Values and attitudes

James D. Carlson, Rachael Dailey Goodwin, Lori L. Wadsworth

Research output: Chapter in Book/Entry/PoemChapter

Abstract

The implications of individual values and attitudes for human behavior has been of concern to researchers in many disciplines of the social sciences. Anthropologists, sociologists, and psychologists, among others, have used values and attitudes constructs and measures to further their respective lines of inquiry (e.g., Braithwaite and Scott, 1991; Ajzen, 2001; Schwartz, 1992). The ongoing attention these constructs receive speaks to their utility in explaining a wide variety of social phenomena. In this chapter, we discuss the values and attitudes constructs most salient to the study of business ethics. As might be expected, this subset of the literature is still relatively broad and fairly diverse. From highlighting more ubiquitous values and attitudes (e.g. Schwartz et al., 2012) to those that differ from culture to culture (e.g., Spini, 2003), to those that bear directly on ethical behavior (e.g., attitudes toward competitive bluffing, Lewicki and Robinson, 1998), what we present in this chapter is intended to increase researcher awareness of the variety of attitudes and values constructs that have been proposed and measured. Unlike some constructs in the business ethics literature, values and attitudes are decades-old. While the 1950s and 1960s were periods of considerable discussion and debate for how to best conceptualize values and attitudes, definitions have generally coalesced.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationResearch Companion to Ethical Behavior in Organizations
Subtitle of host publicationConstructs and Measures
PublisherEdward Elgar Publishing Ltd.
Pages119-160
Number of pages42
ISBN (Electronic)9781782547471
ISBN (Print)9781782547464
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 1 2014
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Economics, Econometrics and Finance
  • General Business, Management and Accounting

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