Perceptions of ethical leadership at AUBMC and the effects on outcome behavior.

Abstract

The study of ethical leadership is becoming a topic of culminating interest in the management literature. Studies on the topic of Ethical Leadership (EL) progressed from defining what makes an ethical leader into how ethical leaders and perceptions of ethical leadership affect outcome behavior at the level of employees, thus affecting the organization at the bottom-line. Almost all of the studies pertaining to ethical leadership were conducted in a Western context, with none on the Lebanese cultural context in specific. In this study, we assess perceptions of ethical leadership in the context of the Lebanese healthcare sector, particularly in one of the most renowned private hospitals in Lebanon, the American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC). A survey was designed to assess the perceptions of EL among employees, along with their perceptions of group organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and group cohesiveness. Data on the performance, tenure, and retention of employees in the different AUBMC units was obtained from the Human Resources department in the hospital. Data analysis was conducted at the unit level where each unit consisted of a homogeneous working group reporting to the same direct supervisor. Employees (N=281) from the different AUBMC departments (N=58) participated. Ethical leadership was studied as an antecedent for employee performance, OCB, tenure period and, turnover as outcome variables; and with cohesiveness as a moderator. Findings revealed that perceptions of ethical leadership predict employee engagement in OCB and cohesiveness of the work group. Cohesiveness of the group also strongly predicted employee engagement in OCB. Results also suggest that cohesiveness of the group not only moderates the relationship between perceptions of ethical leadership and OCB, but that, when a group is cohesive, the employees will engage in OCB regardless of the ethical behavior of the supervisor-leader. The effect of ethical leader behavior in a model that encompasses cohesiveness as an indepe