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People judge companies more favorably when higher-ups take blame for ethical scandals

wooden scrabble of EQUALITY

Image by WOKANDAPIX (external link, opens in new window)  from Pixabay (external link, opens in new window) 

In our study, we delved into the fascinating realm of how people respond when a company faces an ethical dilemma, particularly when it comes to assigning blame to either top-level managers or regular employees. Our research incorporated a blend of interviews and experiments to unravel the dynamics at play in consumer reactions. What we discovered is that there exists a tendency among people to attribute greater responsibility for ethical scandals to those at the top echelons of a company, such as upper managers, compared to their counterparts at lower levels, like sales associates. This predisposition suggests a societal bias that leans toward holding higher-ranking individuals more accountable for ethical missteps. Furthermore, our research found that the way a company handles the blame game significantly influences consumer attitudes. When the CEO or leadership places blame on the higher-ups rather than the regular employees, it tends to evoke more favorable sentiments among consumers. Even in scenarios where both groups are considered equally responsible for an ethical lapse, consumers exhibit a more positive response when the blame is directed towards the upper management. An intriguing aspect of our findings is the interaction with individuals' views on hierarchy. We observed that this inclination to assign blame to higher-level employees as opposed to lower-level ones is more pronounced among those who reject hierarchical differences and prefer a more egalitarian organizational structure. In other words, people who are less comfortable with the idea of hierarchy tend to react more positively when a company acknowledges fault at the top. In summary, our research sheds light on the intricate interplay of blame attribution in the aftermath of ethical scandals within companies. It appears that in the eyes of consumers, pointing fingers at higher-level employees, especially when coupled with a preference for equality, can positively influence perceptions of the company involved in the ethical breach. Palmeira, M., Hartmann, N. N., Chan, E., & Sekar, S. B. (2023). Don’t blame the powerless: The impact of hierarchy on reactions to responses to ethical scandals (external link, opens in new window) . Journal of Business Research, 165, 114075.