Organizational Wrongdoing: Conceptual and Empirical Advances

Abstract

Organizational misconduct (or wrongdoing) is pervasive in modern organizations and adversely affects individuals, groups, organizations, fields, and societies. This symposium builds on a rich stream of research on organizational wrongdoing by providing insight into new conceptual and empirical advances. The three papers pursue areas for future research that were proposed in a recent authoritative review of organizational wrongdoing: the relationship between individual- versus organization-level variation on misconduct or wrongdoing; the role of social networks in the pursuit of wrongdoing; and the important but often overlooked role of social-control agents and labeling in organizational wrongdoing. The authors elaborate conceptual frameworks from organization and management theory and employ a range of methods to examine wrongdoing in novel contexts. Their results have important and timely implications for research, practice, and policy. The discussant will draw on insights from his extensive research program to explore these perspectives and will conclude by facilitating an interactive question-and-answer session. Bad Apples or Bad Barrels? Individual and Organizational Heterogeneity in Professional Wrongdoing Presenter: Pooria Assadi; Simon Fraser U. Presenter: Andrew von Nordenflycht; Simon Fraser U. Using Network Analysis to Understand Economic Wrongdoing Presenter: Donald A Palmer; U. of California, Davis Wrongdoing and Wall Street: A Critical Perspective on the Boundary of Organizational Misconduct Presenter: Christopher Eaton; U. of Calgary Presenter: Laurie Milton; U. of Calgary