Phenomenological Exploration of Followers_ Lived Experiences

Chapter 1: Introduction to the Study

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reported 807 enforcements due

to ethical violations in 2015 (U.S. SEC, 2015). In the United States, SAC Capital agreed

to pay security regulators $602 million for improper actions by former employees

(Lattman, 2013). The continued unethical behavior of leaders has caused followers and

communities to suffer the consequences, which supports the importance of studying

ethics in business and leadership. The term leader may describe one who occupies a high

organizational position or possesses specific characteristics or qualities that enable them

to influence others (Silva, 2014). The ethics of leadership revolve around the leader's

responsibility to address the interests and wellbeing of their followers. According to

Hollingworth and Valentine (2015), the ethics of leadership directly affects employees. I

conducted this study because there was a gap in the extant literature on ethical leadership,

which has focused mainly on leaders' views.

Background of The Study

There is extensive research on ethical corruption and unethical leadership

associated with leaders' social responsibility; it has become a focal topic in popular media

and academic literature in the past decade (Mayer et al., 2012; Wang et al., 2017).

However, only a few researchers have focused on the perception of the followers when

studying ethical leadership. The issue of ethical behavior among leaders and followers

has been a persistent one (Odeneye, 2017). In response, researchers have started to focus

on the relationship between leader and follower due to the recognition that the

transformational leadership style does not address positive change's moral or ethical

objectives (Dierendonck, 2011).

The study of ethics goes back to ancient Greek philosophers like Plato (380 BC),

Socrates (as cited in Plato & Aristophanes, 1984), and Aristotle (350 BC), and each

philosopher expressed a unique perspective in discovering ethical standards. Although

researchers have studied ethical leadership in different contexts, they have agreed that

leaders must behave according to specific ethical standards to achieve justice and fairness

and create a positive social impact. Procedural justice, trust integrity, dependability, and

organizational commitment may mediate the positive impact of leadership on

organizational growth (Katou, 2015).

Socrates and Plato believed that outstanding leadership comes from great

followership—that is, great leaders know how to follow because great leaders were once

humble followers. According to the social exchange view, ethical leaders demonstrate

fairness and caring for followers. In turn, followers feel obligated to reciprocate and act

according to the ethical leader's expectations (Brown & Treviño, 2006; Brown et al.,

2005; Ko et al., 2017). Aquinas (C.E. 1227-1274), much like Aristotle, argued against

tyrant leaders and advocated for ethical leadership exemplified by individual rulers,

kings, or monarchs through their character and virtues (Aquinas, 1988, pp. 14-29).

According to Malakyan (2015), Although, commanding and obeying were two different

things for him, Aristotle’s believed that the good citizen should be capable of both,

knowing how to govern like a freeman and obey like a freeman, since “he who has never

learned to obey cannot be a good commander” (Aristotle, 350 B.C.E/.1999, p. 57).

The importance of ethical leadership has been revealed in the past decade through

the continued unethical behaviors of leaders. Incidents such as Wells Fargo's undefined

accounts and Volkswagen's emission test scandals have brought ethical leadership to the

forefront of management research. These scandals have negatively affected the world

economy. These unethical behaviors have partly been blamed on the gross unethical

practices of organizational leaders (Verschoor, 2015). According to Mesdaghinia et al.

(2019), what is common among high-profile corporate scandals such as Enron,

WorldCom, HealthSouth, Volkswagen, General Motors, and Wells Fargo may have been

bottom-line mentality, which involves a single-minded pursuit of financial profit while

ignoring ethical considerations. As a result, the concept of ethical leadership has emerged

as a prominent theme in the empirical leadership literature, with a dramatic increase in

related research since the mid-2000s (Ko et al., 2017).

The role of ethics in leadership studies is significant for organizations to consider.

Leadership without ethics and integrity can be harmful to the organizational stakeholders

and society (Ahmad et al., 2017). Treviño et al. (2003) found that ethical leadership is not

only associated with a leader's traits (e.g., honesty, integrity, and trustworthiness) and

ethical behaviors (e.g., openness, concern, fairness, and ethical decision-making) but is

also linked to value-based management (e.g., setting ethical standards through

communication and rewards), which emphasizes the importance of ethics in management

(Ko et al., 2017). In addition to the several moral characteristics that leaders must possess

to behave ethically, ethical leaders also practice moral management, actively influence

their employees to be conscientious of ethics, and encourage employees to act morally.

Ethical leadership directly affects followers' behavior, which may have

implications for commitment and empowerment. According to (2017), scholarly interest

in the study of ethical leadership has increased because organizational failures are seen

partly as a direct result of unethical behavior of leaders (Taylor & Pattie, 2014), aided by

the collaboration of followers, due to fear of retaliation. In fall 2013, leaders at JP

Morgan Chase made the most significant corporate settlement in U.S. history when they

paid the federal government $13 billion (Emery, 2016). The company leaders

acknowledged that bank personnel had misrepresented to the public about numerous

residential mortgage-backed securities. In recent times, several researchers have pointed

out that the concept of ethical leadership is distinct from other types of leadership. Such

scholars have emphasized the difference between leadership concepts, arguing that

ethical leadership describes a distinct phenomenon, both on the conceptual and empirical

level (Brown & Treviño, 2006; Brown et al., 2005; Ko et al., 2017). Followers' fear of

retaliation and leaders' unethical behavior represented by recent scandals have

encouraged scholars to increase their interest in studying the unethical side of leadership.

A great deal of attention has also been dedicated to the idea that a leader who prioritizes

ethics can create more ethical conduct within an organization (Brown & Treviño, 2006).

By being ethical, leaders have a direct impact on the behavior of their followers.

Brown et al. (2005) argued that ethical leaders first affect their followers' behavior by

serving as role models. Leaders are charged with the task of applying justice and fairness

and improving the performance of an organization. According to Malakyan (2015), the

vast majority of leadership and followership literature continues to view leading and

following behavioral functions as static and parallel to each other. The shared values

between leaders and followers and their organization can boost commitment, enhance

collective performance, and develop loyalty among employees (Joseph, 2016).

Ethical leadership motivates employees to be exceptional and fosters innovation

(Brown & Treviño, 2014). Ethical leadership in organizations has direct implications for

societal growth, observable in organizational commitment to social, environmental, and

financial success (Eisenbeiss et al., 2015). The potential for ethical leadership in bringing

about positive social change to the individual, the organization, and society cannot be

discounted (Odeneye, 2017). Ethical behavior among leaders and followers has been a

persistent issue since ancient Greek and Western philosophy (Plato & Aristophanos,

1984; Russell, 1983). Ethical leadership can shape the behavior of followers, which may

have implications for commitment, innovation, and empowerment. According to Emery

(2016), ethical behavior may enable workers to feel an alignment between their values

and the business. Ethical behavioral guidelines in the workplace often include placing an

elevated level of importance on the dedication and the belief that all organizational

leaders specify acceptably versus unacceptable behavior when hiring employees

(Yammarino et al., 2013).

Researchers demonstrated the different viewpoints of philosophies in addressing

the subject of ethical leadership. These authors emphasized that leaders should behave in

a certain way and within specific ethical parameters to be effective. Johnson et al. (2019)

observed that people tend to make leader-based attributions in individualistic societies,

even when followers are involved in results (Thoroughgood et al., 2016).

DesJardine (2016) addressed many social and environmental issues that require

companies to make long-term investments. As a result, companies can withhold benefits

from others or create widespread harm for others. Webster (2017) claimed that an

increased interest in ethics does not appear thus far to have had a widespread constructive

influence on the conduct of business leaders. Ethical leaders care about employees, help

them solve problems, and pay attention to the sustainable development of enterprises,

have a strong sense of ethics and corporate social responsibility (Liu & Zhao, 2019).

Despite the extensive works reviewed about the phenomenon of ethical

leadership, a gap in the available literature remains. Emery (2016) addressed ethical

behavior, claiming that it may enable workers to perceive alignment between their value

and the businesses. This author also addressed the need for ethical guidelines in the

workplace. Hegarty and Moccia (2018) discussed why leaders behave unethically,

including shareholder pressure for growth, striving to achieve stated goals, impending

financial losses, and ignorance.

Despite the work reviewed about the phenomenon of unethical leadership, a

noticeable gap in the literature has persisted. The current study's findings may enhance

the understanding of the ethical leadership phenomenon from followers' perspectives

because studies on ethical leadership are conducted using leaders as research participants.

According to Heres and Lasthuizen (2012) and Odeneye et al. (2018), most previous

studies on ethical leadership were conducted using leaders as research participants, which

has skewed the results.

Problem Statement

Ethical violations in corporate America continue unabated; the SEC reported 807

enforcements due to ethical violations in 2015 (U.S.SEC, 2015). Despite the pressure that

has been put on leaders to behave ethically, new unethical behaviors continue to emerge.

The impact of scandals such as those experienced by Wells Fargo and Volkswagen

supports the importance of studying business ethics and ethical leadership (Demirtas &

Akdogan, 2015; Odeneye et al., 2018; Zhu et al., 2016). The general problem was that

leaders have overly brief time horizons and a bias for immediate gratification; in addition,

many leaders are willing to behave unethically without considering the impact on

relevant followers (DesJardine, 2016; Odeneye et al., 2018). Brief time horizons can lead

to short-termism, defined as "decisions and outcomes that pursue a course of action that

is best for the short term but suboptimal over the long run" (Laverty, 1996, p. 826).

Ethical scandals in organizations such as Wells Fargo and Volkswagen threaten

the position of many senior corporate managers and jeopardize the financial survival of

some organizations (Clarke & Bassell, 2014). In addition, leadership misconduct has

resulted in high costs to governments and consumers through massive unemployment,

significant declines in the gross domestic product, and the mortgage foreclosure crisis

(Rowe, 2018). Moreover, unethical leadership behavior undermines the welfare of

society and the environment.

The consequences have raised the ethics profile, and the problem is reflected in a

gap in research. Previous scholars have focused mainly on exploring ethical leadership

from the perspective of leaders as research participants, while few researchers have

explored the perspective of followers as research participants. Consequently, the

understanding of the ethical leadership phenomenon has been biased in favor of leaders

(Freiwald, 2013; Odeneye et al., 2018). The specific research problem that I addressed

through this study was that some leaders lack the willingness to apply ethical conduct to

achieve organizational success.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this qualitative transcendental phenomenological study was to

explore the lived experiences of followers under unethical leadership in public and

private organizations in the United States. I focused on followers as research participants

because they constitute a significant bridge between internal and external stakeholders in

any organization with the possibility to broaden their knowledge of ethical leadership.

The implications for positive social change from the results of this study may enhance

current knowledge about the characteristics of ethical leadership and encourage future

research on ethical and unethical leadership, which may create a better understanding of

the relationship between unethical leadership and the wellbeing of others.

Research Question

What are followers’ lived experiences with unethical leadership behavior and

performance?

Conceptual Framework

The conceptual frameworks that I used to guide this study included different

concepts in ethics like utilitarianism, eudaimonia, stakeholder theory, and Adams's equity

theory. I synthesized various concepts, ideas, and beliefs from these models to form the

conceptual framework that guided this study (see Maxwell, 2013; Odeneye et al., 2018).

For example, the concept of eudaimonia can be defined as "an ethical model which

maintains happiness is reached through virtue”, for Aristotle, eudaimonia is the highest

human good, the only human good that is desirable for its own sake (as an end in itself)

rather than for the sake of something else (as a means toward some other end) (Duignan,

2020). Utilitarianism and eudaimonistic models are conceptual frameworks used to

compel organizations and leaders to ensure their decisions and policies, ensure the

happiness of their followers, and facilitate their highest performance (Jones & Felps,

2013).

According to Socratic philosophy (as cited in Plato & Aristophanes, 1984),

eudaimonia is a concept in ethics. I used eudaimonia to enrich the conceptual framework

in this study. This philosophy focuses on how to live and how to act considering virtue

and knowledge. According to Huta and Waterman (2014), "In eudaimonic philosophies,

the principal focus is on activity reflecting virtue, excellence, the best within us, and the

full development of our potentials" (p. 27). This model represents the well-being of an

individual and reflects the conceptual side of unethical leadership in this study, as it

negatively affects the welfare and dignity of followers. On the other hand, utilitarianism

focuses on the most significant number of followers by emphasizing the interest of the

leader in ensuring the wellbeing and dignity of others.

The concept of justice is another framework that I used to inform this study.

Philosophically, justice is the concept of proportion between a person's actions and their

ultimate success. Plato paid particular attention to the concept of justice; he used the

word "Dikaisyne" for justice, which comes extremely near to the word "morality" (as

cited in Plato & Aristophanes, 1984). According to Easter (2019), the concept of justice

as fairness is based on the premise that giving each person what they deserve would

result in an overall sense of justice and fairness.

The stability of any group, including society, depends on the extent to which the

group members feel that they are being treated justly (Easter, 2019; Rawls, 1971). This

concept is based on the principle that leaders must ensure justice and fairness for their

followers; taking credit for other's work, shifting blame, accepting corruption, and the

promotion of less competent for political reasons are all examples of unfair and unethical

leadership behavior.

The concept theory of Adams's equity is a conceptual framework used to balance

the followers' efforts toward work and the results they get in return; fairness is essential

for frontline employees who put in the effort and sweat to improve their lives (Adams,

1965). Van Niekerk and Van Niekerk (2013) examined a framework that defines ethical

leadership as a combination of several validated leadership theories. I used the concept

theory of Adams's equity in this study, as it relates to the fact that leaders must be

knowledgeable of all direct and indirect actions of the organization and their effect on

stakeholders. In addition, leaders must ensure worker motivation and fairness and reward

their contributions.

Stakeholders are especially important for the success of an organization. The

organizational products and services get to the customers through the frontline

employees, so their actions impact their success. Stakeholder theory is used to analyze

business issues from the perspective of the stakeholders and the impact that such matters

may have on stakeholders, directly or indirectly (Harrison et al., 2015). According to

Stakeholder theory – or at least, early formulations of it – instead of managing the firm in

the best interests of stakeholders only, managers should seek to “balance” the interests of

all stakeholders, where a stakeholder is anyone who has a “stake”, or interest (including a

financial interest), in the firm

Employees in private and public organizations cannot benefit from ownership

profit sharing, so ethical leaders have to provide other motivations such as being overly

concerned about the wellbeing of employees, their job satisfaction, wants, needs, and

their participation in achieving the organizational objectives. Therefore, I used

stakeholder theory as a conceptual framework in this study, through which I enhanced

understanding of the unethical leadership phenomenon from the follower's perspective.

I focused on the conceptual framework in this study to better gather natural data

from participants and better overcome the phenomenon's complexities in finding the right

participants. In this study, I enabled the participants to describe how they were affected

by the phenomenon freely. A phenomenological approach was appropriate to understand

such experiences of followers. The concept/phenomenon is the system of concepts,

assumptions, expectations, beliefs, and theories that supports and inform my research and

is also an essential part of this study's design (Easter, 2019; Miles & Huberman, 1994).

I ensured that participants' information would not be published. By conducting

single face-to-face interviews, I strove to ensure that they had the opportunity to express

themselves comfortably and freely, which enhanced the quality of the collected data. In

selecting participants, I focused on frontline employees who are always in contact with

stakeholders, excluding any managerial levels.

Nature of the Study

I used a qualitative methodology to conduct this study to explore unethical

leadership from the follower's point of view in private and public organizations. The

open-ended nature of the research question in studying the unethical side of leadership

behavior aligned with using a qualitative methodology to conduct this study. Face-to-face

interviewing was the primary data collection method that I used to understand the ethical

leadership phenomenon. I used the perceptions of followers in the interviews to integrate

my understanding of ethical leadership with my desire to conduct this study. I used a

qualitative research methodology to understand the complexities of the unethical

leadership phenomenon and allowed the participants to express their experiences and

thoughts.

According to Miles et al. (2014), researchers using the qualitative method may

use various approaches, depending on need and context. These approaches are case study,

ethnography, phenomenology, narration, and grounded theory. As I conducted this study

to allow followers to express their perception of ethical leadership phenomenon as a lived

experience, I used a phenomenological approach to conduct this study. I focused on the

frontline employees in corporate America who directly contact stakeholders.

Phenomenology has a philosophical and methodological trajectory that shares

commonalities with other qualitative research strategies. One of its most distinguishing

features is the peculiarity of its philosophical base, which is embedded in the

phenomenological concept of Lebenswelt (Lifeworld)—the world of everyday lived

experience (Anosike et al., 2012). According to Kvale (1983), the "interview is probably

the most powerful tool to achieve an understanding of the experiences lived by another

person" (p. 48). The number of participants depends on how deeply the researcher delves

into the issue and their willingness to evaluate the impact of the problem on participants.

To ensure the quality of data that I collected and ensure that I thoroughly analyzed the

issue, the target sample size was 20 participants.

I relied on criterion sampling to sort and identify 15 to 20 participants, or until

data saturation occurred. These participants had a minimum of 7 years of experience

working in private and public organizations and were in direct contact with stakeholders.

As frontline employees are the bridge between leadership and other external stakeholders

who might be affected by unethical leadership behaviors or decisions, I excluded any

employees pursuing or currently held management positions.

I individually interviewed 20 participants; this expanded the breadth of the

research and enhanced my ability to understand how individuals experience the

phenomenon under study thoroughly. I employed several strategies to ensure a high

quality of the data collected by providing informed consent for participants for any

information provided to build mutual trust. I provided the opportunity for participants to

send their feedback via email and any follow-up questions after conducting the

interviews. I prepared an interview guide before the interviews to ensure that I asked the

same key questions to all participants. In analyzing the data, I hand-coded the data

following the steps of phenomenological data analysis set forth by Moustakas (1994). I

used hand coding to enhance my familiarity with all the data details.

I used the transcendental as a type of phenomenology to enhance my

understanding of the unethical leadership phenomenon as a lived experience from

followers’ perspectives. Transcendental phenomenology was based on the work of

Moustakas (1994), who believed that the researcher's personal experience should be

bracketed using epoché. Researchers Achieve epoché by addressing any personal

experiences or assumptions before conducting the research and be able to distinguish

such them from the lived experiences of followers. This involves delineating one's

personal experience of the phenomenon being studied and focusing on participants'

experiences.

Phenomenology is the study of lived experience or the life world (van Manen,

1997). A hermeneutic approach would not have been ideal for this study because it is

used to focus more on the researcher's personal experience. Transcendental

phenomenology based on Moustakas (1994) provides a systematic approach to analyzing

data about lived experiences. The transcendental design involves identifying a

phenomenon as a lived experience of different participants, with the researcher

bracketing out their personal experiences. In this study, participants who have

experienced the phenomenon of ethical leadership in one way or another had the

opportunity to share what they experienced and how they experienced it contexts (see

Moustakas, 1994). I conducted face-to-face interviews as the primary data collection

method in this study. There are several sources for collecting data in a qualitative study,

such as observations of the phenomenon, documents, or interviews. Of these, the

interview is the most powerful tool to understand the experiences lived by another person

(Kvale, 1983).

