1. Running head: MORAL AND ETHICAL TRAITS OF LEADER 1
The Moral and Ethical Traits of Leaders and the Effects on the Organization:
A Literature Review, 2010-2014
Richard V. Jones
The University of Texas at Tyler
Tech 5303.60 Research Tech in HRD / TECH
I embrace honor and integrity. Therefore, I
choose not to lie, cheat, or steal, nor to accept the actions of those who do.

2. MORAL AND ETHICAL TRAITS OF LEADERS 2
The Moral and Ethical Traits of Leaders and the Effects on the Organization:
A Literature Review, 2010-2014
Introduction
One only needs to look into the news headlines to see the devastation that can be caused
when an organizational leader lacks morals and ethics. A leader’s ability to lead is only as strong
as the moral and ethical base from which they are built. Brown and Trevino (2013) suggested
that “executive ethical leaders were frequently described as models of ethical conduct. Further,
when top managers are personally committed to ethics, their organizations’ ethics programs are
more comprehensive, have stronger aspirational orientations” (p.590). This study seeks to
examine the ethical and moral characteristics of the leader and the effects on the organization. In
addition, it seeks to look at the relevant literature that provides a road map for future training for
moral and ethical development of leaders.
Understanding ethical behavior of leaders translates into the understanding of the decision
making processes of groups within organizations. It is through this understanding that research
can develop training that will provide organizations with the tools to combat unethical behavior
and the results of this type of behavior. In their conclusion Brown and Trevino (2013) suggested
that role modeling is related to ethical leadership and that an organization that looks to hiring
employees with strong role models in life and through development of strong ethical leadership
will positively affect the organizations outcome. (p. 597)
Review of Existing Literature
Review of the relevant literature reveals aspects that support the effects of ethical vs.
unethical behavior of leadership on organizations. Brown and Trevino (2013) suggest that

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organizations that view their leadership as ethical are stronger than their counterparts (p. 587). It
is through this relationship that both the positive and negative ethical behaviors between the
leader and the organization are connected.
Steinbauer , Renn, Taylor & Njoroge, (2013) implied that the ethical decisions of an
organizations leaders directly influences the decisions of a group. This implies that if a group
views the leader as ethical then the group will act in an ethical manner. Additionally, they
remarked that the ownership of the ethical action was the perceived ownership of the leader and
therefore not that of the followers (p. 381). This leads to the consideration that leadership ethics
determines the ethics of the group or organization with little to or no resistance as understood by
Hoyt and Price (2013). Furthermore, they determined that the presence of the leadership directly
influenced the decision of the group as opposed to the absence of leadership (p. 538)
Additionally, Frisch & Huppenbauer (2013) implied that organizations that educate and
equip their management teams with the tools in ethical decision making will have positive
impact on the organization when demonstrated through long term business strategy.
Strengthening this argument Lynham & Chermack (2006) implied that Ethics are measured by
what the group perceives of the leaders’ habits and that performance increases when responsible
leadership performance is translated into time, quantity, and alignment (p. 82).
Theoretical Framework
The theoretical framework for this study is based on empirical indicators developed by
Dr. Susan A. Lynham and Dr. Thomas J. Chermack under the title of The Units of the
Theoretical Framework. This includes the following areas of consideration as noted in their
studies. Empirical Indicators for the Unit of Constituency, Empirical Indicators for the Unit of

