The impact of ethical leadership on internal control systems
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol8iss3pp1-25Abstract
Background and Purpose: The paper aims to investigate the impacts of ethical leadership on the effectiveness of internal control systems in government departments.
Methodology: The investigation is based on 182 distributed survey questionnaires provided to government department employees in managerial positions. The questionnaire items relating to ethical leadership are based on the components of role-modelling, strictness and openness. Internal control systems were evaluated based on the COSO framework, and the hypotheses were tested using regression models on the correlation between ethical leadership and internal control systems.
Findings: The findings reveal a significantly positive correlation between ethical leadership and internal control systems. The study points out the importance of ethical leadership in ensuring the effectiveness of internal control systems.
Contribution: This study provides insights and information on how to enhance internal control systems through ethical leadership. It also contributes to the internal control systems literature by providing empirical evidence on the causal effect that a leader has on systems effectiveness.
Keywords: Ethics, government, internal control, leadership, public sector.
References
Abdallah, L., & Forawi, S. (2017). Investigating leadership styles and their impact on the success of educational institutions. The International Journal of Educational Organization and Leadership, 24(2), 19–30.
Abdillah, M. R., Anita, R., & Zakaria, N. B. (2021). Trust in leaders and employee silence behaviour: Evidence from higher education institutions in Indonesia. Human Systems Management, 40(4), 567-580.
Abernethy, M. A., Bouwens, J., & Van Lent, L. (2010). Leadership and control system design. Management Accounting Research, 21(1), 2–16.
ACFE. (2014). Report to the nations on occupational fraud and abuse. Association of Certified Faud Examiners, 15(2), 1–80.
Agbejule, A., & Jokipii, A. (2009). Strategy, control activities, monitoring and effectiveness. Managerial Auditing Journal, 24(6), 500–522.
Agrawal, A., Catalini, C., Goldfarb, A., & Luo, H. (2018). Slack time and innovation. Harvard Business School.
Ashforth, B. E., & Anand, V. (2003). The normalization of corruption in organizations. Research in Organizational Behavior, 25(03), 1–52.
Babatunde, S. A., & Dandago, K. I. (2014). Internal control system deficiency and capital project mis-management in the Nigerian public sector. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 164(August), 208–221.
Badara, M. S., & Saidin, S. Z. (2013). Impact of the effective internal control system on the internal audit effectiveness at local government level. Journal of Social and Development Sciences, 4(1), 16–23.
Bello, S. M. (2012). Impact of ethical leadership on employee job performance. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 3(11), 228–237.
Bendahan, S., Zehnder, C., Pralong, F. P., & Antonakis, J. (2015). Leader corruption depends on power and testosterone. Leadership Quarterly, 26(2), 101–122.
Bhanbhro, S., Wassan, M. R., Shah, M., Talpur, A. A., & Wassan, A. A. (2013). Karo Kari: The murder of honour in Sindh Pakistan: An ethnographic study. International Journal of Asian Social Science, 3(7), 1467–1484.
Bowrin, A. R. (2004). Internal control in Trinidad and Tobago religious organizations. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 17(1), 121–152.
Brown, M., Treviño, L., & Harrison, D. (2005). Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 97(2), 117–134.
Calhoun, L. (2004). The problem of “Dirty Hands” and corrupt leadership. The Independent Review, 8(3), 363–385.
Chathoth, P. K., & Olsen, M. D. (2002). Organisational leadership and strategy in the hospitality industry. Journal of Services Research, 2(1), 5–29.
Chrisafis, A. (2019, January 3). French police arrest Gilets Jaunes protests leader Eric Drouet. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/03/french-police-arrest-gilets-jaunes-protests-leader-eric-drouet
COSO. (2013a). Internal control: Integrated framework. https://doi.org/978-1-93735-239-4
COSO. (2013b). Internal control: Integrated framework (Executive Summary). http://coso.org/IC-IntegratedFramework-summary.htm
COSO. (2016). About us. http://www.coso.org/aboutus.htm
David, S. (2004). Normative ethical theories. The Encyclopedia of Bioethics, 3(2), 812–824.
