How cheating undermines the perceived value of justice in the workplace: The mediating effect of shame

Scholars have devoted significant attention to investigating when and why people cheat in organizations. However, there is increasing recognition that these behaviors can be difficult to eradicate, which points to the importance of understanding the consequences of cheating. Given that cheating violates moral norms that govern social relationships, it is critical to understand how cheating can influence social dynamics in the workplace. Drawing upon appraisal theories, we argue that cheating can have damaging consequences for individuals and their social relationships by eliciting shame. In turn, shame can reduce the extent to which individuals value receiving justice-a critical facilitator of social relationships in the workplace. We test our predictions across 6 studies using different samples and methodologies. In Study 1, we find that cheating is negatively associated with the importance people place on others upholding justice for them (i.e., overall justice values). In Studies 2-6, we demonstrate that shame plays a mediating role in this relationship, even in the presence of guilt and embarrassment. In Studies 3-5, we identify organizational identification as a moderator and show that the effect of cheating on shame is stronger for those with high (vs. low) identification. Theoretical implications include the importance of identifying the outcomes of cheating for individuals within organizational contexts, understanding the functional and dysfunctional consequences of shame, recognizing the differential effects of discrete emotions, and elucidating the role of identity within the context of cheating. We conclude with practical recommendations for managing cheating behaviors and their outcomes in the workplace. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).