Leadership: A Case Study on the Importance of Ethics and Trust

Abstract

<p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This research is important because it empirically tests why ethical behavior by business and government leaders is essential for good management</span><span style="font-size: medium;">—</span><span style="font-size: medium;">which is to earn trust from customers and constituents</span><span style="font-size: medium;">—</span><span style="font-size: medium;">thus ensuring organizations are successful</span><span style="font-size: medium;">, </span><span style="font-size: medium;">for the greater good,</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> over the long term, </span><span style="font-size: medium;">especially in the global marketplace</span><span style="font-size: medium;">. L</span><span style="font-size: medium;">aw and morality</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> are </span><span style="font-size: medium;">two standards by which business and government leaders are judged, but these norms fail whenever laws are not enforced and morality is disregarded.</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> Five research questions on leadership are statistically tested, using </span><span style="font-size: medium;">a </span><span style="font-size: medium;">Likert-scale response </span><span style="font-size: medium;">measure questionnaire—</span><span style="font-size: medium;">based on </span><span style="font-size: medium;">“perceptions of societal corruption” and “trust levels,” using Bandura’s “aggressive behavior modification theory,” as the model for analysis. Nigeria is selected as the location of this case study on leadership ethics and trust, because Nigerian government officials have a long history of unethical and corrupt behavior. Descriptive statistics, along with chi-square quantitative research methods</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> reveals </span><span style="font-size: medium;">“perceptions of societal corruption” in Nigeria are high and “trust levels”</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> for government leaders are very low. Leaders in Nigeria are only as ethical as the code-of-conduct prevalent in their country</span><span style="font-size: medium;">—</span><span style="font-size: medium;">where</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> cultural, economic and legal factors contribute to the nation’s corrupt society—which may cause Nigeria to become a failed state. To change the Nigerian culture of societal corruption—</span><span style="font-size: medium;">education is</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> necessary—</span><span style="font-size: medium;">to instruct elected officials, civil servants, business leaders and Nigerian society, at large, on the importance of ethics and trust.</span><span style="font-size: medium;">Nigerian</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> government and business leaders should institute an ethics policy—and implement five suggested reforms presented in this paper—which will help establish government leader’s ethical integrity and improve citizens’ trust and confidence in their government. Recommendations for future research on government and business leadership ethics and trust are offered. </span></span></p><p><strong><em><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: medium;"> </span></em></strong></p>