Steel, PiersWeinhardt, JustinNguyen, Brenda2015-09-292015-11-202015-09-292015http://hdl.handle.net/11023/2543One of the major reasons for newcomers voluntarily leaving organizations can be linked to inadequate socialization (Allen, 2006; Feldman, 1989; Fisher, 1986). Socialization has been described as a period of extensive learning where newcomers gather large amounts of information to reduce the uncertainty and complexity of their world. However, a unifying theory to explain how this process occurs is missing. Social learning theory offers a compelling framework to address this theoretical gap and, at the same time, it suggests that newcomers will pay attention to ethical information and that this learning will be important for turnover intentions. Socialization has been studied extensively from the process to the tactics of socialization (Ostroff & Kozlowski, 1992), but little research has examined the ethical side of socialization and its relation to turnover (Bauer & Erdogan, 2012). Drawing from the ethical leadership model, and using a sample of 297 first-year apprentices in Alberta’s oil and gas industry, this study sought to examine whether socialization influences the perceptions of organizational ethics and whether this leads to turnover intentions. A second follow-up study utilizing 800 newcomers examined whether ethical leadership perceptions explained the path between ethical socialization to turnover and eventually to deviant behaviours. Additionally, behavioural integrity of the leader and moral disengagement by the individual are examined as moderators of this model. Results showed that perceptions of organizational ethics (Study1) and perceptions of ethical leadership (Study 2) fully mediated the socialization and turnover path. The behavioural integrity of the leader was a significant moderator (such that when behavioural integrity was low, socialization had a stronger impact on turnover). Moreover, moral disengagement was also a significant moderator of organizational ethics in predicting turnover (such that when moral disengagement was high, ethical perceptions had a weaker relationship with turnover). Finally, moral disengagement interacted with turnover intentions to predict organizational deviant behaviours (when moral disengagement was high, turnover intentions was a stronger predictor of deviant behavior compared to when moral disengagement was low).engUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.Business Administration--ManagementPsychology--IndustrialSocializationEthical LeadershipTurnoverSocial Learning TheoryMoral DisegagementBehavioural Integritydoctoral thesis10.11575/PRISM/28078