An Investigation into the Impact of Sex of the Transgressor, Organizational Status and Magnitude of Consequences on the Ethics of Personal Selling

Περίληψη

Few studies have examined how ethical perceptions vary according to different selling situations. The present study focused on three important elements of these situations as independent variables: (1) the gender of the person whose sales behavior was morally dubious (the sex of the transgressor); (2) the organizational status of the transgressor (salesperson vs. owner); and, (3) the magnitude of the consequences of the questionable sales practice (dollar loss). Respondents were presented with two scenarios describing unethical sales behavior, and asked to measure the degree of infraction along five dimensions of unethically as dependent variables. The main results were: (1) the gender of the transgressor did not significantly influence ethical perceptions on any of the five dependent variables in either scenario; (2) the organizational status of the transgressor did, however, significantly alter ethical perceptions. On all five ethical dimensions, the act was perceived more negatively when performed by the owner than when done by employed salespersons; and, (3) the magnitude of the infraction in terms of dollar loss significantly affected most ethical measurements, with the greater losses viewed more seriously. There were also significant, but idiosyncratic, interactive effects among the independent variables. Implications for the management of sales practice and directions for future research are also suggested.