Organizational Behavior - Trust, Justice, and Ethics

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to trust, justice, and ethics in organizational behavior.

Trust

The willingness to be vulnerable to a trustee based on positive expectations about the trustee’s actions and intentions.

• Trust = willing to be vulnerable
• Risk = actually becoming vulnerable

Justice

The perceived fairness of an authority’s decision making.

Ethics

The degree to which the behaviors of an authority are in accordance with generally accepted moral norms.

Why Are Some Authorities Trusted More than
Others?

Trust is rooted in three different kinds of factors:
• Disposition-based
• Cognition-based
• Affect-based

Disposition-Based Trust

Trust that is rooted in a general expectation that the words, promises, and statements of individuals and groups can be relied upon.

Cognition-Based Trust

Trust that is founded on the characteristics or attributes of a trustee that inspire trust, including ability, benevolence, and integrity.

Affect-Based Trust

Trust that is rooted in emotion rather than reason, based on an emotional bond with the trustee.

Justice-relevant acts can serve as behavioral evidence of trustworthiness.

• Distributive justice
• Procedural justice
• Interpersonal justice
• Informational justice

Distributive Justice

The perceived fairness of decision-making outcomes, gauged by perceived fairness of outcomes such as pay and promotions.

Procedural justice

The perceived fairness of the processes and procedures used to determine outcomes (e.g., consistency, voice, accuracy, bias suppression).

Interpersonal justice

The perceived fairness regarding the interpersonal treatment employees receive (e.g., respect, dignity, politeness).

Informational justice

The perceived fairness of the explanations and communication provided by authorities (e.g., truthfulness, thoroughness, transparency).

Moral Intensity

The dimensions that affect the ethical decision-making process, including potential for harm and social pressure.

Cognitive Moral Development

The process people use to determine whether a particular course of action is ethical or unethical. 

The stages of moral reasoning: preconventional, conventional, and principled.

Preconventional stage

Focuses on consequences of actions for the
individual

Conventional stage

References the expectations of one’s family and
society

Principled stage

The most advanced, uses a set of defined, established moral principles

Moral Intent

An authority’s degree of commitment to a moral course of action.

Economic Exchange Relationships

Relationships characterized by a lack of trust and narrowly defined, quid pro quo obligations.

Social Exchange Relationships

Relationships characterized by increased trust and mutual investment, going beyond expectations.