Demirtas, O., & Akdogan, A. A. (2015). The effect of ethical leadership behavior on ethical climate, turnover intention, and affective commitment. Journal of Business Ethics, 130(1), 59–67.
Department of Information Malaysia. (2017). Senarai jabatan atau agensi kerajaan persekutuan. http://pmr.penerangan.gov.my/index.php/maklumat-kenegaraan/12071-senarai-jabatanagensi-kerajaan-persekutuan.html
Dorjee, T., Baig, N., & Ting-Toomey, S. (2013). A social ecological perspective on understanding “Honor Killing”: An intercultural moral dilemma. Journal of Intercultural Communication Research, 42(1), 1–21.
Engelbrecht, A. S., Heine, G., & Mahembe, B. (2017). Integrity, ethical leadership, trust and work engagement. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 38(3), 368–379.
Engelbrecht, A. S., Wolmarans, J., & Mahembe, B. (2017). Effect of ethical leadership and climate on effectiveness. SA Journal of Human Resource Management, 15(0), 1–8.
Fiedler, F. E. (1978). The contingency model and the dynamics of the leadership process. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 11(1), 59-112.
Field, A. (2013). Discovering statistics using SPSS. Sage Publications.
Fieser, J. (2018). Ethics. https://www.iep.utm.edu/ethics/
Frank, S. A., & Lewis, G. B. (2004). Government employees: Working hard or hardly working? The American Review of Public Administration, 34(1), 36–51.
Free, C., Macintosh, N., & Stein, M. (2007). Management controls: The organizational fraud triangle of leadership, culture and control in Enron. Ivey Business Journal, 71(August), 1–10.
Gill, R. (2002). Change management--or change leadership? Journal of Change Management, 3(4), 307–318.
Glenn, C. (2013, May 15). Non-financial fraud’s growing threat. Daily News. https://www.memphisdailynews.com/news/2013/may/15/non-financial-frauds-growing-threat/
Goulet, L. R., & Frank, M. L. (2015). Organizational commitment across three sectors: Public, non-profit, and for-profit. Public Personnel Management, 31(2), 201–210.
Graaf, G. de. (2010). A report on reporting: Why peers report integrity and law violations in public organizations. Public Administration Review, 70(5), 767–779.
Grady, P. (1957). The broader concept of internal control. The Journal of Accountancy, 103(5), 36-41.
Hansen, S. C. (1997). Designing internal controls: The interaction between efficiency wages and monitoring. Contemporary Accounting Research, 14(1), 129–163.
Herman, J. (1987). Ethics in our 100-year history. Journal of Accountancy, 163(May), 78-87.
Hoel, H., Glasø, L., Hetland, J., Cooper, C. L., & Einarsen, S. (2010). Leadership styles as predictors of self‐reported and observed workplace bullying. British Journal of Management, 21(2), 453–468.
House, R., Wright, N., & Aditya, R. N. (1997). Cross-cultural research on organizational leadership: A critical analysis and a proposed theory. In P. C. Earley, & M. Erez (Eds.), New perspectives on international/organizational psychology (pp. 535-625).
New Lexington.
Huberts, L., Kapteinm, M., & Lasthuizen, K. (2007). A study of the impact of three leadership styles on integrity violations committed by police officers. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 30(4), 587–607.
Hursthouse, R. (2015). Normative virtue ethics. In R. Shafer-Landau (Ed.), Ethica (pp. 19-36). Wiley Blackwell.
Jensen, M. C. (1993). The modern industrial revolution, exit, and the failure of internal control systems the failure of internal control systems. Journal of Finance, 48(3), 831–880.
Jokipii, A. (2009). Determinants and consequences of internal control in firms: A contingency theory based analysis. Journal of Management and Governance, 14(2), 115–144.
Junior, R. O., & Sorking, A. R. (2001, December 3). Enron’s collapse: The overview. The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/03/business/enron-s-collapse-the-overview-enron-corp-files-largest-us-claim-for-bankruptcy.html
Kendrick, M. (2000). Internal control: Guidance for directors on the combined code (The Turnbull Report). Risk Management, 2(4), 65–69.
