Industry & Economics
The Effects of Pornography on Unethical Behavior in Business
Full Article Name: The Effects of Pornography on Unethical Behavior in Business
Open Access: Yes
Abstract
Pornography is no longer an activity confined to a small group of individuals or the privacy of one’s home. Rather, it has permeated modern culture, including the work environment. Given the pervasive nature of pornography, we study how viewing pornography affects unethical behavior at work. Using survey data from a sample that approximates a nationally representative sample in terms of demographics, we find a positive correlation between viewing pornography and intended unethical behavior. We then conduct an experiment to provide causal evidence. The experiment confirms the survey—consuming pornography causes individuals to be less ethical. We find that this relationship is mediated by increased moral disengagement from dehumanization of others due to viewing pornography. Combined, our results suggest that choosing to consume pornography causes individuals to behave less ethically. Because unethical employee behavior has been linked to numerous negative organization outcomes including fraud, collusion, and other self-serving behaviors, our results have implications for most societal organizations.
Relevance
“In this study, we find evidence that viewing pornography affects unethical behavior…we establish a causal relationship between viewing pornography and increased unethical behavior and show that this relationship is mediated by dehumanization.”
Pornography “increases unethical behavior and the effect stems from an increased propensity to dehumanize others.”
Hence, “employees who view pornography at work and who are then faced with ethical decisions are more likely to act unethically.”
Citation
Mecham, N. W., Lewis-Western, M. F., & Wood, D. A. (2019). The effects of pornography on unethical behavior in business. Journal of Business Ethics, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-019-04230-8