4. MORAL AND ETHICAL TRAITS OF LEADERS 4
Responsibleness, Empirical Indicators for the Unit of Performance, and Empirical Indicators for
the Leadership System-in-focus. Dr. Lynham and Chermack studies specified a relation to moral
and ethical behavior under the Emperical Indicators for the Unit of Responsibleness in the
framework has implied results directly related to this study. ( Lynham & Chermack, 2006, p. 82)
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to evaluate relevant scholarly literature on moral and ethical
leadership that will in turn lead to a deeper understanding of the development of the morale and
ethical leadership. It is this author hope to gain an increased amount of knowledge that will gain
a greater understanding of the source of moral and ethical leadership traits.
Guiding Research Question
The researcher is guided by the research question, According to recent peer-reviewed
literature, how are moral and ethical leadership traits developed and what are the results of the
moral and ethics of a leader on the organizational culture?
Delimitations and Limitations
This study will focus primarily on discovery and analysis of the published peer-reviewed
literature found in databases subscribed to by The University of Texas at Tyler library relevant to
this study. It is limited by the availability of literature that can be located in the UT Tyler library.
It may contain other scholarly works such as books and monographs if they are readily available
for the researcher as background information.
Significance of the Study
This review of literature is significant because it explores the traits, morals, and ethics of
leadership. Today’s society is often plagued by corruption and mistrust of organizational leaders
thus it is imperative that we gain a full understanding of the moral and ethical decisions of

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leader’s and their subsequent effect on organizational culture if the direction of the of the society
is to change as a whole. “Based on prior work suggesting that third parties also make fairness
judgments and respond to the way employees are treated, this study first suggests that
perceptions of interactional justice for peers (IJP) lead employees to two different responses to
injustice at work”
Methodology
This study will utilize peer reviewed scholarly literature. Analysis of the literature will
seek to discover the moral and ethical traits of leadership and their perceived effects on the
organization as well as possible future trainings that are conducive for the moral and ethical
development of future leaders.
Study Design and Data Collection Procedures
The basis for this study is that of a literature review. In this study, peer-reviewed
literature is located and then analyzed to develop paths for future leadership development and
literary knowledge. In the current study, data collection will involve the discovery of peer-
reviewed articles from The University of Texas library database pertaining to the above
mentioned subject matter. Search terms included ethical leadership, ethics, organizational
culture, morals, social model, leader, employee, and leadership development occurring within
article titles. Databases will include gleaned from databases at: The University of Texas at Tyler.
Results
Examination of the peer reviewed articles have pointed towards a conclusion that there is
a perceived connection between the ethics and moral behavior of leadership and the relationship
to the followers for which they lead. The following observations were noted as a result of this
perceived behavior of leaders. When employees are treated unjustly there are two ways in which

6. MORAL AND ETHICAL TRAITS OF LEADERS 6
the other members of a group may respond. Deviant Workplace Behavior (DWB) or
Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) (Zoghbi-Manrique-de-Lara & Sua´rez-Acosta, 2013,
p. 537) Studies have indicated that the leaders are the driving force behind the ethical standards
of their team members as a result of their actions or inactions in ethical and moral behavior.
“executive ethical leaders were frequently described as models of ethical conduct. Further, when
top managers are personally committed to ethics, their organizations’ ethics programs are more
comprehensive, have stronger aspirational orientations” (Brown et al., 2013, p. 590)
Studies have shown that when individuals are given the independent choice to make
decisions they tend to follow less unethical decision making on the behalf of the group.
However, when the focus of the group decision is directly associated with the group leader
decision role the group will tend to engage is less ethical behavior to benefit the group. This is to
say that the group will tend to do as they are told to do by the leader with little resistance. (Hoyt
& Price, 2013, p.536) The relationship of the leader to the followers has a direct correlation to
the results of the decisions of ethical and moral decision making. Hoyt et al., (2013) found that
the relationship of the leader and their ethical decisions forces the decision of the team members.
This relationship can be that of a positive of negative influence on the teams overall ethical
standards. Additionally, Steinbauer, Renn ,Taylor & Njoroge, (2013) found that the follower’s
decision to abide by the leaders ethical decision was based on the perception that the ownership
still belong to the leader. Only when the followers were engaged in deliberation over the ethical
issue did the self-leadership of the followers show a different direction than the leader.
Further indications of the leader’s ethics and moral standards were found to directly influence the
productivity of the given employees. Demirtas, (2013) found that as leaders influence the
outcome of work performance through ethical leadership both ethical and unethical behavior.