Kuenzi, M., Mayer, D. M., & Greenbaum, R. L. (2019). Creating an ethical organizational environment: The relationship between ethical leadership, ethical organizational climate, and unethical behavior. Personnel Psychology, 1(1), 1–29.
Lansiluoto, A., Jokipii, A., & Eklund, T. (2016). Internal control effectiveness: A clustering approach. Managerial Auditing Journal, 31(1), 5–34.
Lasthuizen, K. M., Huberts, L., & Heres, L. (2011). How to measure integrity violations: Towards a validated typology of unethical behavior. Public Management Review, 13(3), 383–408.
Lather, A. S., Jain, V. K., Jain, S., & Vikas, S. (2009). Leadership styles in relation to conflict resolution modes: A study of Delhi Jal Board (DJB). Vilakshan: The XIMB Journal of Management, 6(1), 19–38.
Lee, T. A. (1971). The historical development of internal control from the earliest times to the end of the seventeenth century. Journal of Accounting Research, 9(1), 150–157.
Lok, P., & Crawford, J. (2004). The effect of organisational culture and leadership style on job satisfaction and organisational commitment. Journal of Management Development, 23(4), 321–338.
Lu, C. S., & Lin, C. C. (2014). The effects of ethical leadership and ethical climate on employee ethical behavior in the international port context. Journal of Business Ethics, 124(2), 209–223.
Lunenburg, F. C. (2012). Power and leadership: An influence process. International Journal of Management, Business, and Administration, 15(1), 1–9.
Maccoby, M. (2001). The human side: Successful leaders employ strategic intelligence. Research-Technology Management, 44(3), 58–60.
Maycock, S. (2011). Understanding COSO: Integrated framework. http://auditandrisk.org.uk/tools/understanding-coso---integrated-framework
Mayer, D. M., Aquino, K., Greenbaum, R. L., & Kuenzi, M. (2012). Who displays ethical leadership, and why does it matter? An examination of antecedents and consequences of ethical leadership. Academy of Management Journal, 55(1), 151–171.
Mayer, D. M., Kuenzi, M., Greenbaum, R., Bardes, M., & Salvador, R. B. (2009). How low does ethical leadership flow? Test of a Trickle-Down Model. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 108(1), 1–13.
McCormack, R. J. (1996). Police perceptions and the norming of institutional corruption. Policing and Society: An International Journal, 6(3), 239–246.
Mckee, J. G. (1991). Leadership styles of community college presidents and faculty job satisfaction. Community/Junior College Quarterly of Research and Practice, 15(1), 33–46.
Mizan, K., Nawawi, Z. A., Azlin, A. S., & Salin, P. (2016). Internal controls and fraud: Empirical evidence from oil & gas company. Journal of Financial Crime, 23(4), 1154-1168.
Morehead, W. A. (2007). Internal control and governance in non-governmental organizations designed to provide accountability and deter, prevent and detect fraud and corruption.
http://search.proquest.com.library.capella.edu/docview/304808938?accountid=27965
Muresan, A., Gabor-Supuran, R., Borza, A., & Lungescu, D. C. (2010). Leadership styles adopted in Romanian companies: The tension and transition toward a contemporary management. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=bth&AN=59389357&site=ehost-live%5Cnhttp://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=59389382&site=ehost-live
Neubert, M. J., Carlson, D. S., Kacmar, K. M., Roberts, J. A., & Chonko, L. B. (2009). The virtuous influence of ethical leadership behavior: Evidence from the field. Journal of Business Ethics, 90(2), 157–170.
Northouse, P. G. (2012). Leadership: Theory and practice. SAGE Publications Limited.
Olmstead, J. A. (2000). Executive leadership: Building world-class organizations (NV-1 onl). http://site.ebrary.com/id/10349867
Paine, L. S. (1994). Managing for organizational integrity. Harvard Business Review, 72(2), 106–117.
Pallant, J. (2007). SPSS survival manual—A step by step guide to data analysis using SPSS for windows (3rd ed.). Open University Press.