Although multiple data sources are encouraged in the qualitative study, I relied

primarily on individual interviews as a source of data, which enhanced the credibility and

quality of the data that I collected. The primary participants of this study were frontline

employees who were in direct contact with other stakeholders in a private retail

organization in Tampa, Florida. I focused only on followers and excluded any individuals

with managerial positions. Other possibilities that I considered for data collection

included information from public datasets, a review of social media websites, or data

from the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR).

Definitions

The study’s terms included those related to unethical leadership phenomena,

followers, and organizational success. Every term can have different interpretations, and

knowledge of these interpretations is essential to understand this research. Readers can

use the defined terms to better understand the phenomenon of unethical leadership in the

context of this study. I used the following critical technical terms in this study.

Dignity: This describes the pride and respect that individuals hold for their self-

worth and self-esteem. Dignity is an essential principle in the human rights discourse; the

word "dignity" derives its original meaning from the Latin word dignitas, conveying

honor and respect (Staffen & Arshakyan, 2017).

Ethics: Ethics describes the moral principles governing individual behavior and

aligning behavior with group norms and expectations (Staffen & Arshakyan, 2017).

Ethics is a normative distinction between studying individuals' right and wrong behaviors

and their implications for a group, organization, or society.

Employees' performance: Completing work and achieving the organization's

objectives is called performance. The performance of organizations depends on the

leaders and their culture set in the organizations (Saeed & Mughal, 2019).

Ethical leadership: According to Khokhar and Zia-ur-Rehman (2017), "Ethical

leadership is defined as the demonstration of normatively suitable behavior through

personal actions and interpersonal relationships, and the propagation of such behavior to

followers through two-way communication, reinforcement, and decision-making"

(Brown et al., 2005, p. 25).

Follower: This term describes people who are influenced by the opinion of, and

carry out, the orders and instructions of leaders, regardless of the extent to which these

coincide with their will (McLaren, 2013).

Leader: Generically and inclusively, this term defines all individuals—managers

and leaders—in positions of authority and power who can influence others to do what

they may or may not ordinarily want to do (Bischak & Woiceshyn, 2016).

Leadership: According to Ho and Lin (2016), leadership is when the leader

influences others to reach a common goal. Leaders provide a blueprint for a company's

organizational culture and usually have more power and control than followers (Brown &

Treviño, 2006).

Moral disengagement: Morally disengaged leaders do not visibly display ethical

action or promote ethical standards and are therefore not perceived as ethical leaders.

Followers with low moral disengagement (i.e., high moral engagement) are more likely

to be sensitive to the ethicality of their leaders. Conversely, when leaders display a lack

of moral engagement, morally engaged followers will subsequently evaluate them

harshly as unethical leaders (Ko et al., 2017).

Moral identity: Moral identity acts as a self-regulatory mechanism, leaders with

moral solid identity act in ways consistent with their morals. Moral identity has been

shown to predict ethical leadership. As a central part of a person's self-definition, moral

identity motivates individuals to act as moral persons (Ko et al., 2017).

Organizational culture: This is defined as the set of those values, beliefs, ideas,

norms, and attitudes which are helpful to bind the employees and organization (Saeed &

Mughal, 2019).

Organizational justice: The perception that leaders are ethical increases followers'

perception of organizational justice because fairness demonstrated by ethical leaders is an

essential element of organizational justice (Ko et al., 2017).

Transcendental phenomenology: This is a qualitative research design. A thorough

understanding of a given phenomenon can be reached by describing the lived experiences

of individuals who have experienced the phenomenon (Moustakas, 1994; van Manen,

1997).

Unethical conduct: The destruction or near-destruction of the followers' self-

esteem for the leader's benefit makes transactional leadership highly unacceptable to the

dignity of people and can therefore be taken as unethical social conduct (Brown et al.,

2005).

Rights: These are the basic human privileges of the individual and the civil

liberties conferred by society (Sison et al., 2016).

Wellbeing: This term refers to the welfare, good, satisfaction, security, and

happiness of an individual (Levine & Boaks, 2014).

Assumptions

I made several assumptions in this study that might be difficult to prove.

Clarifying assumptions is necessary to identify the possible threats to my research design

and avoid confusion among readers. The following assumptions were the basis of this

study. First, I assumed that the president of the organizations I selected was a

transformational leader. Second, I assumed that the participants in this study would

answer all questions honestly and disclose all information about their lived experiences

under unethical leadership. Participants may be concerned about the possibility that their

information would be released or that their openness would result in unpleasant

consequences from their superiors. To overcome such barriers, I assured participants of

the confidentiality of their demographic information and interview responses.

Furthermore, I expressed my position in the organization and explained to

participants that I was conducting this research to achieve a positive social impact. I

assumed that participants clearly understood the purpose of the research and the

characteristics of unethical leadership behavior in the organization, as most participants

had enough experience in the organization. I also assumed that some of them have lived

an unethical leadership behavior in one way or the other. I focused on participants that

were more likely to seem from poor communities with the lowest level of education

because I assumed that this would enhance the quality of the data collected. The

population is more ethically vulnerable.

Some participants may be genuinely concerned about the possibility that

information could revert to their superiors with possible unpleasant repercussions,

leading to the withholding of pertinent information Odeneye (2017). To ease such fears,

participants were informed of my status as their colleague to consolidate camaraderie and

necessary rapport with research participants. I further assumed that some participants

might not continue participating in my research after starting the interview process and

asking the interview questions for several reasons. It was essential to convince

participants of the importance of this study and the impact that this study may have upon

their lives and greater society. I made sure to deliver such expectations with dignity and

enthusiasm without biasing the study results.

Scope and Delimitations

The research problem that inspired this study is the unethical leadership

phenomenon from followers' perspectives. Through this study, I explored the

characteristics of unethical leadership from followers' perspectives, as previous studies on

the unethical leadership phenomenon have primarily centered on leaders' perspectives.

According to Simon and Goes (2013), delimitations are restrictions/bounds that

researcher have imposed before the study's inception to shorten the study's scope.

Stakeholders are critical and are essential for organizations to achieve success. Focusing

on followers in conducting this study underscores their importance within the

organization. This concept constitutes delimitation as followers are the frontline

employees in constant contact with other stakeholders; understanding unethical

leadership phenomena from their point of view is very important to achieve fairness and

justice within organizations.

Narrowing the study topic to focus on followers as research participants enabled

me to contribute to the body of knowledge in leadership and management. Focusing on

studying the characteristics of unethical leadership from followers' perspective will

ensure followers' rights and leaders' responsibilities toward respecting such rights.

Furthermore, the use of transcendental phenomenological design in the qualitative study

could be a delimitation because other researchers conducting similar research topics

could have used quantitative or mixed research methods. I anticipated that the readers

would have to judge the transferability of this research for future studies.

Limitations

Limitations are matters not within the researcher's control and conditions that may

restrict the scope of the study or affect the outcomes (Easter, 2019). For example,

studying unethical leadership in a private organization is more open to understanding the

phenomenon than in a public organization. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated

that in 2018, 7.2 million employees in the public sector belonged to a union, compared

with 7.6 million workers in the private sector. The use of both private and public

organizations to conduct my research expanded the generalizability of the study, as

previous researchers have focused more on private or public organizations in conducting

their studies.

Leadership researchers have studied the ethical leadership phenomenon from the

perspective of leaders and managers. They have concentrated on the possibility of no

further replication besides focusing on managerial level perspective in this phenomenon.

To better understand the phenomenon of unethical leadership, I explored the lived

experiences of followers and from their perspectives. Research on this topic must be

ongoing, primarily when ethical leadership scandals have consistently occurred during

the past decade. According to Emery (2016), leaders in 41% of U.S. organizations do not

view unethical behavior as a risk to their business (Ethics Resource Center, 2012).

One primary weakness in this study was focusing on only one public or/and one

private organization to analyze unethical leadership phenomenon; this restriction caused

difficulty recruiting participants for interviews. To ensure the confidentiality and

credibility of the data collected, I chose a private organization where I work with

participants. Although the quality of data might be affected, I anticipated that my being

part of the organization and sharing the same lived experience would be a rich source of

information. Ensuring a clear separation of my role at the institution from my role as a

researcher may also be challenging.

To overcome any possible limitations, such as the personal relationship between

participants since they know each other, I focused on separating participants who do not

know each other in diverse groups. According to Simons et al. (2015), generalizability—

and, by implication, transferability—constitute a potential source of limitation in any

study. Another example of a limitation is when selected participants may not answer

truthfully. A research study usually depends on human experiences, personal

observations, and gathering data from a limited number of individuals or cases; therefore,

the findings and outcomes cannot always be applied to larger populations (Easter, 2019).

Significance of the Study

In the proceeding section, I consider the significance of the current study. I first

review the anticipated contributions to theory and practice. I then emphasize the

importance of addressing the problem identified in the literature to extend current

empirical knowledge.

Significance to Practice

The study may make a significant contribution to the field of leadership. Ethical

standards were what the clear majority had accepted as good (Easter, 2019). In this study,

I focused on frontline employees (followers) because most research studies primarily in

ethical leadership focused on leaders as research participants. Followers under unethical

leadership believed that innovative ideas have been traced to ordinary managers, ethical

leadership is better positioned when ensuring the welfare and dignity of followers.

Followers are less likely to show commitment to a leader who is not ethical.

This study may assist policy makers, scholarly community, and practitioners in

developing entrepreneurial leadership programs to improve organizational performance.

Followers will not provide the best performance under an unethical leadership and

leaders who are only concerned about personal attainment will not get the full

cooperation and loyalty from followers. The manner in which a leader acts and thinks

influences individuals internal and external to the organization. In order to effectively

lead the organization, the leader must make decisions and model behaviors that are

ethical in nature (Jones, 2015).

Significance to Theory

The study may contribute to filling a gap in the literature because most ethical

leadership studies have been conducted using leaders as research participants instead of

followers; this created a lack of understanding of the consequences of the phenomenon

because there is a possibility that leaders may hide some of the attributes of ethical

leadership to clear their image. As a result, scholars have suggested that future research

should explore the phenomenon of ethical leadership from the viewpoint of followers

(Yang, 2014). The study contributed to the existing theory by studying ethical leadership

phenomenon phenomena differently.

Significance to Social Change

This study may enhance the reader's understanding of ethics in leadership because

followers will voluntarily deliver their great ideas and effort to their leaders if they know

they are committed to protecting their dignity and wellbeing. According to Odeneye

(2017), employees may be unwilling to show the same commitment and enthusiasm that

will bring about innovation (Szczepanska-Woszczyna, 2014) to a leader who is not

ethical and is disinterested in their welfare. Furthermore, the findings of this study may

address the short-termism problem in leadership, focusing on corporate profits while

ignoring the organization's social responsibility. The enhanced understanding of the

phenomenon of ethical leadership may ensure that leaders do not merely focus on

corporate profit but social justice and environmental issues.

The potential implications for positive social change were consistent by the scope

of the study may have valuable implications for helping leaders avoid ethical failures.

The importance of this study on ethical leadership on the society may reflect in the

possibility of enhancing the overall gross domestic product (GDP) where followers will

be more productive and improving corporate social responsibility (CSR). Social change

may enhance attitudes, behaviors, laws, policies, and institutions (May et al., 2014).

Summary and Transition

In this chapter, I introduced significant issues related to the unethical behavior of

leaders in organizations. The chapter included an introduction to the research problem by

presenting recent scandals that reflected the unethical behavior of leaders. Focusing on

followers' perspectives as research participants is an effective strategy to understand the

phenomenon of unethical leadership and prevent leaders from swaying the truth. The

chapter included a summary of the entire study, including the purpose of the study and

how I conducted the study.

The next chapter of this study includes a detailed review of the current body of

knowledge about the phenomenon of unethical leadership as exhibited in the extant

literature. Chapter 3 includes the methodology used to conduct this study and the data

collection and analysis procedures. Chapter 4 reports the data that I collected and the

results that I obtained to outline the essence of the phenomenon under study. Finally, in

Chapter 5, I present a complete analysis of the outcomes, implications for practice, and

contributions to the knowledge from this study.

Chapter 2: Literature Review

In this study, I explored the lived experiences of followers under unethical

leadership in private and public organizations in America. In this study, I focused on

frontline employees (i.e., followers) as research participants because limited research has

been conducted to address this matter. The problem that I identified in this study is that

ethical violations in corporate America continue unabated, and unethical leadership

behaviors persist. Despite the pressure that has been put on leaders to behave ethically,

new unethical behaviors continue to emerge. Consequently, the understanding of the

ethical leadership phenomenon has been swayed by leaders (Odeneye, 2017). The

implications for positive social change from the results of this study may be the

enhancement of current knowledge about the characteristics of ethical leadership and

encourage future research on this phenomenon which will prompt a better understanding

of the relationship between unethical leadership and the wellbeing of others.

I conducted the literature review by focusing on followers as research participants

because they constitute a significant block in any organization and are the least

researched. The literature review involves demonstrating possible areas where the study

may contribute to existing knowledge of unethical leadership phenomena. This study,

like that conducted by Odeneye et al. (2018) using frontline employees and by Treviño et

al. (2003) using executives, may broaden the follower’s knowledge and understanding of

ethical and unethical leadership behavior. Furthermore, the findings of this study may

contribute to the well-being of others in bringing about positive social change. Through

the literature review, I provide a historical understanding of the ethical leadership

phenomenon, the motivation of followers, the satisfaction of stakeholders' needs, and

their implications for social change.

A literature review includes a critical understanding of the extant research done in

a particular area and the contribution to the available knowledge. The literature review

enhances the quality of current research by identifying areas of prior scholarship to

prevent duplication and identifies the gaps in research and conflicts from previous

research. By conducting this literature review, I identified the current knowledge trends

and areas in which I could contribute to the wealth of knowledge in the unethical

leadership phenomenon.

I conducted this literature review using primary sources such as peer-reviewed

journals, articles, dissertations, books, and governmental websites. In addition, I accessed

an extensive number of articles and journals through the following Walden University

research databases: Business Source Complete and Sage Publications. I used academic

research keywords and phrases to navigate through Walden University databases,

including ethical leadership, unethical leader, unethical leadership behavior, followers,

stakeholders, frontline employees, employee satisfaction, ethical conduct, and unethical

scandals.

Literature Search Strategy

The literature review consisted of primary sources such as peer-reviewed articles,

journals, dissertations, books, and local government websites. I conducted a systematic

literature search using Walden University Library and focused on the following

databases: Business Source Complete, Academic Search Complete, Sage Premier, and

ProQuest Central. In addition, I focused on other academic journals such as the Academy

of Management Journal, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Human Value, and the

Leadership Quarterly. I determined the relevance of articles using phrases and keywords

such as stakeholders, attributes, theory, decision-making, ethical leadership, unethical

leader, Plato on ethics, CSR, and scandals.

There are several techniques a researcher can use to conduct a literature review;

such techniques can be presented by different methods, including narrative, empirical,

and meta-analysis methods. I conducted my literature review focusing on the narrative

technique, which allows the audience to see the issue from a different perspective and

enhance their understanding of the unethical leadership phenomenon. In addition, through

the narrative technique, I presented relevant research from a different point of view to

help the reader to understand the topic from different angles.

Conceptual Framework

I created the conceptual framework for this study using stakeholder theory,

Adams’s equity theory, and different concepts in ethics. The conceptual framework,

according to Miles and Huberman (1994)), is defined as “a visual or written product, one

that may explain, either graphically or in narrative form, the main highlights that are the

key factors, concepts, or variables-and the presumed relationships among them” (p. 43).

Concepts, ideas, and beliefs can be bundled to form a conceptual framework used to

guide a study (Maxwell, 2013; Odeneye et al., 2018).

Utilitarianism and eudemonistic models are conceptual frameworks used to

compel organizations and leaders to ensure their decisions and policies, ensure the

happiness of their followers, and bring out the best of them (Jones & Felps, 2013).

Although the framework provided by Voss is a thorough examination of the

characteristics of an ethical leader, they both noted that it is open to interpretation, and it

may not be a complete concept to argue.

The eudaimonia model in is Socrates's philosophy is another ethical concept that

was part of the conceptual framework in this study. This philosophy focuses on how to

live and act considering virtue and knowledge. According to Huta and Waterman (2014),

“In eudaimonic philosophies, the principal focus is on activity reflecting virtue,

excellence, the best within us, and the full development of our potentials” (p. 78). This

model represents the well-being of an individual and reflects the conceptual side of the

unethical leadership phenomenon, which negatively affects the welfare and dignity of

followers.

The concept of utilitarianism is the most well-known of the ethical theories of

utilitarianism, which evolved from the political philosophies of Jeremy Bentham and

John Stuart Mill, who sought to achieve the greatest good for the greatest number

(Driver, 2014). The concept of utilitarianism was related to this study because a leader

might pursue a practical view of ethics that would seek the greatest good for the greatest

number. Utilitarianism focuses on the greatest number of followers by emphasizing the

interest of the leader in ensuring the wellbeing and dignity of others (Odeneye et al.,

2018).

Adams’s equity theory is a conceptual framework to balance between the

employee’s efforts toward work and the results they get in return; fairness is essential for

frontline employees who put the effort and sweat to improve their lives (Adams, 1965).

Van Niekerk and Van Niekerk (2013) examined a framework that defines ethical

leadership as a combination of several validated leadership theories. Adams’s equity

theory relates to the current study in the fact that leaders have to be knowledgeable of all

direct and indirect actions of the organization and their effect on stakeholders. In

addition, leaders have to ensure worker motivation and fairness and reward their

contributions. Reward and recognition are Adams’s fair outputs. In other words, if an

employee feels like they are doing great work, they have to feel that they are being

recognized for it.

Stakeholder theory as a conceptual framework contributes to an understanding of

unethical leadership phenomena from employees' perspectives to enrich the current

knowledge about the phenomenon. In addition, stakeholder theory adopts a forward-

looking perspective to understand how managers can prioritize and address stakeholders’

claims to improve the firm’s ability to create value (Freeman, 1984). Stakeholders are

very important for the success of an organization; the organizational products and

services get to the customers through the frontline employees, so their actions impact the

organization's success.

The presence of stakeholder theory in leadership and organizational change is in

the relationship between the behavior of leaders and its impact on the performance of

followers. Previous scholars have explored the harmful impact of unethical leader

behavior through promoting unethical practices and reducing followers’ pro-

organizational behaviors (Gan et al., 2020; Knoll et al., 2017; Zuber, 2015). According to

Odeneye (2017), stakeholder theory is used to analyze business issues from the

perspective of the stakeholders and the impact that such matters may have on

stakeholders, directly or indirectly (Harrison et al., 2015).