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Leaders viewed as ethical leaders raise the sense of justice while those of questionable ethics
lower the perception of justice within an organization. This seems to point to the evidence that a
leader directly shapes the organization through their perceived ethical and moral behavior.
Given the information discussed the following question was raised as to the level of
ethical and moral behavior among leaders. In order to develop ethical leaders we must educate
and equip managers with competencies used in ethical decision making and in doing so we must
first ask the following
question. How ethical of a
leader am I? (Frisch &
Huppenbauer, 2013, p.39)
So where in turn does
this all lead? Moral courage
promotes ethical and pro-social
behavior and moral courage is
critical for the theoretical
argument explaining the link
between moral-judgement and
moral behavior. (Hannah,
Avolio, & Walumbwa, 2011,
p.571) This study seem
to indicate managers that
display the following
leadership qualities such as integrity, fairness, rewarding, supportive, and live up to the standards

8. MORAL AND ETHICAL TRAITS OF LEADERS 8
of an ethical role model are more adapt to overcome obstacles and follow the ethical path. (Lu, &
Lin, 2013, p.221) However, it is only through training that our leaders will ever reach a higher
level of ethical behavior. Taylor & Pattie (2014) made this conclusion as to the importance of
investing and developing of leaders in an ethical environment. Taylor et al., (2014) found that
“investing in ethics and ethical leaders. Consistent with prior research, our findings suggest
organizational efforts aimed at increasing ethical leadership can be helpful in reducing follower
incivility. Such interventions are particularly important given that leaders’ actions influence the
behavior of employees at lower organizational levels”
The greatest discovery made by the researcher was in the works of Susan A. Lynham and
Thomas J. Chermack. It was through their Unit of Constituency that gave a greater understanding
of the previous discussed reviews. What this author found to be the most conclusive outside of
the theoretical modeling was their following connection to ethical behavior. (Lynham &
Chermack, 2006)
Lynham & Chermack, (2006) found that “Empirical Indicators for the Unit of
Responsibleness” as discussed gave the following “The value of responsibleness increases as
measured by effectiveness, ethics and endurance, where…
• effectiveness is measured by constituency perception of effective leadership practices.
• ethics is measured by constituency perception of ethical leadership habits, and
• endurance is measured by constituency perception of the nature and employment of enduring
resources.” (Lynham et al., 2006, p.82) Unfortunately, the path as to what determines an ethical
leader versus an unethical leader is unclear. However, there seems to be a clear indication
through research that clear connections exist between the behavior of leaders and the effect on
their employees.

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Table 1: is a summary of concepts related to this research. Although this is merely a
synopsis of authors concepts, its meaning points towards perceived evidence that ethical
leadership is directly associated with follower’s behavior. It is this researcher hope that a
correlation between ethics and the resulting actions of followers can be clearly understood.
Table 1 General Contributing Idea by Topic and Credited Authors Description
Key Discussion Authors Description
Positive or
Negative
Influencer
Implied
Action Vs.
Direct
Action
Authors
Ethical Leadership
When executive leaders are
personified as ethical leaders their
organizational programs in ethics are
strongerthan their counterparts.
Positive Direct
( Brown &
Trevin˜o, 2013)
Results of Unethical
Treatment
When employees are treated unjustly
there are two ways in which the other
members of a group may respond.
Deviant Workplace Behavior or
Organizational Citizenship Behavior
Negative Implied
(Zoghbi-Manrique-
de-Lara & Sua´rez-
Acosta,2013)
Non-leading versus
leading roles in ethical
decision making
When a group is placed under
leadership the ethical decisions of the
leader tends to become the ethical
decision of the group with little
resistance.
Both Implied
(Hoyt & Price,
2013)
Role relationship in
ethical decision
making
The relationship of a leader’s ethical
decision directly influences the
decisions of the group
Both Direct
(Steinbauer , Renn,
Taylor & Njoroge,
2013)
Ethical leadership
behavior
Leaders influence the outcome of
work performance through ethical
leadership both ethical and unethical
behavior.
Both Direct (Demirtas, 2013)
Ethical level of
leadership
Educate and equip managers with
competencies used in ethical decision
making.
Positive Direct
(Frisch &
Huppenbauer,
2013)
Moral courage
Moral courage promotes ethical and
pro-social behavior Positive Direct
(Hannah, Avolio,
& Walumbwa,
2011)
Ethical Leadership
Investing in the ethics of our leaders
and increasing ethical leadership
decreases the team’s lack of caring
and poorperformance of team
members under leadership.
Positive Direct
(Taylor &Pattie
2014)
Empirical Indicators
for the Unit of
The group’s needs are measured
through formal and informal inputs in Positive Direct
(Lynham &
Chermack, 2006)