Parry, K. W., & Proctor-thomson, S. B. (2012). Perceived integrity of settings leaders in organisational. Journal of Business, 35(2), 75–96.
Parry, K. W., & Proctor-Thomson, S. B. (2003). Leadership, culture and performance: The case of the New Zealand public sector. Journal of Change Management, 3(4), 376–399.
Podsakoff, P. M., & Schriesheim, C. A. (1985). Field studies of French and Raven’s bases of power. Critique, Reanalysis, and Suggestions for Future Research. Psychological Bulletin, 97(3), 387–411.
Riggio, R. E., & Reichard, R. J. (2008). The emotional and social intelligences of effective leadership: An emotional and social skill approach. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 23(2), 169–185.
Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2005). Organizational behaviour. Pearson.
Rubino, M., Vitolla, F., & Garzoni, A. (2017). The impact of an IT governance framework on the internal control environment. Records Management Journal, 27(1), 19–41.
Rush, M. C., Thomas, J. C., & Lord, R. G. (1977). Implicit leadership theory - Potential threat to internal validity of leader-behavior questionnaires. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 20(1), 93–110.
Sankowsky, D. (1995). Charismatic leader as narcissist. Understanding the Abuse of Power, 23(1), 57–71.
Simonet, D. V., & Tett, R. P. (2013). Five perspectives on leadership–management relationship: A competency-based evaluation and integration. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 20(2), 199–213.
Sinek, S. (2009). Start with why: How great leaders inspire everyone to take action. Penguin.
Smircich, L., & Morgan, G. (1982). Leadership: The management of meaning. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 18(3), 257–273.
Staicu, A. M., Tatomir, R. I., & Lincă, A. C. (2013). Determinants and consequences of “Tone at the Top”. International Journal of Advances in Management and Economics, 2(1), 76–88.
Stogdill, R. M. (1950). Leadership, membership and organization. Psychological Bulletin, 47(1), 1-14.
Stogdill, R. M. (1974). Handbook of leadership: A survey of theory and research. Free Press.
Thoms, J. C. (2008). Ethical integrity in leadership and organizational moral culture. Leadership Quarterly, 4(4), 419–442.
Toor, S., & Ofori, G. (2009). Ethical leadership: Examining the relationships with full range leadership model, employee outcomes, and organizational culture. Journal of Business Ethics, 90(4), 533–547.
Tröster, C., & Van Knippenberg, D. (2012). Leader openness, nationality dissimilarity, and voice in multinational management teams. Journal of International Business Studies, 43(6), 591–613.
van Quaquebeke, N., van Knippenberg, D., & Eckloff, T. (2011). Individual differences in the leader categorization to openness to influence relationship: The role of followers’ self-perception and social comparison orientation. Group Processes &
Intergroup Relations, 14(5), 605–622.
Velasquez, M., Andre, C., Thomas Shanks, S. J., & Meyer, M. J. (2015). What is ethics? https://www.scu.edu/ethics/ethics-resources/ethical-decision-making/what-is-ethics/
Yammarino, F. J., Spangler, W. D., & Bass, B. M. (1993). Transformational leadership and performance: A longitudinal investigation. Leadership Quarterly, 4(1), 81–102.
Yurniwati, & Rizaldi, A. (2015). Control environment analysis at government internal control system: Indonesia case. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 211(September), 844–850.
Zaccaro, S. J. (2007). Trait-based perspectives of leadership. The American Psychologist, 62(1), 6–16.
Zaccaro, S. J., Gilbert, J. A., Thor, K. K., & Mumford, M. D. (1991). Leadership and social intelligence: Linking social perspectiveness and behavioral flexibility to leader effectiveness. The Leadership Quarterly, 2(4), 317–342.
Zafarullah, H., & Siddiquee, N. A. (2001). Dissecting public sector corruption in Bangladesh: Issues and problems of control. Public Organization Review, 1(4), 465–486.
Zahari, A., Said, J., & Arshad, R. (2019). The effect of internal control systems and procrastination on public sector employees. Indian Pacific Journal of Accounting and Finance, 3(1), 50–64.