Employees in private and public organizations cannot benefit from ownership

profit sharing, so ethical leaders must provide other motivations such as being overly

concerned about the wellbeing of employees; their job satisfaction, wants, and needs; and

their participation in achieving the organizational objectives. Stakeholder theory is one

common way to capture moral rights and ethical responsibilities (Brown & Treviño,

2006). In contrast, few researchers have pointed out that applying shareholder theory in

organizations proved its efficiency and effectiveness; when traditional economic

organizations are unable to meet stakeholder expectations, other business models such as

employee-owned firms could become an optimal solution as they are expected to address

social and economic performance simultaneously (Narvaiza et al., 2016).

Leaders have the mandate to protect and ensure the survival of an organization by

providing stakeholders who are critical to the operation of the organization some sort of

ownership. Shareholder theory could be applied as a business model that promotes

worker participation at the highest level by bringing together participants in ownership

with participation in management and control; it is a model that generates wealth and

quality employment wherever the activity is carried out, and it has shown itself to be a

business model that is valid both in times of crisis, guaranteeing employment and the

continuance of the company, and in times of economic growth, as a collective learning

model (Fernández & López, 2018). The stakeholder theory benefits both organizations

and stakeholders. I adopted this theory to guide this study as a management strategy

representing a conceptual framework that will improve my understanding of the unethical

leadership phenomenon from the follower’s perspective.

Using this conceptual framework, I was able to gather natural data from

participants and overcome the phenomenon's complexities in finding the right

participants. In this study, I enabled the participants to freely speak up as they were

affected by the phenomenon, participants who have been experienced the unethical

leadership phenomenon in one way or the other, and a phenomenological approach was

very appropriate to understand such experiences by followers. The concept/phenomenon

was the system of concepts, assumptions, expectations, beliefs, and theories that support

and inform my research and are an important part of my design (Easter, 2019; Miles &

Huberman, 1994).

By conducting single face-to-face interviews, I was able to assure the participants

that their personal information would not be published. As a result, the participants could

express themselves comfortably and freely, which enhanced the quality of data collected.

In this study, I focused on frontline employees who contact stakeholders, excluding those

employed in managerial positions.

Literature Review

Enhancing the knowledge of leadership and the unethical side thereof depended

on understanding its ethical foundation. The concept of leaders and leadership goes back

to the fourth century BC, where philosophers like Plato and Aristotle theorized Western

society’s ideas on leadership and focused mainly on power and survival and the battle

between emotion and reason (Zhang, 2016). According to Demirci (2019), one can trace

the concept of organizational ethics and virtues related to business back to the early years

of Western philosophy. Ethics explores the concept of morality and the foundations of

moral values; it explores how and why people behave in certain ways. Normative ethics

seek to establish moral standards on what is good or right (Demirci, 2019).

According to Solomon (1992), Aristotle was best known for his emphasis on

cultivating virtues. His moral philosophy can be coupled with business ethics, as he wrote

much about the ethics of exchange. The notions of knowledge and virtue represent

Socrates’s concept of ethics. The eudaimonic life consists of acting the right way, and

evil results from ignorance. Plato indicated that people do everything for the sake of

happiness and need nothing beyond happiness; wisdom is both the highest good and the

ability to use other goods well and beneficially.

Plato posited that virtue is related to happiness and cited that the highest human

good is systematic knowledge of the good together with the virtues identical to or

entailed by that knowledge (Shaw, 2015). Aristippus's ethics asserted that the basis of

pleasure that is the end is not pleasure in general, or pleasure over the long term, but

immediate pleasures. For this reason, Aristippus believed that the end is not happiness

because happiness is the sum of particular pleasures. The Epicurean concept of ethics is a

moral theory that is the prominent hedonistic theory in the ancient world; Epicurus held

that pleasure is the sole intrinsic good and pain is intrinsically bad for humans.

While Plato and Aristotle maintained that virtue is constitutive of happiness,

Epicurus cited that virtue is the only means to achieve happiness (Perry, 2014).

Happiness is understood as a continuous experience of pleasure that comes from freedom

from pain and mental distress. Stoics ethics identified happiness with virtue, and by

virtue, they mean such moral virtues as justice, moderation, and courage, all of which are

required for happiness. The perfect inner tranquility virtue strives for will only be

achieved in the afterlife (Tornau, 2019). Augustine replaces the ancient definition of

virtue as “right reason” (as in Stoicism) or “activity in accordance with reason” (as in the

Aristotelian tradition) with a definition of virtue as love of God or, in later texts, as love

of God and neighbor.

Augustine’s method was based on the idea that human reason and philosophy are

useful only to those who already have faith (Tornau, 2019). He believed that even if he

was mistaken about nearly everything, he thought to be true, one inescapable truth

remained. The general pattern of his argument is the Augustinian ascent from the external

to the internal and from the senses to God; but since human reason is, whether by nature

or due to its fallen state, hardly capable of knowing God, Augustine this time is obliged

to interrupt and re-start the ascent several times (Tornau, 2019). In the tradition of the

conception of ethics from a religious standpoint, St. Augustine equated morality with the

love of God. In contrast, William of Ockham derived morality as the law of God, which

requires absolute compliance (Osborne, 2007).

Another era in ethics in leadership was the Machiavellian immoral ethics, which

was part of the problem when organizational leaders started to adopt this posture. The

term “Machiavellian” or “Machiavellism” find regular purchase among philosophers

concerned with a range of ethical, political, and psychological phenomena, regardless of

whether or not Machiavelli himself invented “Machiavellism” or was in fact a

“Machiavellian” in the sense commonly ascribed to him (Nederman, 2019). Given their

propensity to behave amorally and manipulate others, it is not surprising that

Machiavellian employees commit a wide variety of unethical, counterproductive

behaviors at work (Dahling, 2012; Gunnthorsdottir et al., 2002; Hegarty & Sims, 1979;

Tang & Chen, 2007). The failure of the Machiavellian model to consider stakeholders’

interests is part of the problem that necessitated the current study. The most influential

medieval thinkers were Thomas Aquinas, whose work responds to a fundamental

difficulty in Plato and Augustine’s views (Brown, 2019).

Thomas Aquinas and others had little interest in Augustine’s Platonism, and there

was a certain tension between the medieval tendency to look for a teachable

philosophical and theological system in his texts and his own way of philosophical

inquiry that was shaped by the ancient tradition and left room for tentative argument and

was open to revision (Tornau, 2019). Aquinas distinguished between acts of a man from

human acts—that is, acts that are activities from humans—and found that nonhuman

agents are not the same as human acts, which proceed from knowledge and will. Unlike

some of his forerunners in philosophical psychology, Thomas thinks that each and every

human being has his or her own agent intellect by which he or she can “light up” the

phantasms in order to actually understand a thing. Here we can contrast Thomas’ view

with those of St. Augustine of Hippo, Ibn Sina [Avicenna], and Ibn Rushd [Averroes], all

of whom think God or some non-human intellect plays the role of agent intellect (Brown,

2019).

Kant’s deontological ethics and utilitarianism are the main moral theories on

modern virtue ethics (i.e., the modern era), Kant’s ethics deontological in the sense that

one has to obey the duties and obligations which derive from his supreme principle of

morality, that is, the Categorical Imperative: “Act only according to that maxim whereby

you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law” (Kant, 2005, p. 33).

According to Bentham (1962), to measure the right action by applying a hedonistic

calculus that determines the action's exact utility, Bentham claimed that the duration and

intensity of pleasure and pain are of utmost importance and even possible. In this

nonexhaustive historical review of ethics, I described the diversity and insight in the traits

that have survived in modern interpretations.

The modern era was predicted by the relationship between ethical and unethical

leadership and the concept of management. Leadership is a process that is not specifically

a function of the person in charge. Instead, leadership is a function of individual wills and

individual needs, and the result of the dynamics of collective will is organized to meet

those various needs (Burnes & By, 2012). Furthermore, leadership is different from

management in that managers pursue stability, while leadership is all about change

(Barker, 2001).

Based on the ancient philosophies like Plato, Aristotle, and Socrates, leaders were

more toward acting in ethical manners and maintaining different conceptions of the

standards of ethics. In contrast, the continuous unethical behaviors and misconduct in

organizations are unabated. Unethical acts in leadership are often hidden from view,

which makes the study of the relationship between leaders and misconduct difficult. This

viewpoint depicts the moral leader as a selfless individual committed to the survival of

society. On Aristotle’s view, for example, the virtuous person sees reasons for acting that

the non-virtuous do not and that arguably are not there to be seen absent the effects of

virtue (Berryman, 2019).

Underestimating the role of ethics in leadership can be harmful to organizations

and stakeholders. Whenever the issues related to ethics come into discussion, the ethical

behavior of leaders has captured the attention of scholars and practitioners (Ahmad et al.,

2017). There are various definitions for unethical leadership; Brown and Mitchell (2010)

defined unethical leadership as “behaviors conducted, and decisions made by

organizational leaders that are legal and violate moral standards, and those that impose

processes and structures that promote unethical conduct by followers” (p. 11). Avella

(2017) defined leadership based on the leadership aphorism that states, “Managers do

things right, but leaders do the right thing” (p. 13). But what constitute the “right” thing

will vary (and sometimes conflict) depending on the ethical theory that drives the

decision or action.

Every concept in leadership is liable to be defined as in most management

concepts, ethics and integrity are the heart of the leadership. They should be taken

seriously for the business's success and long-term survival (Ciulla, 1998). Bad leaders are

most frequently intolerant of criticism, unwilling to compromise their beliefs and actions.

They frequently surround themselves with “yes men” who seek to ingratiate themselves

with management and reinforce the leader’s ego (Clements & Washbush, 1999). A

dominating leader’s power allows followers whose views align with those of top

management to feel empowered (often filling a previous void); at the same time, they are

protected (by that same power) from negative consequences when following

inappropriate directives (Chatterjee & Pollock, 2016). While leadership is a highly

researched organizational phenomenon, ethical leadership has been primarily investigated

through philosophical and normative perspectives (Benevene et al., 2018).

Ethics and morality in leadership have a tremendous connection that could

positively or negatively affect followers. According to Ahmad et al. (2017), leadership

ethics and morality have long been discussed in normative terms in philosophical work

(Ciulla, 1998),). Still, scholars' recent descriptive work in the social scientific terms

inspired more research in leadership ethics (Kalshoven et al., 2011). The concepts of

ethical leadership and the moral identity of leaders should be discussed more explicitly

because of the adaptation of ethical leadership behavior for reasons other than a genuine

interest in ethical norms and values. According to Skubinn and Herzog (2016), leaders

might be impressed by the empirical results above that correlate ethical leadership to

organizational citizenship behavior or work engagement. They might try to use ethical

leadership as a ‘‘method’’ to achieve these aims, to ultimately improve economic

outcomes.

Understanding cultural differences in the leadership process is very crucial for the

success of organizations. House et al. (2013) found that the members of a society develop

a cognitive template of preferred leader traits and behaviors and that leaders tend to

behave in a manner that is consistent with the expectations of their respective societies.

Establishing an ethical climate within organizations is a leadership responsibility to

eliminate negative behavior. Organizational culture positively relates to corporate

leadership and governance (O’Connor & Byrne, 2015). Leadership can shape an

organization's culture, and a culture of effectiveness can help increase employees’

readiness to change. Leadership with a weak organizational culture lacks consistent

communication, which leads employees to behave in a manner inconsistent with the

organization's priorities.

Researchers have agreed that culture directly affects ethical leadership; they often

define organizational culture as “the way we get things done” (White & White, 2017).

According to Idris et al. (2015), lack of effective organizational culture and poor cultural

integration affect organizational performance and decrease shareholders’ return. Culture

in organizations is a set of norms that shape how individuals and leaders behave and

adapt to results. Organizational culture includes the norms that the members of an

organization experience and describe as their work settings (Schneider et al., 2013).

Leaders can negatively impact the organizational culture by following time

horizons focusing on meeting an immediate earning objective. Launching an ethical

culture in organizations is a vital job of a moral leader. These actions by leaders could

result in long-term consequences and weak organizational culture where “decisions and

outcomes that pursue a course of action that is best for the short term but suboptimal over

the long run” (Laverty, 1996, p. 826).

Researchers have agreed that leaders’ actions directly impact followers’ behavior;

thus, leaders have the responsibility to establish an ethical climate within the organization

and reduce the barriers of cultural diversity. Establishing an ethical climate within an

organization is important for enhancing positive employee behavior and eliminating

negative behaviors (Karabay et al., 2018). Organizations have to seek ethical leadership

in selected individuals to prevent bribery and corruption, as having an unethical leader

within an organization may negatively affect other individuals’ behaviors. Ethical leaders

who ensure justice and fairness for their followers play a significant role in how followers

devote their time, efforts, and commitment to their job and larger organizational

objectives (Joseph, 2016).

Another variant in the definition of ethical and unethical leadership is that a social

consciousness in leadership is essential; an ethical leader is socially conscious and

responsible toward the wellbeing of others and the environment. For organizations to

achieve sustainability, they must prioritize questions that affect stakeholders. A debate

between researchers about the amount of responsibility and level of accountability of a

leader toward other stakeholders has been occurring; Friedman (1970) argued that

organizational leaders should have both responsibility and accountability to

shareholders/owners, but not to other groups that might be said to be stakeholders of a

firm, while Waldman et al. (2020), acknowledged that it is fine to have a sense of

responsibility toward other stakeholders (e.g., “society”), as long as actions taken in the

realm of CSR are instrumental in terms of serving the needs of the only stakeholder type

to which leaders should be accountable—that is, shareholders/owners.

Leaders need to focus on the needs of stakeholders to enhance the

competitiveness of the organization and achieve a positive social impact. This debate has

developed into an argument between scholars who believe in the means or behaviors of

leaders that seams “right” by their very nature. In contrast, the other focuses on the ends

or achieving what is “good.” According to Letwin et al. (2016), utilitarianism emphasizes

the creation of good consequences (e.g., ‘‘the greatest good for the greatest number’’ is

one version), thus becoming the touchstone for classifying a behavior as moral. Attention

should be given to the fact that there are other stakeholders than employees; sustainability

in organizations has become an essential aspect that leaders have to attain and believe

that such stakeholders are affected by their ethical or unethical actions.

Leaders should establish effective strategies to prioritize stakeholders needs,

ranging from primary to secondary and internal to external. Achieving justice and

fairness for all stakeholders is a moral implication due to the distinction between

extremes of “legitimate” and “illegitimate” stakeholders (Hill, 2017). This study focuses

on followers who are relevant stakeholders of organizations because organizational

decisions affect others, including families and society.

The development of leadership comes from ethics. There are several implications

for CSR carried by the definition of ethical leadership from followers' perspective; ethical

leadership and their decisions directly affect the behavior of followers and the overall

direction of organizational citizenship behavior. According to Ullah et al. (2017), ethical

leadership comes to be the prime channel through which individuals and firms for which

these individuals’ effort to develop morality. According to social learning theory, people

learn manners through care, observation, and mock role model (Bandura, 1977).

Fontrodona et al. (2017) made this clear by arguing that organizations need a

foundational understanding of ethics, so the firm serves all parties involved without

harming any group.

Leaders have the peak stages of position and power in the organization; therefore,

they are likely to be examples for followers by presenting fair treatment, honesty,

liability, respect for others, and suitable mode and conduct. An ethical leader is attractive,

authentic, and credible (Ullah et al., 2017). Effective leadership is visionary leadership;

leaders have to be visionary by having the capacity “to see” to enable the organization

and followers to achieve their highest potential. Leaders are responsible toward

stakeholders. For leaders to be visionary, they can apply several moral assumptions about

their responsibility toward their followers. A vision encourages individuals to make a

deep personal investment, risk failure, and cooperate with others to pursue outcomes

demanding constant learning (Ndalamba et al., 2018). Collins (2001) argued that the

leader must understand that “[g]ood is the enemy of great” (p. 14) and cited that a leader

must empower and direct an organization to achieve world-class competence.

A visionary leader acts for the benefit of the organization and its followers.

Pfeffer (1998) observed that the duty of leaders extended far beyond simply developing a

great plan and that the distinguishing characteristic and obligation of a leader’s vision

was his or her ability to put that plan into action. Being a visionary leader means

recognizing the need for others to grow and create opportunities for organizational

change. Ndalamba et al. (2018) found that a visionary leader who treats followers as

valued assets, establishes a learning culture within their organization, and empowers

followers to become contributing partners in the organization, will achieve improved

organizational performance and followers’ commitment. Organizational commitment

means shared vision, defined as a mutual understanding between leaders and followers to

put their hands together and achieve organizational success. Leaders cannot achieve their

visions and goals without the support and cooperation of followers.

Followership Element in Leadership

The leadership process consists of leaders and followers, and both are

fundamental elements because there is no leadership without followers. The perspectives

of followers have been minimized in historical leadership research, except the role of

followers has given more attention to recent research. According to Prilipko (2019),

while the concept of leadership has been widely researched for decades, followership, as

its vital component, has been given scant attention until recently. Leaders and followers

form the foundation of organizations. They are dependent on the presence of the other for

organizational operations (i.e., accomplishing goals and tasks) through a collaborative

leader-follower relationship (Johnson et al., 2019).

An argument arises that research on ethical leadership that focuses solely on the

leader without including followers is incomplete; scholars have argued leadership cannot

be fully ethical without recognizing the importance, characteristics, and complexities of

followership because employees are more often in follower roles than leaders in various

situations (Raffo, 2013). The performance of effective followers is represented by being

adaptable to change, where a follower must be flexible and open to change and can

handle uncertainty caused by this process. According to Saeed and Mughal (2019), it is

believed that leadership plays a very important role in the organization to increase

followers' performance, also called employees (Khan et al., 2017).

The role of followers in the organization is as important and effective as leaders',

even though the nature and function of great followers are less understood than a great

leader. Often, the actions of the leader, right or wrong, are valued more so than the

actions of the followers within organizations; however, it has been shown that the

followers play an equally important, active role in the leadership process (Prilipko, 2019).

Characteristics of Ethical Leadership

Leadership being ethical or unethical, has real elements that can be identified.

Researchers debate what makes a leader ethical; Waldman et al. (2020) answered this

question with leader accountability, suggesting a new direction regarding how some

leaders might take personal ownership or internalize accountability toward others. Letwin

et al. (2016) have supported utilitarianism in leadership because it seems to explain

leaders’ performance and promotability above and beyond their ethical leadership

behavior.

