Ethics & Power

7/31/2019 Ethics & Power

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E thics & Power

I nhibit ion, Rules, H ypocrisy,

and Sucking Up



Inhibit ion

I n com municating with subordinates,powerf ul people tend to be uninhibited .

T heir messages are of ten too candid andpotent ially inappropr iate.

Keltner, D., Gruenfeld, D. H, &Anderson, C. (2003). Power, approach,and inhibition. Psychological Review,

110, 265-284.



I mplications— T he powerful…

E xercise lit tle self cont ro l

Frequent emot ional outbursts and anger

Act selfishly

Take more than their share

V iolate social norms of conduct

E mbarrass themselves and/ or break the law



So, how can we use this information about

inhibit ion and the powerf ul?

Client control.

H elp them be “ the best they can be”

Q uote them in a dip lom atic tone

Remind them about the consequences of leaks,false impressions, innuendos.

M ake sure they have loyal admins and assistants.Speak “ T ruth to Power.”

… O ther ideas and experiences?



Rules

Powerful people use a different ethical

framework than powerless people.

W hen deciding right f rom wrong, powerful people

rely on rules/ policies/ codes.

In contrast, powerless people rely on consequences,outcom es, and results.

Lammers, J., & Stapel, D.A. (2009).How power influences moral thinking.Journal of Personality and Social

Psychology, 97, 279-289.



Rules

Powerful people use a different ethical

framework than powerless people.

W hen deciding right f rom wrong, powerful people

rely on rules/ policies/ codes.

In contrast, powerless people rely on consequences,outcom es, and results.

Lammers, J., & Stapel, D.A. (2009).How power influences moral thinking.Journal of Personality and Social

Psychology, 97, 279-289.

I n ethics, both modes of

reasoning are legitimate



I mplications –T he powerful…

See the prol if eration and ref inement of a code as agood tool in minimizing unethical behavior.

Find unconvincing those arguments that justi fy rule

vio lations with consequences. I gnore the strength of a consequent ialist argument .




the powerf ul?H elp executives value consequent ialist justi f ications

for code/ rule violations.

E ncourage executives to listen to subordinatesexplanations and justi f ications.

Remind executives that consequentialistexplanations are compelling.

O ther ideas and experiences?



H ypocrisy

Powerful people condemn other people’s cheatingwhile at the same tim e cheating themselves.

Lammers, J., Stapel, D. A., &Galinsky, A. D. 2010. Powerincreases hypocrisy. Psychological

Science, 21 (5): 737-744.



I mplications— T he powerful

A re str ict with rule violators.

Feel ent it led to tell others how to behave

A re predisposed to judge others

A re lenient about whether they have to follow therules.

T end to be oblivious to their ow n rule vio lations




the powerf ul?A lack of self-awareness is usually the core problem,

and this is not easily addressed.

Sharing the “ perceptions” of others (“ this is howwhat you are doing is seen” ).

Story telling about other executives’ hypocrisy.

O ther ideas and experiences?



Sucking Up

T he powerf ul are heavily inf luenced by sucking upif it is done in a sophisticated way.

The study focused on what ingratiation tactics ledpeople to being nom inated as an outside director.

Simple sucking up did notwork, but sophisticatedsucking up did.

Stern, I., & Westphal, J. D. 2010. StealthyFootsteps to the Boardroom: Executives’Backgrounds, Sophisticated Interpersonal

Influence Behavior, and Board Appointments.Administrative Science Quarterly , 55, 278-319.



D istinctions--

Sim ple sucking up

Flattery Perceived as insincere

Perceived as manipulative

Being a “ yes” man

Perceived as insincere

Perceived as manipulative

Sophisticated sucking up

Framing f lattery as likely to makethe target uncomfortable

Framing flattery as advice seekingCom pliment ing target to target’s

friend

Arguing prior to agreeing

Agreeing with target to a 3

rd

partyReferencing common social

af f iliations before sucking up




the powerf ul? The powerful are vulnerable to sophisticated

sucking up.A lert ing the powerf ul when others are using sophis-

ticated sucking up m ay increase healthy skepticism.Using sophisticated sucking up to advance ethical

action may be justified.O ther ideas and experiences?



So, how does power corrupt?

T he powerf ul are prone to:

Low self-control

Insensitivity toward good consequentialistreasoning

H ypocrisy

M anipulation by sophisticated brown-nosers.

Ethics & Power

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