A Qualitative Study on the Individual, Organizational, andEnvironmental Affecting Organizational Ethics in Social Welfare Organizations

Abstract

This qualitative study examines the characteristics of individual, organizational, and environmental factors affecting organizational ethics in social welfare organizations. The issues of responsibility, transparency, and ethical management in social welfare organizations have recently become the main public interest. Fifteen social welfare professionals, including chief directors, middle managers, and employees, participated in individual in-depth interviews and focus group interviews. The result of data analysis shows that the most important individual factor is personal sense of ethics, and that important organizational factors include leader's ethical sensitivity, supervision, organizational system supporting organizational ethics, and fairness in organizations. Major environmental factors affecting organizational ethics are unreasonable demands from the board of directors, local governments, interest groups, and other external stakeholders, and the inevitable compromise with the reality to work together with them. Finally, this study makes some suggestions for the Received (June 16, 2015), Review Request(June 17, 2015), Review Result(July 04, 2015) Accepted(July 24, 2015), Published(August 31, 2015) 331-707 Dept. Social Welfare, Namseoul University, 91 Daehakro, Seoungwhaneup Seobukgu, Cheonan-city, Chungnam-Do, Korea email: sychoi@nsu.ac.kr A Qualitative Study on the Individual, Organizational, and Environmental Affecting Organizational Ethics in Social Welfare Organizations Copyright c 2015 HSST 444 improvement of organizational ethics in social welfare organizations. Keyword: organizational ethics, ethical management, ethical leadership, stakeholder, ethical sensitivity