The characteristics of ethical leaders will affect organizational performance and

the followers’ behavior; leaders who claim to be committed to the needs of a broader set

of stakeholders but use the firm’s CSR engagement instrumentally to maximize

shareholder value face the risk that stakeholders will detect their “moral fakery” or

“moral decoupling” (Pfeffer, 2016, p. 664) and sanction the company’s moral deceit

(Waldman et al., 2020). While some scholars have focused on transformative leadership,

others use the term “ethical leadership;” these different elements and characteristics of

ethical leadership will be outlined in the subsequent sections to better help build

knowledge about the phenomenon of unethical leadership.

Morality in Leadership

An ethical leader must be moral; this aspect depicts integrity and honesty. It also

depicts the leader’s effort to influence the ethical behaviors of followers through

promoting ethical standards and disciplining unethical behaviors (Wang et al., 2017). An

ethical leader treats others with dignity and respect and sees them as ends, not as means

(Eisenbeiss, 2012), while Treviño et al. (2003) argued that leader justice orientation

concerns the nondiscriminatory treatment of others concerning gender, nationality,

religion, and socio-economic status. According to Skubinn and Herzog (2016), it is clear

that there can be differences in how individual leaders treat their followers, in more or

less instrumental ways, showing more or less respect for them as ends in themselves.

A moral leader aspect of ethical leadership behavior explains how leaders use

their managerial power and leadership position to encourage and promote ethical

standards. Morality must be an important part of the ethical leader's self-concept and the

guiding principle for every course of action (Ahmad et al., 2017; Giessner et al., 2015).

Honesty in Leadership

An ethical leader must be honest and trustworthy, as doubt and mistrust may

undercut perceptions of ethicality. Furthermore, ethical leaders must be disciplined and

eager to face the challenges that might face them and their followers. According to

Ahmad et al. (2017), ethical leaders personify certain traits such as honesty, integrity,

truthfulness, openness to input, respect and principles in decision-making, and concerns

for others (Treviño et al., 2003). Trust and honesty in leadership are essential to gain

loyalty and respect from followers; the honest and ethical leader will find ready followers

willing to abide by directives to achieve organizational objectives.

Accountability in Leadership

By being socially responsible, ethical leaders believe in their accountability

toward their organizations and followers. According to Waldman et al. (2020),

responsible leadership is an orientation or mindset taken by people in executive-level

positions toward meeting the needs of a firm’s stakeholders. As such, it deals with

defining those stakeholders, assessing the legitimacy of their claims, and determining

how those needs, expectations, or interests can and should best be served. Leaders who

lack accountability mainly establish an environment where trust is dominant. Ethical

leaders hold others liable for their unethical actions by being accountable for compliance

with laws and ethical standards. According to Odeneye, (2017), the accountability of the

ethical leader should not be taken for granted; instead, necessary checks, balances, and

oversights should be established to curb possible excesses.

Fairness in Leadership

Leaders have to be fair toward their organizations and followers. Fairness in

decision-making has been positively identified with the ethical leadership construct.

According to Crews (2015), a concept in social exchange proposes that ethical leaders’

fair and caring behavior towards followers is associated with lower employee

counterproductive behavior. Ethical leaders are honest, responsible, and trustworthy

individuals who hold them fair to their organizations and followers. According to Crews,

ethical leaders are characterized by honest, honesty, trustworthiness, fair-minded, and

care about the welfare of others.

Ethical leaders listen to their followers and understand their needs and concerns.

Leaders may not be aware of all the dilemmas and issues throughout the organization. By

giving followers the right to talk and participate, such dilemmas and issues can be

brought to the reader's attention and resolved. Leaders should not be unapproachable,

reducing equality and fairness to followers. Bailey and Madden (2016) found that

unfairness and injustice can make work feel meaningless. These authors found evidence

of a lack of distributive justice (i.e., anticipated pay or pay rise not forthcoming)

negatively impacting the concept of meaningful work. They also found evidence of the

negative impact of procedural injustice, such as bullying and lack of opportunities for

career progression.

Responsibility in Leadership

Being an ethical leader enlarges the set of responsibilities to handle. Ethical

leaders are responsible for their organizations, followers, and resources. Responsibility of

ethical leadership can be identified in leaders' compliance with laws, rules, and

regulations. According to Pasricha et al. (2018), ethical leaders express their fundamental

beliefs and call attention to the ethical consequences and long-term risks associated with

decisions that go against the interests of various stakeholders; in doing so, they bring into

underway role modeling and a learning process (Bandura, 1977; Brown et al., 2005) that

gives an impetus to the pursuit of social responsibility initiatives by individuals in the

organization.

Responsibility in ethical leaders has tremendous implications for the effective

management of the organization's resources, including their allocation and use (Odeneye,

2017). Ethical leaders must be conscious enough to make the right decisions, especially

for this study included frontline employees, excluding those relevant to stakeholders;

ethical leaders share relevant decisions with stakeholders and seek their advice in setting

rules and making decisions to benefit the organization. Followers emulate their leader as

an important role model when the leader is willing and able to go beyond the regular call

of duty to exhibit maximum performance. Ethical leaders endorse a broad stakeholder-

centric view of the organization. Therefore, they hold importance, specifically in the

current context of the social enterprise, as they would ensure that practices undertaken

attend to the enterprise’s primary objective of stakeholder value maximization (Pasricha

et al., 2018).

Stakeholders’ Wellbeing

Ethical leaders’ actions embody honesty, accountability, trustworthiness, loyalty,

fairness, and respect for others. Leaders must establish mechanisms to identify the

different needs of their stakeholders. Ethical leaders cater to the welfare of their

stakeholders and demonstrate compassion for others. When the leader is perceived as

trustworthy and able to create a trusting organizational climate, employees feel safer and

productive and respond with loyalty to the organization and their leader (Karabay et al.,

2018). Scholars have found that an ethical work climate means less conflict between

followers and their leaders; a leader’s responsibility is to ensure the welfare and safety of

the organization and followers.

Followers must feel justice and safe to speak up against any unethical behavior

towards them or the organization. Leaders have to ensure the security of such individuals

if they decide to speak against unethical actions. According to Karabay et al. (2018),

most employees may choose to remain silent against the unethical behavior of colleagues

or managers in their workplaces. This can be related to many factors like fear of losing

their job, lack of opportunity to express their ideas to their managers, or lack of

organizational culture (Elçi et al., 2014).

Humility in Leadership

Ethical leaders do leadership more than they talk about leadership; humility in

ethical leadership recognizes that leaders do not have all the means to solve every

problem of the organization on their own. Ethical leaders aim to explore, analyze, and

improve situations using others’ insight and contribution. According to Patelli and

Pedrini (2015), the ethical leader is not interested in painting a picture of a hero but

quietly brings about change beneficial to all. This character of an ethical leader results in

gaining followers’ commitment and loyalty. Organizations with leaders who demonstrate

a moral commitment to the growth of others are more profitable than those with leaders

who do not demonstrate this same commitment (Ndalamba et al., 2018). Ethical leaders

share decisions in dilemmas with their followers, so they make them feel like part of the

organization. When employees participate in the organizational decision-making process,

they become more responsible and accountable for their actions (Denison, 1990).

Approachability of a Leadership

Ethical leaders are always approachable by their followers; organizations with

proper communication between leaders and followers are more likely to succeed and

achieve long-term objectives. Communication in ethical leadership entails stipulating

acceptable norms and punishments that deviation may bring (Demirtas & Akdogan, 2015;

Odeneye et al., 2018). Scholars have agreed that managers’ failure is due to followers’

confusion caused by a lack of communication. Ethical leaders can establish a legitimate

stakeholders’ environment within their organizations; such an aspect can be established

by creating an ethical code of conduct.

Legitimate stakeholders are “those groups to whom the firm owes an obligation

based on their participation in the cooperative scheme that constitutes the organization

and makes it a going concern” (Brown et al., 2005, p. 65). Ethical leaders give their

followers the right to speak, whether in good or bad situations. Yıldız (2019) brought a

perceived organizational justice concept into research. It is affected positively if

employees are given the right to speak and participate in decisions and constructive and

informative explanations during performance evaluations. Perceived organizational

justice affects employees’ attitudes, forming organizational behaviors that shape

organizational performance. Similarly, individuals’ cognitive and emotional perceptions

of the level of communication satisfaction in the organization are measures of behavior

and performance.

Communication within an ethical organizational environment must be effective

and efficient (Yıldız, 2019). Organizational communication practices are the frontrunner

to communication satisfaction. If communication resources meet employees'

informational needs in an organization, the employees will feel satisfied with

communication (Chan & ve Lai, 2017). Ethical leaders value communication with their

followers, and within the organization, they concentrate on the tone and mode of the

communication. They establish a professional strategy to develop this aspect. Ethical

leaders should never stop learning and being tutored in the art of effective

communication. Researchers have shown that followers tend to show high performance if

they are satisfied with the level of communication with their leader. According to Yıldız

(2019), employees’ organizational perceptions are assumed will turn into individual

attitudes, behaviors, and performance, and individual performance will affect the

organization.

Leadership Development Program

According to research, some leaders lack the willingness to apply effective,

ethical conduct to improve organizational performance; the professional development of

leaders has been ineffective, with research demonstrating that 75% of organizations do

not find their leadership development programs to be effective (Jinadasa, 2015).

Although organizations should establish a training program to promote an ethical

leadership skill in leaders, a leader may have all the necessary skills, intellect, and

experience associated with effective leadership; however, an underlying cause

responsible for their ineffectiveness may be that they sabotage themselves, albeit

unconsciously, and are unable to lead effectively.

The focus of an effective leadership development program should be toward the

ethical side of leadership and the consequences of unethical behavior. According to Holt

et al. (2018), although leadership is increasingly seen as a source of competitive

advantage or a strategy component, many organizations lack fully equipped employees to

assume leadership positions (Johnson et al., 2019). As a result, leadership development

programs have increased in popularity; however, the difficulty in developing employees

with the right skills and abilities needed to rise to leadership positions within

organizations is also understood (Ortega et al., 2013). Therefore, addressing the

implications of leadership development programs may be escalated to; an organizational

level where investing in regular training in ethical leadership will benefit the organization

and followers, and a societal level where a positive social impact will be achieved.

Researchers have argued that ethical or servant leadership implications may have

developed in an individual from childhood and, where it is lacking, can be acquired

through relevant training (Odeneye, 2017). According to McKim and Velez (2017),

leadership development should be linked to specific learning experiences. According to

Holt et al. (2018), the factors that are instrumental in leadership development program are

the impact on a person’s view of leadership that results from his or her childhood and

adolescent development, the impact of formal education on how people learn and their

perspectives on training, and on-the-job experiences which are critical, especially those

that improve the leader’s knowledge. Organizations should pay attention to the ethical

behavior of individuals in the selection and hiring process of leaders or provide the

necessary training and development to improve the ethical posture of exiting leaders,

offering ramifications for how an organization is perceived in society (Odeneye, 2017).

In addition, organizations that provide opportunities for growth to their employees will be

better able to identify those with an aptitude for leadership.

Ethical Leadership Perspectives

The concept of ethical leadership has emerged as a prominent theme in the

empirical literature on leadership, with a dramatic increase in related research since the

mid-2000s (Ko et al., 2017). Essentially, ethical leadership is the act of doing what is

right versus doing what is wrong. Ethical leadership perspectives are defined as how

leaders view their ethical leadership versus ethical conduct.

Stakeholder Relationships

As organizations endeavor to become more successful, a healthy relationship

between stakeholders and their organization plays a significant role in developing a

successful organization. Leaders have a significant role in the way their followers devote

their time, efforts, and commitment to (a) their job and (b) how they extend their support

to achieving organizational objectives (Joseph, 2016). Leaders can potentially inspire the

actions of their followers by improving the quality of the leader-follower dyadic

relationship (Graen et al., 1977).

High-quality relationships will lead to high levels of trust and increased

communication channels, which offer some positive benefits for both followers and the

organization. For example, the relationship between leaders and followers in the

workplace determines employee performance, satisfaction, retention, loyalty, and

commitment (Shaw, 1997). In addition, the relationship between leaders and followers

has a significant impact on their organization; the shared values between leaders and

followers and their organization can boost commitment, enhance collective performance,

and develop employee loyalty (Joseph, 2016).

Ethical Decision-Making

Organizational researchers have become more interested in understanding the

effect of ethical decisions in organizations and leaders' ethical behavior. Effective

decision-making affects an organization's positive or negative direction. Ethical leaders

are willing to allow their followers to participate in the decision-making process; ethical

leaders are the ones who are willing to make ethical decisions for the well-being of others

without expecting a reward. According to Yıldız (2019), giving employees the right to

speak to express their thoughts on organizational processes will strengthen their

perception of procedural justice. Employees who acquire information about

organizational processes and take the initiative in making decisions and influencing

organizational processes achieve greater outcomes (Viswesvaran & ve Ones, 2002).

Leaders being ethical are willing to make effective decisions that uplift others and

society. Therefore, making ethical choices is an integral duty in civil society and a good

organizational citizen (Snyder, 2016). In this study, I focused on the lived experiences of

followers under unethical leadership; the ethical violations of leaders have continued

unabated; leaders have overly short time horizons and a bias for immediate gratification.

In addition, Timming (2015) argued that participation in decision-making is not

distributed equally across groups of employees.

Baker et al. (2016) focused on followers’ perceptions of their abilities, which

prompts them to perceive themselves as having the potential for serving in a leadership

role. Organizations should provide the right environment for leaders to make ethical

decisions in bad situations. In cases of moral decision-making, individuals may overlook

or minimize the implications of negative long-term consequences, such as punishment, if

ignoring the possible results decreases stress in the short term (Snyder, 2016).

Organizational Change

Effective leadership shapes the organizational culture to prepare followers to

adapt to change. According to Metwally et al. (2019), the success of change initiatives

may face a barrier in employees' response, especially when they lack the readiness to

change. The growths of any organization are contingent on a leader's ability to respond

and adapt to change; ethical leadership is responsible for ensuring readiness to change

and ensuring such change is fair by reducing uncertainty. An ethical leader strives to

establish an atmosphere of trust within an organization, prepare followers to adapt to

changing environments and ensure that change does not affect organizational behavior

and performance. People are said to be resistant to change (Metwally et al., 2019); this

resistance might be due to their inability to adjust their behavior, skills, and commitment

to meet the new requirements. In addition, they may not possess skills related to a

readiness to change.

Ethical leaders are more toward establishing an ethical environment within

organizations. When leaders are trustworthy, employees’ perceptions of oneness increase

(Ashforth & Mael, 1989). Followers need to feel their leadership highly values them to

achieve effective change. Thus, in situations where ethical leaders are consistent in word

and deed, trustworthy, and people-oriented (Kalshoven et al., 2013), employees are more

likely to do their best on behalf of their organizations. One form of doing their best for

the organization is to offer a positive response when the organization is changing

(Metwally et al., 2019).

Implementing a successful and effective change requires stakeholders’ assistance

and acceptance of such change; the ethical leader’s rapport-building capability and

concern for stakeholders will be germane in garnering necessary support for change

(Odeneye, 2017). In addition, readiness to change implies proactiveness and a positive

attitude toward change (Vakola, 2014), and mental or physical preparedness to participate

in any change by performing actions that will improve, alter, vary, or modify something

(Madsen et al., 2005). Such a positive response is more likely to be developed among

employees under ethical leadership conditions that generate social exchange processes

and inspire their social identity (Metwally et al., 2019).

Moral Disengagement

The continuous unethical behavior of leaders has served as an example in

arguments that unethical leaders may be culpable for the unethical behaviors of

followers. Leaders play a significant role in the way their followers devote their time,

efforts, and commitment to two areas: (a) the responsibilities of their job and (b) their

support to achieving organizational objectives (Joseph, 2016). According to Ruhnka and

Boerstler (1998), courts have placed a legal burden on organizational leaders for

employees’ unethical behavior based upon their duty to supervise employees.

Understanding that leaders implicitly condone unethical behavior may only be useful for

determining guilt, but it is unclear how leaders’ influence translates into follower

unethical behavior. The leader's influence on moral disengagement processes may

provide another way to understand the psychological processes through which leaders

achieve their influence.

In moral disengagement, Bandura (1999) presented individuals as moral agents

who “refrain from behaving in ways that violate their moral standards” (p. 35). Through

the behaviors they model, leaders may also influence individual moral disengagement

processes. Thus, when one observes a leader behaving in a manner that condones

unethical behavior, they will be more likely to morally disengage. In contrast, those who

observe ethical behavior will be less likely to morally disengage (Palmer, 2013).

According to Krylova et al. (2017), the concept of a moral judgment to structure future

thinking about followers' reactions to leaders' transgressions may overcome many of the

gaps mentioned above in the current understanding of followers' reactions leaders'

wrongdoing. Leaders are the source of social influence that might affect one’s ethical

efficacy beliefs and moral disengagement processes.

Gender Inequality

Gender inequality and gender discrimination remain very real challenges for

women workers in general, and especially so for women striving for leadership positions;

Reaping the benefits of female leadership relies on an organization’s ability to combat the

numerous barriers female leaders face that male leader often do not, including gender-

based discrimination, implicit bias, and unfair performance evaluations (Offermann &

Foley, 2020). The problem of gender inequality has been increasing even in the academic

community, where individuals are more knowledgeable and educated and the institutional

policies that block women's progress in the marketplace.

To end this gender inequality requires ethical leaders who will empower and treat

women fairly by adopting policies that bring women’s issues to the forefront with equal

pay and job opportunities. Offermann and Foley (2020) argued that all organizational

leaders face moral and ethical dilemmas. So, a leader’s ability to act ethically can have a

significant impact on various important outcomes. Most popular leadership theories

recognize that how leaders approach ethical dilemmas and the extent to which they

exhibit ethical behaviors are integral aspects of leadership effectiveness.

Ethical leaders are thought to be more than “moral managers” who inspire ethical

behavior from their subordinates; they are also expected to be “moral persons” who act

ethically because that is who they are across contexts (Treviño et al., 2000). For example,

ethical leaders would not take advantage of the role of women in the family to lessen

their chance to compete for leadership roles and positions; women take time off from

work for several reasons such as pregnancy, infant care, and supporting elderly family

members. Another reason that threatens the stability of women women's jobs is sexual

harassment, which may prevent women from aspiring or attaining leadership positions.

Unethical behaviors of individuals in positions of authority could lead them to use their

elevated status to solicit sexual favors from subordinates in exchange for promotions and

recognitions. Ethical leadership duties require that leaders address and identify any sexual

harassment, unfairness, and gender inequality that might occur.