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Constituency the evaluation of leadership.
Empirical Indicators
for the Unit of
Responsibleness
Ethics are measured by what the
group perceives of the leaders habits Both Implied
(Lynham &
Chermack, 2006)
Empirical Indicators
for the Unit of
Performance
Performance increases when
responsible leadership performance is
translated into time, quantity,and
alignment
Positive Direct
(Lynham &
Chermack, 2006)
Empirical Indicators
for the Leadership
System-in-focus
Leadership using the group’s feedback
of what a leader should be in practice
increases the effectiveness of the
leadership.
Positive Direct
(Lynham &
Chermack, 2006)
Effects of Ethical
Leadership
Employees that work within an ethical
environment will tend to act in an
ethical behavior
Positive Implied (Lu, & Lin, 2013)
Discussion and Future Direction
How moral and ethical leadership traits developed and what are the results of the moral
and ethics of a leader on the organizational culture? This was the driving question behind the
relevant literature review. Research implied a relationship between leadership ethics and the
decision made by the followers within the leaders group or organization. This relationship can
lead to both a positive outcome and a negative outcome based on the perceived ownership of the
behavior by the leader and the type of ethical or unethical behavior. (Steinbauer , Renn, Taylor &
Njoroge, (2013) p.381)
It is further understood that through education leadership can be developed towards
positive ethical decision that will in turn result in a positive business model if pursued over a
long term plan of development. It is understood that in an ethical environment the group or
organization will outperform another similar group within an unethical environment. (Frisch et
al., 2013)

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What is not truly understood is the choice to follow an ethical vs. an unethical path. This
researcher is guided to a consideration through the evidence presented that a deeper decision
making process should be considered. Future research that further explains the reasoning behind
the individual thought process following one path or another will lead to a better understanding
of how to train the leadership in managing ethical and business decisions.
It is this researcher’s opinion that individuals making decisions daily exist within what I will
refer to as the kaleidoscope effect. This is the point in which all options good or bad are on the
table and given the available options most individuals will follow the path of least resistance
good or bad which leads to the most favorable or least involved outcome. However, there is little
research available to fully support this idea and could be examined further by this or other
researchers.

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References
Brown, M., & Trevino, L. (2013). Do role models matter? An investigation of role modeling as
an antecedent of perceived ethical leadership. Journal of Business Ethics, (122), 587–598-587–
598.
Demirtas, O. (2013). Ethical leadership influence at organizations: Evidence from the field.
Journal of Business Ethics, (126), 273–284-273–284.
Frisch, C., & Huppenbauer, M. (2013). New insights into ethical leadership: A qualitative
investigation of the experiences of executive ethical leaders. Journal of Business Ethics,
2014(123), 23–43-23–43.
Hannah, S., Avolio, B., Walumbwa, F., & Arnold, D. (2011). Relationships between authentic
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21(4), 555-578.
Hoyt, C., & Price, T. (2013). Ethical decision making and leadership: Merging social role and
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