When And How Workplace Stress Leads To Unethical Behavior?A Moderated Mediation Model

Building on prior research demonstrating that job insecurity results in adverse outcomes,this study develops a framework to explain when and how job insecurity results in undermining behavior at the workplace.In particular,by integrating conservation of resources theory and moral disengagement theory,this study examines the moral perspective;how moral disengagement explains the mechanism through which job insecurity results in antagonistic consequences.As an intensely adverse reaction,moral disengagement,in turn,triggers employee’s unethical behavior at the workplace.Furthermore,two personality traits,psychological entitlement and moral identity,were theorized to moderate the hypothesized relationships.The theoretical model-1 was tested using time-lagged multi-source data collected from Chinese employees(n=185)and their respective supervisors working in an insurance company.The study concluded that job insecurity was positively linked with employees^ moral disengagement,which,in turn,led to coworker undermining behavior.Furthermore,psychological entitlement moderated the effects of job insecurity on employees’ moral disengagement,whereas employees’ moral identity alleviated the effect of moral disengagement on coworker undermining behavior.Furthermore,study-2 was conducted to analyze how perceived coworker undermining results in victims,unethical behavior.Integrating affective event theory and the displaced aggression literature,the current study examined how state hostility serves as an explanation for how perceived undermining by coworkers leads to antagonistic consequences.In turn,state hostility was posited to trigger unethical behavior by employees resulting in service sabotage.Furthermore,distress tolerance and organizational identification were theorized to moderate the hypothesized relationships investigated in this study.The theorized hypotheses were tested using time-lagged data collected from employees(n=218)associated with the banking sector.The study concluded that perceived undermining was positively linked to employees,hostility,which in turn resulted in service sabotage behavior.Furthermore,it was found that employee distress tolerance weakened the effects of perceived undermining on employees5 state hostility,while organizational identification alleviated the effect of employees,hostility on service sabotage behavior.The study concluded with a discussion of its contributions to theory,practical implications,and suggestions for future research.