Job Satisfaction

The apparent concern of ethical leaders for others’ wellbeing, especially

employees, will ensure that they are thorough in guaranteeing job satisfaction (Odeneye,

2017). Researchers have argued that unethical behaviors of leaders have a direct impact

on job satisfaction and the performance of followers. In contrast, others have linked

followers' job satisfaction with the environmental setup. The influence of leaders and

their behavior on audiences is undeniable (Yıldız, 2019). On the other hand, ethical

leaders with the roles of moral managers increase the perceived organizational justice.

Ensuring job satisfaction for followers is part of leaders’ social responsibility. Businesses

are already socially responsible when they meet the expectations of the black ink—that

is, operate within the law in the balanced best interest of direct stakeholders (Nerenz,

2018).

Erdiaw-Kwasie et al. (2017) emphasized a corporate stakeholder orientation

connected with corporate social performance practices that influence stakeholders’

silence and attitude towards social performance practices of firms. These practices must

include stakeholders in organizational decisions and communications to achieve job

satisfaction. For example, achieving job satisfaction for followers require mutual

coordination between leadership and followers; employees with affective commitment

are less likely to quit their job and present a lower level of absenteeism; in other words,

there is evidence that the desire of individuals to contribute to organizational goals is

influenced by the nature of the psychological ties that bind them to the organization.

An ethical leader is willing to motivate others to change their behaviors; the

values the ethical leader espouses influence and modify the behaviors of followers (Zhu

et al., 2016). By being ethical, leaders can encourage followers to prioritize the

organization's interests despite their interests. Committed followers are willing to

sacrifice their conveniences when they believe that such actions will further the interest

of their organization.

Followers expect rewards and recognition from the leaders for their sacrifices and

hard work. This view is utilitarian in perspective as it means that the collective interest or

the greater good of the organization is given preeminence over individual concerns

(Odeneye, 2017). Ethical leadership can empower followers’ performance, job

satisfaction, and commitment. It can also increase creativity within the organization and

encourage followers to feel a sense of responsibility toward the contribution to the

growth of their organization.

Positive Social Impact

One of the responsibilities of leadership to satisfy their implications for the

development of society. Bettering societies and improving economic growth has to be a

part of the organizational vision; the vision statement of one major corporation is “To

create a better everyday life for the many people,” while another is “To inspire humanity”

(Nerenz, 2018, p. 11). The development of societies could be achieved by preventing the

dominance of large organizations; there should not be any interconnection between the

society's potential with the survival of specific organizations. Disconnecting the power of

organizations from controlling society will enhance the ability to achieve positive social

impact, social justice, and reduce poverty.

Waldman et al. (2020) agreed on the need for accountability for leaders and

responsibility to improve society; responsibility on the part of leaders can be

distinguished from accountability. The former refers to a felt sense of obligation on the

part of leaders to serve the needs or interests of a set of stakeholders. Accountability goes

one step further regarding experiencing repercussions if those needs or interests are not

well served and committing to taking steps to rectify the situation. Ethical leaders are

responsible for deploying organizational resources most efficiently; thus, leaders should

be open and honest about their instrumental/strategic approach to CSR and responsible

leadership, more generally, so there is no doubt about their authenticity (Waldman et al.,

2020).

Ethical leadership that aims for a positive social impact will also benefit the

political side. Society can benefit greatly from ethical leaders who are willing to take

action and make decisions responsibly. This responsibility of ethical leaders will reduce

the prevalence of politicians and prevent them from being interested only in personal

benefits and muse of powers. Fairness, justice, environmental protection, and the growth

of society are among the priorities of an ethical leader. According to Odeneye (2017),

ethical leaders in the political arena, in their generous disposition about being genuinely

concerned about the wellbeing of others, may strive for the eradication of poverty, global

peace, and the avoidance of war.

Presently, leaders’ actions toward attaining their personal and organizational goals

disregarding the effect of such attainment of stakeholders and society, are still unabated

and continuous; ethical leaders are willing to address and identify stakeholders’ issues

and bring positive social change. According to Cote (2018), ethical leadership has gained

popularity and has captivated the attention of the public, corporations, and academic

institutions due to unethical behaviors resulting in corporate scandals. When they shift

their behavior positively toward society, ethical leaders will be able to prevent economic

and social problems from occurring while blaming organizational leaders' unethical

behaviors. Ethical leaders not only are responsible toward their organizations,

stakeholders, environment, and greater society, but also for preventing any unethical

conduct that might occur; responses to unethical conduct in organizational, political, or

social settings often focus on the role of leaders in facilitating or encouraging such

behavior (D’adda et al., 2017).

The gap in the Literature

Leaders have overly short time horizons and a bias for immediate gratification.

Leaders are willing to behave unethically without due consideration of the impact on

relevant followers; short time horizons can lead to short-termism, defined as “decisions

and outcomes that pursue a course of action that is best for the short term but suboptimal

over the long run” (DesJardine, 2016, p. 15; Laverty, 1996, p. 826). Despite extensive

research in ethical leadership literature, most qualitative studies have focused on the

leaders’ perspective in studying ethical leadership. Several studies have used leaders or

managerial individuals as research participants like Guay et al. (2019) and Khokhar and

Zia-ur-Rehman (2017).

While some leaders appear to lack the willingness to apply ethical conduct to

improve, leaders have swayed organizational performance, the understanding of the

unethical leadership phenomenon. Excluding followers, who constitute a significant

population directly affected by ethical leadership and should be allowed to express their

understanding, may limit available knowledge on the phenomenon (Odeneye, 2017).

The consequences have raised the profile of ethics Zhu et al. (2016), which has

become a problem that is reflected in a gap in research where the scholarly literature has

focused mainly on exploring ethical leadership from the perspective of leaders as

research participants while only a few researchers have focused on the perspective of

followers as research participants. Followers are a major part of any organization and

society; they constitute the larger population in any organization. Consequently, they

have the right to express their opinions and share their perspectives on the phenomenon

of unethical leadership. The findings from this current study (interpreted in detail in

Chapter 5) extended previous literature through demonstrating the perceptions of

followers toward the key traits of an ethical leader. The findings indicated a focus upon

the following eight themes:

1. Morality is a key finding in this study since majority of the participants

agreed on the concept of developing an ethical leadership style by

emphasizing morality. A moral leader can adopt justice by giving each

person what he or she deserves. Justice has been explained by

philosophers as the concept of proportion between a person’s deserts and

the good and bad things that befall in between. In support of this theme,

participants expressed the belief that a moral leader should ensure justice

and fairness for their followers.

2. Honesty is also a key finding in this study which will increase the quality

of a decision-making process. An ethical leader makes right decisions by

being honest and truthful; as a result, followers will learn to be honest

when they see their leader behave in this manner.

3. Accountability is a finding in this study which indicates that ethical

leaders are the ones who believe in their accountability toward their

organization and followers. Leaders who lack accountability are more

likely to establish unfair environment and lack of trust. Ethical leaders also

hold others liable for their actions by being accountable for their actions.

This finding will enhance accountability among decision makers by

making them realize that they will be responsible for their actions and

decisions.

4. Fairness as a finding in this study is considered as important as

stakeholders’ wellbeing in ethical leadership. Stakeholder theory,

eudaimonia, Adams’s equity theory, and social learning theory were the

conceptual frameworks used to guide this study. These theories were

particularly relevant to the theme of fairness. Participants explicitly

demonstrated their views about fairness in leadership. Participants

believed that an ethical leader has to be fair to his followers and society.

5. Responsibility of leadership where the conceptual frameworks that apply

to this finding are stakeholder theory, eudaimonia, and utilitarianism. An

ethical leader is willing to admit their mistakes and shortcomings--not

only their achievements. In addition to admitting their weaknesses, ethical

leaders can find the right people to make up for it.

6. Stakeholders’ wellbeing in relation to the conceptual framework of

stakeholder theory and eudemonia; this theme indicates that ethical

leaders’ concern about stakeholders’ wellbeing has been found to affect

the performance of employees. This finding proved that followers would

have better performance when their leaders are concerned about their

wellbeing.

7. Humility is another finding of this study, demonstrating an ethical leader

is humble and respects the values of others. In addition, an ethical leader is

friendly and peaceful. The conceptual frameworks that underpin this

theme are eudaimonia and social learning theory. Participants have shown

the importance of an ethical traits from childhood, through school and the

professional environment.

8. approachability another finding that derived from Theme 10 where

Participants believed that an ethical leader has to be perceived as

approachable by their followers. Proper communication between leaders

and followers is critical to attaining organizational goals and achieving

long-term objectives. More than 10 participants discussed the effect of the

lack of communication on managers’ failure in organizations. The

conceptual frameworks that are most relevant to this theme are stakeholder

theory, social learning theory, and Adams’s equity theory.

Summary and Conclusions

The continuous unethical actions of leaders to attain their personal and

organizational goals have led researchers to realize the importance of ethics. The findings

outlined in this literature review indicated how important ethical leadership is even after

several studies have been conducted within a short period. The literature review went

back to the ancient Greek philosophers studying ethical leadership, demonstrating Plato’s

and Aristotle’s concepts in ethics; the popularity of studying ethics in leadership has been

continued, and researchers have attempted to understand ethical leadership from various

perspectives. The literature review has focused on the unethical side of leadership from

followers' perspective and addressed the characteristics of ethical leadership, including

morality, honesty, accountability, fairness, responsibility, wellbeing, humility, and

approachability.

Applying ethical conduct and encouraging ethical leadership in organizations and

societies has marked organizational and social responsibilities for leaders toward the

society, stakeholders, and organization. This literature review focused on the social

responsibility of leaders and the importance of adopting ethical principles and standards

while aiming to achieve organizational goals. This chapter also identified the different

terms used in this study. I addressed the relationship between followership and

leadership, which resulted in the gap in research that inspired this study.

Chapter 3: Research Method

The purpose of this qualitative transcendental phenomenological study was to

explore the lived experiences of followers under unethical leadership in public and

private organizations in the United States. The focus of this phenomenological study was

on followers as research participants because they constitute a significant stakeholder in

any organization. The implications for positive social change from the results of this

study may enhance current knowledge about the characteristics of ethical leadership and

encourage future research on ethical and unethical leadership, which can enhance the

understanding of the relationship between unethical leadership and the wellbeing of

others. Ethical leaders set the tone in an organization by displaying, communicating, and

reinforcing appropriate behavior (Steinbauer et al., 2014).

In this chapter, I offer a detailed explanation of the research method and particular

design that I used to conduct this study. I explain my main responsibilities and why I

chose a qualitative phenomenology research design. I discuss my main role as the

researcher and justify the manner of selecting participants and collecting data. The

chapter includes a description of the specific methodology, including the logic in

selecting participants, the procedures for recruitment, and data collection and analysis

processes. In this chapter, I also address the study’s ethical issues, trustworthiness,

research credibility, and transferability.

Research Design and Rationale

In the following section, I present the research method and design that guided this

study. I review the justification for the chosen research design. I also illustrate why these

were chosen in comparison to other possible methodological approaches.

Research Method

Ethical leadership is the main phenomenon of this study. An ethical leader is one

who has the ability to be conscious of and uphold the dignity and wellbeing of their

followers. According to Schwandt (1994), researchers attempt to make sense out of, or

interpret experience from, the perspectives of those who lived it. Scholars have recently

conducted studies in ethical eldership using both quantitative research methods (Wang et

al., 2017) and qualitative research methods (Odeneye et al., 2018). While my focus in this

research was an exploration of the phenomenon of unethical leadership, knowledge of the

variables and theory base within the phenomenon was very limited; this study was not

about measuring relationship among variables, which made the use of the quantitative

method inappropriate.

A qualitative research methodology was suitable for this study. I had the ability to

demonstrate the unethical leadership as a phenomenon with a focus on followers as

research participants. I adopted a qualitative methodology n this study because I was able

to study issues pertaining to ethical leadership in rich detail and greater depth (see Crews,

2015). According to Moustakas (1994), attempting to understand the phenomenon from

the perspective of different participants enhanced the identification of patterns and

themes as they emerged.

Face-to-face interview was the primary data collection method that I used to

conduct this study. There are several sources that may be used to collect data in a

qualitative study, including observations of the phenomenon, documents, or interviews.

According to Kvale (1983), an interview is the most powerful tool to achieve an

understanding of the experiences lived by another person. My use of interviews in this

study enhanced the credibility and quality of the data collected. I conducted interviews

with individuals face-to-face; in contrast to virtual interviews, which meant that I was

able to observe nonverbal cues that may be pertinent to a further understanding of the

phenomenon studied (Odeneye et al., 2018).

Research question and audience are important in the choice of methodology. The

qualitative approach was appropriate because the research question was open-ended, in

contrast with the closed-ended questions that are typical in quantitative research. Studies

that address how and why questions are better addressed using the qualitative method

(Odeneye, 2017; Yao, 2014). The research question in this study centered on the

understanding of feelings, emotions, and experiences of research participants about the

phenomenon of unethical leadership. The primary distinction between qualitative and

quantitative methods is the research question; because the research question was open-

ended, a qualitative approach was more appropriate for this study. This is in contrast to a

quantitative study, in which the research question is usually closed-ended.

As a doctoral study, the intended audience of this study is the academic

community (see Odeneye, 2017). The audience is very important in the choice of a

methodology; the fresh and plural approaches associated with the qualitative method are

useful in studies that give voice to the oppressed. This approach is also useful for studies

providing an in-depth understanding of societal issues, and those that lead to the

emergence of new and valuable insights (Freeman et al., 2015).

Research Approach

Within the qualitative method are several potential designs, including case study,

grounded theory, narrative, phenomenology, and ethnography; I selected the

phenomenological design for this study. The grounded theory approach was not relevant

to this study because the intent of grounded theory is to go beyond description in order to

generate a theory. The narrative approach was not appropriate either because narrative

research is focused on the narratives of an individual. An ethnographic study is about a

group that shares the same culture.

The ethnographic approach would not have been appropriate for the study

because participants may come from diverse cultural backgrounds, and they may not

share the same culture. Because this study was not about understanding a culture and its

influence, ethnography was inappropriate (see van Manen, 1982). Case study researchers

are concerned with developing an in-depth analysis of a program, an event, one case, or

multiple cases. Setting parameters for limiting a case study in a timeframe, proper

environment, and other relevant dynamics may be problematic. These limitations to the

case study approach may impinge negatively on a thorough understanding of the

phenomenon of ethical leadership (Odeneye, 2017).

Given the purpose of this study, I determined that the phenomenological approach

was suitable to conduct this study. Phenomenological researchers focus on understanding

the essence of the lived experiences of individuals. In this study, I aimed to understand

the lived experiences of followers under unethical leadership.

Research Design

Through the use of transcendental phenomenology to explore the lived

experiences of followers under unethical leadership, I ensured the grounded nature of the

phenomenon supported by experiences. There are different themes that can be identified

from the lived experiences of followers. Transcendental phenomenology was the most

suitable qualitative research design to enhance the understanding of the phenomenon

though description of the lived experiences. According to Moustakas (1994), using the

transcendental design in phenomenology allowed the phenomenon to be perceived from a

fresh, enlightening, and unique dimension. I served as an interpreter in describing the

experiences of followers. The view of the researcher cannot be excluded entirely from the

findings; as much as the researcher’s opinion is necessary, the primary focus must be on

the views of participants.

The findings about the unethical leadership phenomenon in this study are more

relatable because this research was conducted based on the lived experiences of

followers. According to Moustakas (1994), this method leads to the identification of the

essences or essential structure of the phenomenon studied. The use of epoché in

transcendental phenomenology allows researchers to suspend any assumptions about the

phenomenon being studied and focus on the experiences of the research participants

(Moustakas, 1994). Epoché is a valuable tool that enhances the credibility and objectivity

of research findings (Odeneye, 2017).

Role of the Researcher

For a phenomenological study, the role of a researcher is to bring the lived

experiences of individuals into words in data collection and to try to understand those

experiences; the status of the researcher and ethical implications need to be known before

data collection process starts. In this study, I focused on one private and one public

organization from the perspective of only followers. The research participants in the

selected private organization are my colleagues; the majority of them are frontline

employees, and they do not hold any managerial positions within the organization. The

recruited participants had all been employed in the same organization for more than 7

years.

I served as a data collection instrument for this study. My role was as a research

instrument and observer to collect data, as I work for the same organization as

participants. I analyzed the data after conducting face-to-face interviews with

participants. My role in this research was to establish a trustworthy and confidential

environment in which participants were protected and their information was secured.

To enhance objectivity in data collection, I focused on colleagues from different

departments than mine inside the organization. I excluded any friends or family members

from participating in this study. Through these measures, I enhanced objectivity and

ensured formality in the interaction between the participants and myself. I established and

maintained a professional relationship with participants by applying informed consent to

ensure to them that their information was very confidential, especially in the selected

public organization. I maintained a professional and courteous relationship with

participants in order to reduce the issues related to power throughout the research

process, and participants voluntarily participated in the research. Selecting participants

from the same organization where I work could have created potential ethical problems;

however, the use of informed consent prevented such ethical issues from occurring and

kept names and information confidential.

Considering other ethical issues that may occur, I scheduled any face-to-face

interviews outside business hours when the organization is closed to avoid causing any

interruption within the organization. Financial considerations are another source for

ethical dilemmas in research. I did not obtain funding for this study in the form of a

research grant from any organization. The organization did not sponsor my research or

reimburse me for any tuition and expenses that I spent on this doctoral program. These

facts enhanced my ability to prove my research and findings and avoid the pressure that

could provide my findings because I had received no favors either from the organization

or any executives or other employees within the organization.

The approval number given by Walden University’s Institutional Review Board

(IRB) for this study is 04-21-21-0553205. I was bound to honor the duty toward

participants and IRB members to conduct a legitimate a responsible study. I ensured that

the study was credible and avoided any questionable results; there was no offer of

financial considerations or incentives of any kind to recruit research participants in this

study. I sent a thank you and appreciation letter to all participants for sharing their time

and effort.

Methodology

Despite the different methods and approaches that scholars have used to

investigate the phenomenon of ethical leadership, the qualitative method is a

commonplace to understand the aspects of this phenomenon first. Qualitative method of

inquiry is often used when a researcher is trying to understand a concept of phenomenon

while the quantitative method is appropriate to discern relationship among variables or

test a theory. According to Maxwell (2013), the qualitative method creates a deeper

understanding of the meaning of ethical leadership as experienced in particular contexts.

The focus of this study on followers as research participants, as a population less

researched, was better to explore qualitatively in order to understand the phenomenon of

ethical leadership. The open-ended nature of the research question of this study made the

qualitative method most suitable to explore the research problem (see Maxwell, 2013).

