Moral Clarity In The Workplace Analysis

The article “Power, Moral Clarity, And Punishment in the Workplace” by Scott S. Wiltermuth and Francis J. Flynn looks at the connection between power, moral clarity, and punishment across multiple studies. The authors are proposing that how severely people punish transgressors increases with power. They hypothesise that people who possess a stronger sense of moral clarity are more severe in punishing others for perceived ethical transgressions. Power can be defined as the ability to control valued resources and administer rewards and punishments. Two sides of power can be observed, the first being; If powerful individuals do not feel as concerned or vulnerable as the people beneath them, there might be less motivation to punish others for immoral …show more content…
Using multiple studies correlated to each other is an efficient way to minimize doubt and increase accuracy of the test hypotheses. Gathering information from a large sample set helps eliminate bias and minimizes the confidence interval making information more accurate. However for ultimate accuracy there are many more than 4 studies that should be done. There are limitations in the research which can leave gaps in the study, for example; whether power affects moral clarity when moral values are not in conflict was not explored. The world and stimuli people are exposed to are changing every day, and considering that this article was written three years ago, the information may be …show more content…
Many employees try to find information on ethical standards from co-workers, however they receive different advice from different people. The viewpoints expressed by top management are often different from immediate supervisors, close peers, or an organization’s formal code of conduct. Because of this, it may seem normal for managers to refrain from punishing others harshly for their moral transgressions. When managers are seen as having punished others too severely, they damage their own reputations as well as risk provoking negative attitudes, counterproductive behaviors, and revenge tactics from those punished. Assuming the information is correct, managers can use it to shape their employees’ behavior by punishing discourageable behaviors and rewarding desired behaviors. They may also use punishment as a way to inform others about expected standards of behavior and the consequences that come with violating the standards. Managers should punish in ways that are seen by others as appropriate. The results of the 4 studies indicate that punishing others in ways viewed as appropriately severe may be challenging. Power gives people moral clarity, so managers possessing more power are inclined to give more severe punishment. This tendency provides different results depending on the