benevolent, and principled) and trust in supervisor and trust in organization. Structural equation modeling was used to explore the relationship between ethical climates and the two trust components. Findings – It was found that egoistic climates were negatively associated with trust in organization and trust in supervisor, whereas benevolent climates were positively associated with trust in supervisor and trust in organization. No support was obtained for any sort of association between principled climates and either of the two trust components. Research limitations/implications – Future research should examine the role of trust as a mediating variable in the relationship between ethical climates and variables such as commitment or productivity or satisfaction. Future research should also examine different national and work contexts to test out these relationships. Practical implications – Managers and organizations should try and establish benevolent ethical climates as opposed to egoistic ones, in order to bolster levels of trust among their employees. Originality/value – The findings of this paper are unique and original because this is the first study to suggest a relationship between ethical climate types and the two trust components. The value of this study is that it provides managers and organizations with a way by which they could potentially increase levels of trust among their employees.

Investigating the Influence of Ethical Climate on Trust in Organization and Trust in Supervisor in Albaha Province, Saudi Arabia, Using Victor and Cullen’s Framework

“…Moreover, the study provided support for one type of ethical climate, i.e., laws in association with trust in organization. These findings are consistent with previous studies [1] [6] [30] [42].…”

“…Another empirical study was undertaken in Poland [1], and data were collected from a sample of 178 managerial employees at seven hospitals. The main goal of study was to examine the relationship between ethical climates, i.e.…”

“…external to the organization. Crossing the three levels on each dimension generates nine theoretical climate types, as illustrated in Figure 1, self-interest, company profit, efficiency, friendship, team interest, social responsibility, personal morality, company rules and procedures, and laws and professional codes [1] [30] [31].…”

Antecedents and Consequences of Frontline Employee’s Trust-in-Supervisor and Trust-in-Coworker

“…Despite the significance of interpersonal trust in organizations both for sustainable employment relationships and employee's positive attitudinal and behavioral outcomes, researchers in the past have given less attention to the determinants of the perceived interpersonal trust of frontline employees in supervisors and coworkers together. However, a handful studies in the prior literature have independently examined trust-in-supervisor and trust-in-coworker [12][13][14][15][16][17][18] Hence, there is a need to investigate interpersonal trust-specifically, frontline employees' trust-in-supervisor and frontline employees' trust-in-coworker in a single framework. This is because, the position of frontline employees is unique in that the attitude and behavior of frontline employees are generally influenced by their supervisors and coworkers.…”

“…This is because, the position of frontline employees is unique in that the attitude and behavior of frontline employees are generally influenced by their supervisors and coworkers. Similarly, in the prior literature, researchers have examined either the positive antecedents or negative antecedents of trust-in-supervisor and trust-in-coworker [13][14][15][16][17], yet the idea of integrating both the negative and positive antecedents of trust-in-supervisor and trust-in-coworker into a single framework is still underdeveloped and needs proper scholarly attention.…”