Participant Selection Logic

Through this study, I intended to understand the phenomenon of unethical

leadership from the perspective of followers. The population for this study included

frontline employees, excluding the ones holding managerial positions. A population is a

group whose individual members meet the same criterion or criteria familiar to all group

members (Odeneye, 2017). I selected a sample of 20 participants from a private and

public organization in the United States. The sample represented followers in direct

contact with other stakeholders such as customers. I excluded any employees who held

managerial or supervisory positions from the population.

In this research, I focused on frontline employees who had experienced the

phenomenon of unethical leadership. Frontline employees provide a bridge between the

organization, its leadership, and other external stakeholders. According to Moustakas

(1994), participants in a phenomenological study must have experienced the same

phenomenon. According to Odeneye (2017), considering the contextualization of this

study in the conceptual framework of stakeholder theory, these frontline employees are

not only stakeholders themselves but form a vital point of connection between different

stakeholders, including government, managers, customers, taxpayers, contractors, and

suppliers.

The use of a sample of the population is essential. Researcher would strive to

keep a sample bias free environment by screening in the respondents needed; recruiting a

sample that represented one target in qualitative study (Easter, 2019). Merriam (1998)

showed that purposeful sampling assumes that the investigator wants to discover,

understand, and gain insight and therefore must select a sample from which the most can

be learned (p. 61). To gather the participants for this qualitative study, I relied on a

purposeful sampling strategy to sort and identify 15 to 20 participants or until data

saturation occurs. Purposeful sampling relies on variations that require the researcher's

knowledge and skill to choose the one that is most fitting to the study.

Researchers have several purposeful sampling strategies to choose from: variation

sampling, intensity sampling, snowball sampling, criterion sampling, homogenous

sampling, critical case sampling, deviant case sampling, convenience sampling, stratified

purposeful sampling, and emergent sampling. Based on the nature of my study, I decided

to use a mixed purposeful sampling strategy to enhance the credibility and richness of the

data collected. In addition, using multiple sampling strategies provided me with

flexibility in recruiting participants and collecting data.

Figure 1

Multiple Sampling Strategies

Due to the nature of participants required to conduct this study, I applied a

snowball sampling strategy during the initial data collection stage. Through this sampling

criterion, I was able to sort and identify different and rich data sources (see Figure 1). In

addition, participants were given a consent form to avoid bias, and such forms enabled

them to make an informed decision about their participation in this study. Finally, my use

of a snowball sampling strategy improved my identification of individuals who

experienced the unethical leadership phenomenon as a lived experience.

Sampling)

Startegies

Purposeful*

Sampling

Snowball*

Sampling

Criterion*

Sampling

After collecting the required data using a snowball sampling strategy, the data

were further analyzed and subject to criterion sampling to ensure that the selected

participants met specific parameters. Using a criterion sampling technique was beneficial

to this study because participants were selected and sorted using a methodology that

brings more efficient and effective information. These sampling strategies in selecting

participants focused on frontline employees, excluding followers who hold managerial

and supervisory positions; participants each had a minimum of 7 years of experience and

held a 4-year college degree. Through a criterion sampling technique, I ensured that the

participants shared the same job description, met the minimum requirements, and

contributed beneficial information to the study.

Figure 2

Relevant Criteria That Participants Must Satisfy

Sample Size

The target sample size was 15 to 20 participants, or until data saturation occurred.

I selected this sample size based on the idea of using the qualitative method to ensure that

the sample size was not so large as to undermine the comprehensive collection of data but

sufficient to achieve saturation. In exemplifying sample size in a phenomenological

study, Moustakas (1994) pointed out that Trumbull (1993) used 12 to 15 participants. In

considering an organizational change in conjunction with the role of ethical leadership

from the followers’ perception, Odeneye (2017) explored the phenomenon from 20

followers' perspectives using a phenomenological design.

Seven%

Years%of%

experience

Four%Years%

College%Degree

Followers%

Differences in the sample sizes used in these recent studies confirmed that sample

size is the researcher's prerogative and is informed by different parameters, including

time, resources, validity, the intent of the study, and accessibility (Maxwell, 2013;

Odeneye, 2017). The size of 20 ensured data saturation and fulfilled the Walden

University Management School requirements, as reflected on the management annotated

dissertation template for a qualitative study. The minimum number of research

participants in a phenomenological study should be 20 (Walden University, n.d.).

Instrumentation

The data that I collected in this phenomenological study came mainly from open-

ended questions in face-to-face interviews. The use of face-to-face interviews in data

collection facilitated the communication between the researcher and participants and

prevented any miscommunication during the interviews. The focus on an open-ended

research question has improved the quality of the data collected by concentrating on the

viewpoint of the participant without predetermining those point of view through prior

selection of questionnaires. I worked consciously to reduce my subjectivity and enhance

my objectivity and credibility through the study, and have focused on an epoché

approach, which requires patience and attention to details. I prepared, recorded, and

analyzed all data in this study.

Interview

Face-to-face interviews were a data collection instrument in this

phenomenological study focusing on open-ended questions. According to Arsel (2017),

interviews are helpful because they give voice to people’s lives and their perceptions of

experiences necessary to them (Belk et al., 2013) and allow the researcher to understand

the way they see the world (McCracken, 1988). The majority of researchers writing about

interviews have cited that interviews should be conducted face-to-face; in the qualitative

paradigm, interviews are often seen as one of the best ways to “enter into the other

person’s perspective” (Oltmann, 2016, p. 12).

The face-to-face interview proved an efficient instrument to help me enhance the

quality of data collected. Face-to-face interviews allowed me to decide which information

to process during the interview itself. There are several face-to-face interviews, such as

conversational, interview guide approach, and open-ended. In this study, I focused on the

open-ended interview model, which ensured that all questions were similar and consistent

between all participants and removed any possibility of bias.

Based on the extant literature on ethical leadership, I developed an open-ended

interview question as an instrument in the data collection process. Open-ended questions

improved the quality of data and elicited broad and thorough responses, unlike closed-

ended questions, which can be answered with yes or no answers. The open-ended

interview questions reflected the interest of the researcher, who viewed the participants’

experiences and behaviors pertaining to ethical decision making practices as inseparable

(Moustakas, 1994). Developing a small open-ended research question as the question

listed at the beginning of this chapter allowed the participant to express their opinions and

feelings about the studied phenomenon. The research question in this study started with

“what,” which allowed me to capture the point of view of other people without any bias.

I was the data collection instrument for this qualitative study; I prepared interview

questions and conducted interviews. I also analyzed data myself, increasing the

credibility of the data that I was looking to collect. Because I was studying the

phenomenon of unethical leadership as a lived experience from followers' perspective, I

needed to see and understand the studied phenomenon in a new way based on others’

experiences (see Moustakas, 1994). An epoché approach was my focus. This approach

requires patience, attention to detail, and openness. According to Moustakas, epoché is a

way of looking and being.

Procedures for Recruitment, Participation, and Data Collection

Research data were collected using 20 separate interviews, or until data saturation

occurred, with individual research participants; I conducted the interviews in a private

organization where I work and a public organization focusing on followers as research

participants. To ensure confidentiality, I met each individual separately in a private room

in the premise of the organization; I ensured a private and confident environment for the

participants. I aimed to explore the lived experiences of followers under unethical

leadership and conducted meetings in the organization's premises, which enhanced the

credibility of the data collected. According to Moustakas (1994), the context in which a

phenomenon is encountered impacts the composite structural description, which is “a

way of understanding how the co-researchers (participants) as a group experience what

they experience” (p. 14).

I was the agent of data collection. I focused on observations and document

reviews to conduct interviews with participants. An interview is probably the most

powerful tool to understand the experiences lived by another person (Kvale, 1983).

During the interviews, I asked open-ended research questions and addressed any

subjectivity. This enhanced the quality of the data that I collected. Being an employee in

the same organization increased my ability to collect quality information from

participants and ensure a secure environment during interviews.

I focused on experiences that followers had already lived and experienced.

Participants had the opportunity to express their options about this experience within one

interview. I conducted interviews for 2 months, considering any unforeseen

circumstances and rescheduling. The period of 2 months allowed me to review the data

collected and record changes. I took weekends to summarize the questions and answers,

code the collected data, and adapt accordingly.

The duration of the interviews varied depending on the amount of information

that the participant was willing to provide, but I anticipated them to last between 15

minutes and 1 hour each. The duration of the interviews gave participants enough time to

express their comprehensive information about the phenomenon of unethical leadership.

In addition, because interviews were conducted after work, 1-hour interview should be

enough for participants to consider their daily schedule. Ericsson and Simon (1984, p. 27)

state that the “accuracy of verbal reports depends on the procedures used to elicit them

and the relation between the requested information and the actual sequence of heeded

information”.

I recorded the data collecting process during interviews using a digital device

such as a smartphone. I notified the participants that interviews were recorded for quality

purposes and provided an informed consent form assuring them that their names and

private information would stay confidential. I focused on voice recording only, excluding

video recording for privacy purposes and participants' comfort. I used my notepad to

capture any quality information by writing down the moment's time for a more accessible

review over the weekend. Note-taking is aided by setting an interview protocol and

procedures.

Follow-up was critical for this study to ensure that a minimum of 20 individuals

participated, increasing the chance of data saturation. I predicted that cancellations and

rescheduling might be an issue that I would need to address as a researcher; recruiting

five additional participants helped me avoid any consequences. Cancellations might have

affected the research outcome while recruiting additional participants and informing them

that they might be contacted, filling any such gap. I notified participants that they might

be contacted for follow-up questions. Still, they did not have to appear again for an

interview, and such follow-up questions were conducted via email or over the phone.

This step helped me develop data analysis in case of any unexpected transcription issues.

I provided participants with a copy of their transcripts and sent an appreciation letter to

all participants via email.

To ensure the quality of this research, I made significant efforts to ensure the data

that I generated reflected the research question. I developed the interview questions to

generate the type of data that is relevant to the research question. I guided this study by

developing an open-ended research question and ensuring uniformity between the

specific interview questions.

Data Analysis Plan

Data analysis is a challenging part of the research process in qualitative studies.

Several techniques could be used to analyze data, including reading the interview

transcripts, sorting similar concepts, and analyzing the data for perspectives. Coding was

essential in this qualitative study; I used coding to sort the gathered data in a manner that

enabled me to identify themes, patterns, and perspectives. The analysis included several

steps like preparing the transcripts for review, coding the data into descriptions and

themes, and validating the quality of data collected. In qualitative research, the codes

were developed from past literature, surprising concepts from the interview transcript,

and ideas that include significant conceptual perspectives in the study (Yin, 2014). I

performed coding using NVivo software; using hand-coding would have required me to

put more time and effort, while using this software was time-efficient. The popularity of

NVivo among qualitative researchers stems from its importance of sorting, analyzing and

retrieving data.

To ensure the quality of the research, I used both hand-coding and coding

software; hand coding allowed me to capture the expression of feelings and emotions of

participants in this qualitative study, which would have been challenging to do using

aided software. The data quality was developed based on my ability to capture

participants' feelings and emotions about the phenomenon. This process was achieved by

hand-coding, which helped me identify the relevant themes. Using multiple data analysis

sources provided a source of data triangulation, in which similar findings from multiple

sources are grouped.

The seven-step phenomenological analysis advocated by Moustakas (1994) was

the procedure for data analysis in this study. After identifying the themes, I used a

technique called horizontalization as described by Moustakas to emphasize all the data

collected. I focused on the seven-step phenomenological analysis procedure for data

analysis in this qualitative study. Then I used a data reduction process to focus on the

data relevant to the research question. By concentrating on the data relevant to the

research question. These steps enhanced my ability to draw findings that summarize the

meanings derived from the participants’ lived experiences under unethical leadership.

According to Odeneye (2017), pattern coding at a second level was improved by

using memo, journal, and analytic memoing to capture additional and highly relevant

information about the collected data. I used the two-cycle analysis championed by Miles

et al. (2014): “First Cycle coding is a way to summarize segments of data initially. As a

Second Cycle method, Pattern coding is a way of grouping those summaries into a

smaller number of categories, themes, or constructs” (p. 23).

Issues of Trustworthiness

In qualitative research, trustworthiness is the most important criterion for judging

the quality of the of a research study, strategies to enhance the trustworthiness of the

study include triangulation and member checking. Trustworthiness also refers to the

degree of confidence in data, interpretations, and method used to ensure the quality of a

study. According to Odeneye (2017), internal validity involves measures adopted by the

researcher to assure the audience of the veracity of the findings of the study, enabling the

reader to adjudge the work as trustworthy. It is possible to determine the trustworthiness

of a qualitative research by considering its credibility, transferability, dependability, and

confirmability.

Credibility

The truth and credibility of qualitative data were enhanced by researchers

describing their own lived experiences and the findings verified with participants;

According to Lincoln and Guba (1985), qualitative research’s trustworthiness is enhanced

by its credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability. Lincoln and Guba

explained credibility as the confidence that can be placed in the truth of the research

findings. According to Korstjens and Moser (2018), credibility is the equivalent of

internal validity in qualitative research; it is concerned with the aspect of truth-value.

Researchers use several strategies to ensure credibility in qualitative research, such as

prolonged engagement, discrepant-case analysis, persistent observation, peer review,

member checking, triangulation, and member checking. I used several of these strategies

to conduct this study.

In order to identify any unnecessary additions in this study, I facilitated a peer

review by fellow doctoral students. I used a member check strategy in this study by

sending transcripts of the interviews to participants for feedback; this strategy allowed

participants to validate whether I had accurately interpreted the meanings of their

answers. Data triangulation was secured using the various data sets that emerged

throughout the analysis process: raw material, codes, concepts, and theoretical saturation

(Korstjens & Moser, 2018). Finally, I used negative or discrepant case analysis in this

study to determine the results and findings of other studies and highlight the relevance of

the research.

Transferability

Transferability in qualitative study is the degree to which the results of qualitative

research can be transferred to other contexts or settings with other respondents. The

researcher facilitates the transferability judgment by a potential user through thick

description (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). I made attempts to enhance transferability in this

study by providing a thick description of the participants and the research process

including the method, data analysis, and findings. This strategy enabled the reader to

assess whether the findings of this study are transferable to their settings (Korstjens &

Moser, 2018). Involving a detailed description in this study ensured its transferability

while implying that the readers, not the researcher, made the transferability judgment. In

addition, involving transferability in this study made it feasible for other researchers to

determine the possibility of research replication in different research environments.

Dependability

Dependability is the stability of findings over time (Lincoln & Guba, 1985).

Dependability involves participants’ evaluation, interpretation, and recommendations

based on the study's findings, such that all are supported by the data as received from

participants of the study. To ensure the findings in this study will be consistent and can

be repeated, I promoted dependability by keeping a thorough “audit trail,” in which I was

responsible for providing a complete set of notes on decisions made during the research

process, research meetings, reflective thoughts, sampling, research materials adopted,

emergence of the findings, and information about the data management (Korstjens &

Moser, 2018).

I diligently took notes during interviews, followed up with participants, and

conducted member checking after the original interviews. I shared my interpretation with

the participants and asked for their feedback to see if the meaning of their answers was

captured accurately. Through these strategies, I ensured the dependability of this study

and its findings.

Confirmability

Confirmability is another validity measure in qualitative study; it is the degree to

which other researchers could confirm the research study's findings. According to

Lincoln and Guba (1985), confirmability is concerned with establishing that data and

interpretations of the findings are not figments of the inquirer’s imagination, but derived

from the data. In addition, confirmability concerns the aspect of neutrality, or the need to

secure the inter-subjectivity of the data. One of the strategies that I used to ensure

confirmability in this study was giving close attention to the most relevant data to the

research question.

Being the researcher and the data collection instrument, the possibility of

subjectivity in the research cannot be overruled; using epoché, I avoided using my

personal views as a researcher and data collection instrument and I reviewed the

participants’ responses as objectively as possible. Epoché is a Greek word referring to

refrain from judgment or abstain from the everyday way of looking at things (Moustakas,

1994). Zhang (2016) argued that from the perspective of epoché, the everyday

understandings and knowledge of things are being set aside. In member checking, I

allowed participants to confirm or contradict the interpretation of the meaning of their

answers and provide feedback, which helped check the authenticity of data collected.

Ethical Procedures

The protection of human subjects through the application of appropriate ethical

principles is important in any research study; in a qualitative study, ethical considerations

have a particular resonance due to the in-depth nature of the study process (Arifin, 2018).

For this study, I submitted a formal request to both private and public organizations to

use the organization and participants to conduct research. To prevent any harm for

participants or the organization itself, finding from this research excluded the names and

information of participants and organizations. As a researcher, I provided an informed

consent with the organization and participants to keep their names and information secret.

Face-to-face interviews were the primary data collection method for this study;

because anonymity is not fully applicable in interviews, the names and identities were not

used at any data collection and storage phase, as participants were given pseudonyms to

protect their privacy. In addition, I advised the participants to use pseudonyms when

addressing any other names to protect other organization members.

Participation in this study was voluntarily, and I obtained consent to improve the

quality of data collection and ensure ethical procedures. According to Arifin (2018), the

process of obtaining consent consists of the following: consent should be given freely

(i.e., voluntarily), subjects should understand what is being asked of them, and involved

persons must be competent to consent. I informed participants about the research, they

reviewed the information, and they had the power to decide whether to participate and

decline after I provided a thorough explanation of the research process. I submitted the

consent form to obtain the approval by IRB, which stated the objective of this research

and its benefit to the research site and participants.

The data collection process was confidential and private; I ensured that the data

collected during the interview process were securely stored and continued after reporting

findings. Participants’ names and titles, locations, data transcripts, and other personal

identities remained anonymized. I preserved the confidentiality of the participants by not

revealing their names and identity in the data collection, analysis, and reporting of the

study findings (Arifin, 2018). I used hand coding and assisting software in data analysis

process in this study; the collected data were stored in encrypted devices and password

protected, hard copies and any written materials was securely stored in a secured cabinet

in a locked room with no access to others to ensure adherence to legal requirements. I

will store the written and electronic data for 5 years, as Walden University’s IRB

regulations require. Data disposal will occur after 5 years through shredding paper

records and erasing records stored on a computer hard drive using a commercial software

application designed to remove all data from storage devices.

Several measures were applied to address any ethical issues that may have arisen.

First, I worked in the same private organization where the research was conducted; this

study only included participants from different departments than mine to avoid any undue

familiarity. I excluded any participants who held managerial or supervisory positions

which avoided any power differential that might cause ethical concerns. Third, I

respected the privacy and confidentiality of participants by keeping their names and other

personal information confidential. Fourth, I explained to participants the research

purpose, procedures, and risks and the benefits associated with the study. Finally, I

maintained a professional and natural relationship with all participants and ensured no

supervisory relationship with any participant.

I ensured that there were no power issues or conflicts of interest in the

relationship between research participant and me as researcher. Although I sent the

informed consent as an invitation to potential participants by password-protected and

secured email to educate them about the study, participants had a thorough understanding

of the component of this study to decide whether they wanted to participate in this study.

