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To Punish or to Forgive: Managerial Responses to Unethical Employee Behavior from an Organizational Ethical Culture Perspective

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This article examines whether management should respond to unethical employee behavior with punishment or forgiveness from the perspective of how these responses influence the ethical culture of an organization. Using expressive punishment theory, this article argues that both punishment and forgiveness can positively influence various dimensions of an organization’s ethical culture. However, as these managerial responses are mutually exclusive, this article introduces self-punishment by offenders as an alternative path to reconciliation. Reconciliation becomes viable when self-punishment, understood as morally reparative action, generates effects that are comparable to those of managerial punishment in improving the ethical culture of the organization. Based on the organizational ethical culture model, this article proposes specific criteria for self-punishment. When these criteria are met, self-punishment enables management to forgive offenders, thus creating space for further improving the organization’s ethical culture.

Source: Journal of Business Ethics

DOI: 10.1007/s10551-025-06163-x

Author: Muel Kaptein

Institution: Erasmus University Rotterdam

Language: English

Topic: Ethics in Business and Education

Subfield: Information Systems and Management

Field: Decision Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,790