| In an attempt to further explain personal or individual factors that affect ethical behavior within an organization, this dissertation examined the direct effects of individual personality traits on ethical awareness, ethical judgment, and ethical intent, along with the interaction of cognitive moral development (CMD) and individual personality traits on ethical intent. This study adds to the body of research on ethical behavior within business organizations in particular as it explored connections that to date have not been addressed, in that it examined the impact and interaction of a new combination of personal characteristics, CMD and the Big Five Personality Traits, and is the first to hypothesize and test outcome expectancies as an intervening CMD process that influences ethical decision-making behavior. It is also the first to examine the specific ethical frameworks utilized by various comparative groups.;The participants for this study included undergraduate students and employed practitioners from various fields of accounting and business. Multiple instruments were used to collect data from the participants, including the Big Five Inventory, the Defining Issues Test, the Multidimensional Ethics Scale, and a brief demographic survey. |