I obtained permission from senior leaders for both private and public organizations to

conduct my research at the site. First, I submitted my formal request to obtain IRB

approval from Walden University to conduct this research. After that I emailed potential

participants the invitation letter in the form of informed consent. After that, I contacted

those willing to participate and scheduled an interview.

Summary

This chapter included a description and justification of why a qualitative research

method and phenomenological design were selected to conduct this study. The study’s

research question and philosophical assumptions were among considerations for selecting

the qualitative method for this study. The purpose of this study toward understanding the

emotions and lived experiences of research participants about the phenomenon of

unethical leadership led me to apply a transcendental phenomenological approach.

The private organization selected for this study is where I work with participants

who had possible implications for my role as research and data collection instrument.

Multiple sampling strategies like purposeful sampling, criterion sampling, and snowball

sampling were used to select and sort participants and enhance the quality of data

collected. In addition, an informed consent and privacy policy was used to reduce any

ethical concerns. Data collection included face-to-face interview process separately with

each participant using open-ended questions.

I used the seven-step phenomenological analysis method recommended by

Moustakas (1994) in this study to improve the quality of findings. I addressed issues of

credibility, dependability, confirmability, and transferability to underscore the research’s

trustworthiness. I addressed ethical procedures to enhance the quality of the overall

findings and acceptability of this study of unethical leadership phenomenon. I employed

several such measures to improve the quality of findings of this study.

Chapter 4: Results

The purpose of this qualitative transcendental phenomenological study was to

explore the lived experiences of followers under unethical leadership in public and

private organizations in the United States. The general problem was the low

incentivization for leaders’ ethical behaviors, which impacts followers. The central

research question that I developed to guide this study was: What are followers’ lived

experiences with unethical leadership behavior and performance?

The focus of this phenomenological study was on followers as research

participants because they constitute a significant bridge between internal and external

stakeholders in any organization with the possibility to broaden their knowledge of

ethical leadership. The implications for positive social change from the results of this

study may enhance current knowledge about the characteristics of ethical leadership, as

well as encourage future research on ethical and unethical leadership. Such investigations

can enhance the understanding of the relationship between unethical leadership and the

wellbeing of others.

This chapter includes a discussion of the results, including the participant

demographics, data collection, data analysis, evidence of trustworthiness, credibility,

transferability, dependability, and confirmability. Over the course of these sections, I

describe the research setting, including any changes that influenced the setting. This

chapter also includes the data collection context and procedures, the data analysis

process, and the trustworthiness of the research.

Research Setting

The setting of this study was a private organization in the United States. Most of

the participants in this study were concerned about ethical standards and whether their

participation would enhance their employability. Participants in this study were frontline

employees who are in direct contact with consumers, shared the same title, and possessed

a 4-year college degree and a minimum of 7 years of experience (see Figure 2).

Participants in this study were a very rich source of data because they were followers

who were not holding any managerial or leadership roles. I carried out this research

through interviews that were conducted with participants in a natural setting to obtain an

understanding of the phenomenon of ethical leadership.

I chose the qualitative approach based on the purpose of the study. I asked each

participant the same broad questions that aligned with the research question. I obtained

the detailed views from followers who participated in the study. As a qualitative

researcher, I asked probing questions, listened to the answers, considered their

implications, then asked more probing questions to reach a deeper level of understanding.

This interview approach aligned with Easter’s (2019) recommendations for conducting

interviews to gain rich and informative data from participants.

Demographics

The sample of this qualitative phenomenological study consisted of 20

participants who were all followers in the same organization. I focused on participants

with no managerial or leadership positions to ensure that I head participants’ opinions

regarding the unethical leadership phenomenon. The importance of selecting followers

from the same organization was their shared experience, which I anticipated would enrich

the data collected regarding the unethical side of leadership.

All participants were frontline employees who were in direct contact with external

stakeholders; I excluded any followers in managerial or supervisory positions from the

study sample. Participants in this study had more than 7 years of experience in the same

field. Participant’s ages varied, but their unique educational backgrounds bolstered the

diversity of the collected data. Ethnically, four of the 20 participants were African

Americans. Eight of the 20 participants were female, while the remainder were male. The

diversity in gender and ethnicity among the sample enriched the data that I gathered for

this study.

Table 1

Demographic Information

Data Collection

I collected data from 20 total participants through face-to-face interviews. I

collected data focusing on an open-ended standard research question, which ensured

fairness to participants in the questions presented (see Appendix A). I determined that

participants understood the research questions based on the replies received during the

Classification

Number of participants

Gender

Male

Female

Age range

21-30

31-40

41-50

51-60

61-70

70+

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Master’s degree

Doctorate degree

Experience

7-10

11-15

16-20

Ethnicity

Caucasian

Hispanic/Latino

African American

White

face-to-face interviews. I conducted the interviews in an enclosed area in the premises of

the organization to ensure privacy and confidentiality. The interviews lasted between 15

minutes to 45 minutes, with the majority lasting about 15 minutes each. Each participant

received a summary of their answers to the interview questions. Participants performed

member checking to validate the accuracy and completeness of the data collected. I

recorded the interviews using a secure digital audio-recording unit.

Data Analysis

The first step of data analysis was to listen to the interview recordings. By

listening to the data collected, I ensured the accuracy of the transcription of the data.

Mistakes in written transcripts could have adversely impacted the meaning and

interpretation of the data. I coded the data using an NVivo and hand-coding, which

reduced the probability of missing relevant data. I randomly assigned a lettered

pseudonym to each participant in order to ensure their privacy and confidentiality. The

combination of hand coding and NVivo served as a form of triangulation. Analyzing data

based on triangulation strategy enhanced my understanding of the anticipated complexity

of the research context and lessened the chances of developing inaccurate assumptions,

results, and implications about the phenomenon.

After interviewing 20 participants, I determined that data saturation had been

attained. The first form of analysis that I used to arrive at themes in this study was the

two-cycle analysis propounded by Miles et al. (2014); using the first cycle of analysis

resulted in the identification of different codes as they emerged from the data, while

using the second cycle of analysis resulted in emerging recurring patterns from which the

results of the study developed. Two-cycle data analysis form has facilitated my

identification of patterns and similarities. I conducted the process of comparing and

reexamining the emerging categories and themes using Rawls’s justice as fairness theory

(Rawls, 1971); this theory is based on the premise that giving each person what he or she

deserves results in an overall sense of justice and fairness.

The next form of analysis that I employed was seven-step phenomenological

analysis established by Moustakas (1994) in a modification of the Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen

method. By subjecting the data to those steps of phenomenological analysis, I enhanced

my understanding of the phenomenon of unethical leadership from the perception of

followers as a shared experience. First, through epoché, this required me to set aside my

personal opinions about the phenomenon. Then, using phenomenological reduction, I

bracketed the phenomenon in its pure form as a different notion (Odeneye, 2017). The

transcendental phenomenology reduction, i.e., the step which brings up into an act of

conversion, of changing from the natural view of the world to the more perfect and more

comprehensive transcendental view of the world (Küng, 1975). I also synthesized the

individual textural and structural components of the data into a group experience.

After analyzing the data from both forms, I identified eight overarching themes

reflecting eight findings. These were as follows: (a) emphasizing morality, (b) issues of

honesty, (c) lack of accountability, (d) fairness in making decisions, (e) responsibility of

ethical leaders (f) stakeholders’ wellbeing, (g) humility as an abdication of power, and (h)

issues of approachability. New themes also emerged, such as democratic decision-making

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and knowledge. In this section, I discussed these 10 themes in terms of how they explain

followers’ perspectives of ethical leadership.

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Evidence of Trustworthiness

Credibility

Credibility is an important factor in research, as it refers to the degree to which

the audience will accept and agree to the findings of the study. The foundation of the

credibility of this study lies the approval from the IRB of Walden University, the in-depth

description of the process and results of this study, and the use of bracketing to monitor

any personal bias. The fact that I work in the same organization as participants created

the possibility of personal bias, which I acknowledged. In addition, I performed member

checking by sharing a transcribed copy of participants’ feedback with the participants.

Triangulation, member checking, and data saturation were the factors that I

considered to address credibility in this study. I determined that data saturation had been

achieved based on the fact that no new information emerged after 20 interviews. Using

two forms of analysis, as Miles et al. (2014 and Moustakas (1994) suggested, resulted in

data triangulation.

Transferability

I enhanced the transferability of study by providing a detailed and clear

description of context of the research data collection and analysis. The results reflected

the participants’ answers to interview questions. Elaborating reporting of sampling

strategy, methodology, data collection and analysis, results, and the hint of triangulation,

enabled the possibility for others to replicate the study in similar context. The

generalizability qualitative meant the extent to which the study results applicable or may

be transferred to other contexts (Ulin et al., 2005).

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Dependability

I will store the collected data securely and safely for 5 years following the

completion of this study in order to facilitate dependability in the event of any audit. I

will enhance dependability by providing detailed description of the process of data

collection and analysis. Through this documentation, I will enable the study to be

compared with future investigations on this topic. According to (Panda, 2019), the

dependability measure checked for (i) the extent to which research questions clear and

logically connected to the research purpose and design, (ii) the extent to which there are

parallels across data source, and (iii) the extent to which multiple field workers have

comparable data collection protocol. (Ulin et al., 2005)

Confirmability

The use of reflexivity enforced my continuous awareness that any action taken on

my part may affect the outcomes of the study, especially given the peculiar circumstance

of using my colleagues as research participants. Confirmability is an evaluation of the

accuracy of the findings, interpretations, and conclusions based on the data collected. The

use of bracketing, as Moustakas (1994) recommended, assisted me in reducing the

occurrence of bias in this study.

Study Results

The research question of this study was: What are followers’ lived experiences

with unethical leadership behavior and performance? Following the data collection and

analysis processes outlined above, I disregarded any data that was not related to the

research question. Eight themes emerged to describe the perspectives of followers about

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ethical leadership; I derived these from the analysis of over 300 important statements (see

Table 2). Two additional themes emerged as identified by the participants in this study.

Table 2

Final Findings with Supporting Participants

Results

Total supporting participants (N = 20)

Lack of Accountability

Issues of Honesty

Emphasizing Morality

Fairness in Making Decisions

Democratic decision-making

Stakeholders’ wellbeing

Knowledge

Responsibility of Ethical

Leaders

Humility as An Abdication of

Power

Issues of Approachability

Finding 1: Lack of Accountability

This theme indicates that ethical leaders are the ones who believe in their

accountability toward their organization and followers. Leaders who lack accountability

are more likely to establish unfair environment and lack of trust. Ethical leaders also hold

others liable for their actions by being accountable for their actions. Ninety percent of the

current study’s participants see ethical leaders are responsible for their actions and

willing to take accountability of their mistakes so they can present an example for

followers to comply with laws and ethical standards. There were two participant

statements that contributed to this theme. Participant F stated, “I think a real leader is the

one who value accountability and apply it strictly, accountable leader is an ethical leader

because he will not tolerate a bad behavior or wrong actions.” Participant M stated, “I

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believe an ethical leader has to be accountable even when followers make the wrong

actions, I do believe that accountability has to start from the top in the role hierarchy and

an ethical follower reflects an ethical leader.”

Finding 2: Issues of Honesty

A majority of the participants perceived an ethical leader to be honest, truthful,

and forthright. Several participants explained that honesty is the most important

characteristic; over 75% of participants (n = 17) provided support for this theme. An

ethical leader makes right decisions by being honest and truthful; as a result, followers

will learn to be honest when they see their leader behave in this manner.

Incentive, not only with money but with words, provide good job and knowledge,

a good leader should not be dictating and telling how to do and what to do but

also showing examples. An ethical leader doesn’t abuse and it’s not only on the

main practices and should have expectation for the needs and wants of their

employees, but that also represent honesty. (Participant B)

I expect from an honest and ethical leader a good communication and to be

someone who respects the policies and procedures, honest, you can trust a leader

who is dishonest or a thief, you cannot have that in any form of life. (Participant

I believe an ethical person or leader should be very honest with everybody.

(Participant A)

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Finding 3: Emphasizing Morality

A moral leader is able to adopt justice by giving each person what he or she

deserves. Philosophers have explained justice as the concept of proportion between a

person’s deserts and the good and bad things that befall in between. In support of this

theme, participants expressed the belief that a moral leader should ensure justice and

fairness for their followers.

When I think about ethics I think about morals and when I think of morals it

referred to as a moral Comus knowing what’s right and what’s wrong, how to

communicate with people, how to make your decisions and telling the truth,

basically being up front and honest. I think when a leader treats their employees

with respect, I think you get respect back, so how you deal with people influences

how people deal with you back it’s like a mirror like a reflection and that

represent being a moral leader. (Participant D)

An unethical leader is someone who has a bad moral system, they expect the

wrong thing from someone, they ask people to do things that are maybe illegal or

to lie. (Participant E)

Finding 4: Fairness in Making Decisions

Stakeholder theory, eudaimonia, Adams’s equity theory, and social learning

theory were the conceptual frameworks used to guide this study. These theories were

particularly relevant to the theme of fairness. Participants explicitly demonstrated their

views about fairness in leadership. Participants believed that an ethical leader has to be

fair to his followers and society. Such a leader must also be careful when assigning

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employees to supervisory positions, taking into consideration their educational and

professional background. The following participants explained the importance of an

ethical leader to be objective and fair in promotions:

An ethical leader is the one who leads with integrity and honesty, while unethical

leader is the one who ask followers to do the wrong thing in order to achieve

immoral goals. (Participant A)

The ethical leader is the one who is open to honest commination and fair in

making judgments. The ethical leader is the one who make decisions based on

mutual benefit with their followers. (Participant L)

I have been struggling to make my way through in my career in previous

organizations because of the unfair environment that was created by our managers

and supervisors who did not care about hard work and never valued a good

employee, I like how this organization has valued my hard work and made me

believe that I will get somewhere if I put the effort and work toward the success

of this organization so we can grow together. (Participant G)

Finding 5: Democratic Decision-Making

The fifth theme indicates that decision-making process should be shared between

leaders and followers. The majority of participants agreed that an ethical leader should

not be autocratic and should instead involve others in the decision-making process. Over

80% of participants (n = 16) supported this theme, which is classifiable under the

conceptual frameworks of utilitarianism, eudaimonia, and stakeholder theory.

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I do not like the supervisor who acts like a boss, I believe in an ideal leader who

creates a democratic environment and shares decisions with followers. An ideal

leader is the one who creates a solution, share it, and then ask other employees for

their input. (Participant B)

Before taking any actions that are based on one’s perspective, a leader has to

consult with other individuals in the organization to make sure the actions are in

the right direction. (Participant I)

Finding 6: Stakeholders’ Wellbeing

More than 80% of participants supported this theme. In relation to the conceptual

framework of stakeholder theory and eudemonia, this theme indicates that ethical leaders’

concern about stakeholders’ wellbeing has been found to affect the performance of

employees. Several participants expressed the importance of an ethical leader being fair

and respecting others’ opinions and ideas:

A caring leader is more likely to succeed and drive the organization in the right

direction, I have been in several situations that I lost hope in my career because of

actions that I consider unethical from my supervisors and managers especially in

my previous careers, that got me to the point to believe in a caring leader who

take care of their employees and their wellbeing. (Participant C)

I believe a moral and ethical leader should see followers as human beings and

care about their wellbeing and their families; if the leader treats followers as

numbers or tools to get more powerful than the organization will become chaotic.

(Participant A)

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Ethical and moral leader is the one who value employees and their efforts, the one

who believe in them and treat them fairly, the one who appreciate the hard work

and pay back to the community. (Participant F)

Finding 7: Knowledge

All participants agreed that an ethical leader must be knowledgeable and

educated. The frameworks that apply to this theme are social learning theory and

Adams’s equity theory. Participants also believed that an ethical leader must be willing to

listen and learn as much as they can. Their focus should be on academic knowledge as

well as actions.

I expect from an ethical leader to be educated; I believe education is the way to

create an ethical leader who values followers. I also believe that leaders have to

start from the bottom of the organization and grow with it so they can always be

aware of all the levels of the organization and value every follower disregarding

their position. (Participant N)

Leaders have to be knowledgeable of all the aspects of their organizations stating

from the bottom to the top so they can do their job correctly and benefit everyone.

Leaders’ knowledge has to exceed the daily tasks to their ability of managing

money, so they make sure the organization is heading in the right direction.

(Participant B)

An ethical leader has to be knowledgeable and educated otherwise they will create

an environment where ignorance is dominant and that will take the organization

down. (Participant H)

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Finding 8: Responsibility of Ethical Leaders

Twelve participants indicated that an ethical leader is one who is willing to take

the responsibility of taking care of the organization and followers. The conceptual

frameworks that apply to this theme are stakeholder theory, eudaimonia, and

utilitarianism. An ethical leader is willing to admit their mistakes and shortcomings—not

only their achievements. In addition to admitting their weaknesses, ethical leaders are

able to find the right people to make up for it.

Change is part of growth; an ethical leader has to be responsible to change and

shape employee’s reediness to change. When you have an open communication

and open to a policy with your managers or your leadership then change would be

well adapted to because they built that support so you have people who are

responsible and you can communicate with, leaders who are honest and ethically

inclined to any form of growth they already built that structure as a leader for

your employees because of how your leadership skills are. (Participant C)

I think a leader has to be responsible by knowing their weaknesses and try to find

the right people to make up to it. A responsible leader is the one who admits their

mistakes and weaknesses. (Participant K)

Finding 9: Humility as An Abdication of Power

More than 10 participants demonstrated the importance of respect in ethical

leadership. An ethical leader is humble and respects the values of others. In addition, an

ethical leader is friendly and peaceful. The conceptual frameworks that underpin this

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theme are eudaimonia and social learning theory. Participants have shown the importance

of an ethical traits from childhood, through school and the professional environment.

I believe in a humble leader, the one who does not make you feel they are more

important than you, but make you feel that you are important and value your

efforts. I believe in the leader who value teamwork and appreciate that

employees’ hard work is a big role in getting leaders where they at in any

organization. (Participant J)

A leader who treats with respect, gets respect back. (Participant D)

Finding 10: Issues of Approachability

Participants believed that an ethical leader has to be perceived as approachable by

their followers. Proper communication between leaders and followers is critical to

attaining organizational goals and achieving long-term objectives. More than 10

participants discussed the effect of the lack of communication on managers’ failure in

organizations. The conceptual frameworks that are most relevant to this theme are

stakeholder theory, social learning theory, and Adams’s equity theory.

