Effect of Job Insecurity on Unethical Pro-Organizational Behavior: Mediating Role of Job Stress

Year 2025, Volume: 12 Issue: 2, 645 - 662, 30.06.2025

Fatma Ezgi Erbaş Kelebek

https://doi.org/10.30798/makuiibf.1605291

Abstract

Effect of Job Insecurity on Unethical Pro-Organizational Behavior: Mediating Role of Job Stress

Abstract

Employees occasionally engage in unethical behavior intended to benefit their organization despite the moral ambiguity of such actions. This phenomenon, known as (UPB), is often motivated by a desire to shield the organization from external criticism and align with its interests. However, not all questions about the antecedents of UPB, its consequences and the boundary conditions have yet been answered. This study analyzes the effects of job insecurity and job stress on UPB. Within this context, the mediating role of job insecurity and the moderating role of job experience are explored. Research data were gathered from 202 sales and marketing employees (% 73.3 male, SD: 0.73; mean age: 37, SD: 0.444) through face-to-face surveys. Research hypotheses were tested by structural equation modeling (SEM). The results indicate that job insecurity exerts positive effects on job stress and UPB. In addition, job stress fully mediates the effect of job insecurity on UPB. Thus, it was concluded that work experience is one of the boundary conditions of UPB intention among employees. This study contributes to UPB literature by showing what consequences the interaction of job stress and perceived job insecurity can have on employees. In addition, this study offers a new perspective on coping strategies for UPB.

Keywords

Job Insecurity , Unethical Pro-organizational Behavior , Job Stress , Conditional Effects

Ethical Statement

Ethics committee approval for the study was obtained from the Kocaeli University Ethics Committee on April 23, 2022, with decision number E-10017888-100-222313. The author declares that the study was conducted in accordance with research and publication ethics. The author confirms that no part of the study was generated, either wholly or in part, using Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools. The author declares that there are no financial conflicts of interest involving any institution, organization, or individual associated with this article. The author affirms that the entire research process was performed by the sole declared author of the study.

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