Abstract
The study of individual character is an essential area for organizational research as it is instrumental in ensuring ethical behavior at individual and organization level. However it is observed in the literature that this area has been largely untapped and especially moral and social dimensions of character have been ignored in contemporary studies. Further, it is observed that character and related terms, i.e. virtues, morality, ethos and values have been widely used interchangeably due to conceptual ambiguity (the ontological basis) and certain instruments used for empirical investigations potentially suffer due to methodological ambiguity (the epistemological basis) of the construct. In this paper, we have formulated a conceptually sound definition which provides a clear direction for future empirical investigations and facilitates to differentiate individual character from other related terms. Finally, we propose certain missing and new dimensions of individual character and recommend promising research directions in order to further expand content validity of the construct.
Highlights
The moral philosophy combines three principal elements: deontology, teleology, and virtue ethics (Thun & Kelloway, 2011).According to Garofalo (2003), deontology refers to an ethical position and stresses that principles are determinative rather than consequences, in estimating moral goodness of an act
As we proposed a comprehensive definition for individual character and differentiate character from related terms in section three and four, we intend to further examine the dimensions of individual character in the section five, in order to develop a holistic view of character
We noticed that even both academic studies and popular press have largely ignored the importance of individual character which derived from moral philosophy, and studies are being continued with conceptually shallow terms which may be due to conceptual and empirical ambiguities
Summary
The moral philosophy combines three principal elements: deontology, teleology, and virtue ethics (Thun & Kelloway, 2011).According to Garofalo (2003), deontology refers to an ethical position and stresses that principles are determinative rather than consequences, in estimating moral goodness of an act. The final component: virtue ethics which stresses the morality of an act is determined by the character (Garofalo, 2003). Underlining interdependency among principle, consequence, and character may form the foundation of moral philosophy. A good individual character, which we expect from all citizens including leaders, managers, and employees to thrive organizations or the society, is governed by a set of well-established virtues. Character is instrumental in establishing ethical behavior at an individual level which in return facilitates to promote an ethical organization and an ethical society at large
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