I do believe that ethical leader leads by example and trains people to do things

right, I believe that everything starts with leadership and a leader has to be

approachable and willing to have open communication. Time over changes and

we have to adapt so a leader must be able to adapt first to any change and then

pass this change to followers. Unethical leader would be somebody is dishonest

and does not have time to explain things thoroughly to people and be there to

back them up. (Participant A)

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Summary

The theme of accountability emerged as the most important theme in ethical

leadership, followed by honesty, morality, and fairness. The use of the transcendental

phenomenology helped me as researcher to see these themes from a new perspective,

especially as I work in the same organization as the research participants. Additional

themes have emerged from the findings of this study, such as democratic decision-

making and knowledge. The results of this study supported the modern knowledge in the

field of leadership and aided in identifying important areas in leadership, which may

prove beneficial to the understanding the phenomenon of unethical leadership.

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Chapter 5: Discussion, Conclusions, and Recommendations

The purpose of this qualitative transcendental phenomenological study was to

explore the lived experiences of followers under unethical leadership in public and

private organizations in the United States. In this phenomenological study, I focused on

followers as research participants, as they constitute a significant bridge between internal

and external stakeholders in any organization. This approach is based on the work of

Moustakas (1994), who believed that the researcher’s personal experience should be

bracketed through the use of epoché. This involves clearly distinguishing one’s personal

experience of the phenomenon being studied and focusing on the experiences of

followers.

Using a qualitative method through transcendental as a type of phenomenology

enhanced my understanding of the unethical leadership phenomenon as a lived

experience from the perspective of followers. Through this approach, I set aside my

preconceptions about the phenomenon of unethical leadership and be able to see and

present it from the perspective of followers. Phenomenology is the study of lived

experience or the life world (van Manen, 1997). Using a qualitative research

methodology, I was able to face the complexities of the unethical leadership phenomenon

and the study’s participants had the opportunity to express their experiences and

thoughts.

Eight themes emerged from this study based on the perspectives of followers

about ethical and unethical leaders. The themes included: (a) morality, (b) honesty, (c)

accountability, (d) fairness, (e) responsibility (f) stakeholders’ wellbeing, (g) humility,

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and (h) approachability. The participants of the study identified two additional themes:

democratic decision-making and knowledge. All the features and characteristics of

ethical leadership discussed in the extant literature reviewed were reflected in the final

themes of this study.

Interpretation of Findings

In this study, I focused on participants who had experienced the phenomenon of

unethical leadership in one way or the other. The themes that emerged in this study have

been identified in previous studies, which confirms the existing knowledge about the

phenomenon of ethical leadership. The results of this study largely align with current

research on the ethical leadership phenomenon; honesty, responsibility, humility,

fairness, and stakeholders’ wellbeing are five themes in this study that support prior

studies on the phenomenon of ethical leadership. Brown and Mitchell (2010) stressed on

conducting more research to better understand the implications of ethical leadership.

This study shares the mutual understanding of the aspect of ethics and moral

conduct in leadership with prior studies. According to Cialdini et al. (2021),

organizations should send strong signals regarding ethics in their communications to both

leaders and employees. Communication to leaders may decrease their likelihood of

engaging in unethical behavior, while communications to ethical employees may cause

them to feel that their personal values align with those of the larger organization, which

may reduce their psychological distress and decrease their chances of leaving the

organization even when exposed to unethical leader behavior. Most of the themes that

emerged in this study are the same as the aspects and attributes of ethical leadership

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identified in previous studies, confirming the importance of the existing knowledge about

the phenomenon. Both previous and current scholars studying the phenomenon of

unethical leadership have agreed that there may be insidious long-term costs of unethical

leader behavior to groups and organizations, and that behavioral ethics researchers may

be underestimating the harm caused by such behavior (see Cialdini et al., 2021).

Researchers conduct studies in different disciplines to confirm existing

knowledge about a specific phenomenon and generate new insights. Five of the themes

that emerged in this study were the same as those obtained in previous studies as

characteristics of ethical leadership, which supports the credence of the phenomenon of

ethical leadership. This study has contributed to the existing knowledge about the ethical

leadership phenomenon by identifying two new themes as attributes of ethical leadership:

democratic decision-making and knowledge. The findings considerably bridged the gap

in literature identified by Odeneye (2017) that a need exists to explore the phenomenon

of ethical leadership from the followers’ perspective because several studies have focused

on leaders as research participants like Guay et al. (2019) and Khokhar and Zia-ur-

Rehman (2017).

The current participants identified two additional themes and emphasized the

importance of democratic decision-making and knowledge as an attribute of an ethical

leadership, especially for followers who do not hold any managerial positions. Ethical

leadership entails allowing the contributions to decision-making from followers, thereby

enhancing the quality of decisions. Professional planners should practice resolving ethical

conflicts between their private and professional ethical perspectives, as well as those

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between the legitimacy of technical planning expertise and democratic decision-making

(Lauria & Long, 2019). Through this study, I aimed to distinguish democratic decision-

making and knowledge as final themes from other themes in order to attract needed

attention to them. I concluded the key findings presented below from the themes that

emerged from the data analysis.

Emphasizing morality was a key finding that I derived from Theme 3, which

represented a moral leader who can adopt justice by giving each person what they

deserve. Philosophers have defined justice as the concept of proportion between a

person’s deserts and the good and bad things that befall in between. In support of this

theme, participants expressed the belief that a moral leader should ensure justice and

fairness for their followers. Bennis and Nanus (1985) suggest that one of the responsible

tasks for a leader is to enhance the ethics and morality of followers conduct.

The issue of honesty was a finding that I derived from Theme 2; a majority of the

participants perceived an ethical leader to be honest, truthful, and forthright. Several

participants explained that honesty is the most important characteristic; over 75% of

participants (n = 17) provided support for this theme. An ethical leader makes right

decisions by being honest and truthful; as a result, followers learn to be honest when they

see their leader behave in this manner.

Lack of accountability was a key finding that I derived from Theme 1, which

indicated that ethical leaders are the ones who believe in their accountability toward their

organization and followers. Leaders who lack accountability are more likely to establish

an unfair environment and lack of trust. Ethical leaders also hold others liable for their

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actions by being accountable for their actions. Ninety percent of the current study’s

participants perceived an ethical leader as responsible for their actions and willing to take

accountability of their mistakes so they can present an example for followers to comply

with laws and ethical standards.

Fairness in making decisions was a key finding that I derived from Theme 4.

Stakeholder theory, eudaimonia, Adams’s equity theory, and social learning theory were

the conceptual frameworks that I used to guide this study. These theories were

particularly relevant to the theme of fairness. Participants explicitly demonstrated their

views about fairness in leadership. Participants believed that an ethical leader must be fair

to his followers and society. Such a leader must also be careful when assigning

employees to supervisory positions, taking into consideration their educational and

professional background.

Responsibility of ethical leaders was a finding that I derived from Theme 8; the

conceptual frameworks that applied to this theme were stakeholder theory, eudaimonia,

and utilitarianism. An ethical leader is willing to admit their mistakes and shortcomings--

not only their achievements. In addition to admitting their weaknesses, ethical leaders are

able to find the right people to make up for it. According to Kim and Vandenberghe

(2021), by virtue of their moral standards, ethical behavior and concern for employees’

welfare, ethical leaders may fulfill these needs and clarify how job duties should be

accomplished, which may foster perceived organization al support (Loi et al, 2015).

The theme of stakeholders’ wellbeing was supported by more than 80% of

participants. In relation to the conceptual framework of stakeholder theory and

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eudemonia, this theme indicates that ethical leaders’ concern about stakeholders’

wellbeing has been found to affect the performance of employees. It has integrative and

holistic ethical concern for the environmental and ecological wellbeing of national and

international communities (Waddock, 2005, pp. 149-150).

Humility as an abdication of power was a finding in this study that represented an

ethical leader as a humble person who respects the values of others. In addition, an

ethical leader is friendly and peaceful. The conceptual frameworks that underpin this

theme are eudaimonia and social learning theory. Participants indicated the importance of

an ethical traits from childhood, through school and the professional environment. Vera

and Rodriguez-Lopez (2004) consider the virtue of humility as a critical force for leaders

and organizations that possess it, and a weakness for those who do not.

Issues of approachability was a key finding that I derived from Theme 10; I

concluded that proper communication between leaders and followers is critical to

attaining organizational goals and achieving long-term objectives. More than 10

participants discussed the effect of the lack of communication on managers’ failure in

organizations. The conceptual frameworks with the most relevance to this theme were

stakeholder theory, social learning theory, and Adams’s equity theory. According to Storr

(2004), it was considered to be important that followers had regular contact with an

approachable leader and were able to behave and express themselves freely.

Democratic decision-making was a finding indicating that decision-making

process should be shared between leaders and followers. A majority of the participants

agreed that an ethical leader should not be autocratic and should instead involve others in

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the decision-making process. Over 80% of participants (n = 16) supported this theme,

which is classifiable under the conceptual frameworks of utilitarianism, eudaimonia, and

stakeholder theory.

Knowledge is a distinguished finding where all participants agreed that an ethical

leader must be knowledgeable and educated. The frameworks that applied to this theme

were social learning theory and Adams’s equity theory. Participants also believed that an

ethical leader must be willing to listen and learn as much as they can. Their focus should

be on academic knowledge as well as actions. Socrates presented himself not as a master

of knowledge but as a fellow learner working alongside of his students to share and gain

insights from their perspectives (Malakyan, 2015).

Through these findings, I extended the current literature though demonstrating

key themes regarding expectations of an ethical leader. Previous scholars have focused

on ethical leadership from the perspective of leaders (Yang, 2014); however, I extended

previous research by demonstrating viewership of leaders from the perspective of

followers. Through this study, I aimed to achieve justice and fairness for followers, as

well as to the sense of responsibility for leaders. When leaders and followers hold similar

ideals, they are better equipped to predict the behavior of their counterpart (Meglino et

al., 1989).

Leaders may now be able to realize that followers constitute the majority of the

workforce in any organization. According to Byza et al. (2019), it is expected that a

person-supervisor value congruence relates directly to affective commitment and job

satisfaction and indirectly through followers’ perceived empowerment. Scholars have

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posited that value congruence between leaders and followers is positively related to

followers’ empowerment. Shared values, commitment, and empowerment is likely to

remain elusive if leaders fail to meet the expectations of followers. Such expectations can

be enhanced by leaders who exhibit the attributions of democratic decision-making and

knowledge.

The conceptual frameworks for this study included different concepts in ethics

like utilitarianism, eudemonistic, stakeholder theory and Adams’s equity theory.

Democratic decision-making was a new theme that emerged, and I contextualized using

the conceptual framework of eudaimonia, stakeholders’ theory, and utilitarianism. Other

themes that I identified in this study related to the conceptual framework of social

learning theory, such as knowledge and honesty. Followers may possess certain

knowledge and experience before joining an organization and ethical leadership may

energize followers toward further progression of knowledge. Being knowledgeable and

displaying adroitness on the part of an ethical leader may inspire employees to aspire to

do the same, based on social learning theory (Odeneye, 2017).

Limitations of the Study

One primary limitation in this study was focusing on only one public or/and one

private organization to analyze unethical leadership phenomenon which has caused

difficulty in recruiting participants for interviews. I selected one private organization as

the research setting for this study which has limited the study to quality issues within the

private sector only. Another limitation of this study is that the study focused only on

followers as research participants excluding any followers with supervisory and

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managerial positions. Because I work in the same organization as study participants, the

data collection process was not as convenient as expected.

Recommendations

The results of this qualitative phenomenological study may benefit the academic

community—including researchers, teachers, scholars, and students—by contributing to

the growth of the existing knowledge in the field of leadership. This study will be

available online in ProQuest dataset once accepted and approved by the dissertation

committee. I will submit another compressed copy to several peer-reviewed journals for

further dissemination. I intend to propagate the results of this study by presenting in

conferences, engaging in organizational consultancy, and teaching in institutions of

higher learning. This study may contribute to the society by establishing a better working

environment because followers are more likely to pass their hard work and honesty to

ethical leader who is known by protecting their wellbeing. The findings may be beneficial

for corporate leaders by enhancing their understanding of ethics in leadership and their

responsibility in protecting followers’ dignity and wellbeing.

I identified areas in which future research may be needed. For example, future

researchers should focus more on using followers as participants and focus on the

unethical side of leadership. Through this study, I was able to reduce the gap in the

literature, in which most ethical leadership studies have been conducted using leaders as

research participants. Based on the outcome and possible limitations of this study, a need

persists for future researchers to continue the initiative in this study by exploring the

phenomenon of unethical leadership from the perspective of followers.

121

In order to enhance the understanding of the existing knowledge in the field of

leadership, future research should give more attention to the role of followers and the

importance of their perceptions on ethical leadership. The field of leadership has been

extensively researched to deeply understand the influence placed by a leader on their

followers through their interpersonal relationship (Ciulla, 2011). Considering the

diversity of organizational stakeholders who could be affected by the actions of an

unethical leadership, it may be important for future studies to acknowledge the

importance of the understanding of the phenomenon of unethical leadership. Several

stakeholders have suggested the relevance of studying ethical leadership. Recent studies

add the concept of stakeholder perspective to ethical leadership where the leader

relationship extends to all stakeholders may it be followers, customers, suppliers,

contractors, government, and society (Paharia, 2019).

I provided a detailed description of the methodology and the process of data

collection for future researchers to be able to apply this method in other settings, where

applicable. Through this qualitative phenomenological research study, I addressed the

phenomenon of unethical leadership from the perception of followers. The use of a

qualitative research method in this type of study has the potential to expand the

knowledge in the extant literature of ethical leadership.

Implications

The essence of this study is to positively impact society with positive and needed

change. Previous scholars have focused more on the internal operations of the

organizations, and few scholars have on the broadening of perspectives on the

122

implications of research on covering the entire society positively. Achieving a positive

social impact upon society requires a progression from the individual to the organization

and societal level. This study has to the potential of achieving a positive social impact on

individual, organizational, societal, and academic level.

In terms of positive social impact on an individual level, this study has the

potential to increase job satisfaction among employees. When leaders are concerned

about the wellbeing and flourishing of their employees, this will make employees more

satisfied with performing their duties. Ethical leadership can enhance the relationship and

interaction between leaders and followers, leading to improved performance. Cooperation

between leaders and followers defines how successful a leader is, as leaders need

followers in order to achieve organizational goals. While leaders are ambitious and

seeking personal success, this success is not possible to achieve without the cooperation

of followers.

Followers may be better positioned when they are given the opportunity to use

their innovative ideas and creativity and be part of the organizational success. Followers

may no longer see the problem of the organization as the issue of the leader but may be

willing to create new ideas and share the decisions in order to help the organization grow.

The extent to which a leader is successful may depend on the level of cooperation

received from followers, leaders need followers to be able to accomplish set of goals

(Odeneye, 2017). Trust and honesty between leaders and followers represent the

importance of building healthy relationship that leads the organization to a global growth.

123

This study may have implications for positive social change in the organizational

dimension. Change is necessary for organizations to remain competitive and relevant in

the face of dynamic social realities in the modern age of technology. It is more likely for

followers to accept and support the implementation of change when the leader is

perceived to be ethical. The ethical capability of leaders is required in order to achieve

success regarding goal attainment, profitability, innovation, and competitiveness.

This study may also have implications on the societal level. Because ethical

leaders are more focused on the wellbeing of others, the prevalence of CSR initiatives

will increase in society. Leaders are obligated to set up communication mechanism with

their followers to identify their needs and ensure CSR initiatives are effective. Moral

leaders ensure a healthy relationship with their followers, which leads to commitment and

innovation. This may create organizations with responsibility to their surrounding society

and a commitment to growing GDP.

Ethical leadership may help in improving the society by eliminating corruption,

the same corruption that led to the economic recession in 2008 and affected the whole

world economy. Ethical leadership is an antidote to the practices of unethical leaders that

could lead to an unfair society. By being honest, responsible, accountable, trustworthy,

fair, caring, and truthful, leaders may be able to achieve social growth.

The findings of this study may increase leadership consciousness of the effects of

their actions and behaviors on followers, as they may impact the ethical climate in the

organization. Ethical leaders tend to build a relationship and communication mechanism

that allows followers to provide formal feedback in the organization. This feedback tends

124

to establish a fairer environment between all management and institutional level in the

organization. Followers have the right to grow and become future leaders, and leaders are

more noble when they advise followers who are interested in becoming leaders.

Ethical leadership training is an example of the implications on the academic

level, participants have all agreed on the importance of formal training in ethical

leadership with implications for enhancing the knowledge of an ethical leader.

Researchers have suggested techniques for teaching ethical leadership for graduate

management classes so students may appreciate better the intricacies of being an ethical

leader. Colleges need to understand the imperative to teach the fundamentals and

complexities of ethical leadership in schools. Such ethical teaching should not be limited

to business or management schools. The importance of ethical leadership training can be

enhanced when schools realize that the leaders of most organizations are college

graduates in diverse disciplines.

Rich education is a solution to unethical leadership, as most of the leaders and

CEOs reached the higher level of their careers using their leadership skills from the

knowledge acquired by education and honing such skills through progressive promotions.

Ethics and ethical leadership must be taught at all educational levels. In addition, scholars

should conduct more research on ethical leadership due to the increased unethical

behavior of leaders toward their communities. Stories of unethical behavior such as

Volkswagen’s cheating on emissions tests or the fraudulent accounts at Wells Fargo are

commonplace in modern media, and it is increasingly recognized that such unethical

behaviors may be the norm rather than the exception (Bryant & Merrit, 2021).

125

The perception of ethical leadership has been impacted by culture constantly,

society has to role to play in shaping a culture that is ethically centered. The basis of

society is individuals and families; while culture is refined over time, society shapes the

culture to reflect moral orientation. A societal moral culture can be built by ensuring

behavioral norms among individuals, families, and society as whole.

Conclusions

This study may make significance contributions to the current research on the

phenomenon of unethical leadership by focusing on the followers’ perception and as

research participants disregarding any individuals who hold any managerial or

supervisory positions. The study included the main characteristics of ethical leadership,

such as: morality, honesty, accountability, fairness, responsibility, stakeholders’

wellbeing, humility, and approachability. In this study, I focused on presenting the

perspectives on an ethical leadership in a very important areas such as: stakeholder

relationships, ethical decision-making, organizational change, moral engagement, gender

inequality, job satisfaction, and positive social impact. When leaders realize what

followers expect from them, they are more ethical and committed toward achieving a

positive social impact.

An understanding of the expectations of followers may raise the level of

commitments of employees toward their organizational goals. The foundation of ethical

leadership starts from the individuals and families as units on a society. Education is

essential in enforcing ethics and ethical leadership training. Ethical leadership training

126

should be incorporated into the core curriculum, which will enable students to shape an

ethical culture.

127

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