Motivational Antecedents of Whistle-Blowing in Iranian Public Service Organizations

Abstract

This paper empirically explores how whistle-blowers, as members of a collective or as individual actors, are motivated to report a wrongdoing in public service organizations of Iran. Whistle-blowing in the service organizations of public sector utilizes the mass media to call the attention of public to corruption activities that are associated to the misuse of public funding in a direct way. The current research provides the empirical evidence that whistle-blowing can be motivated with personal and cultural orientation regarding organizational corruption. Drawing on existing literature, this paper examines a structural model of whistle-blowing determinants. A paper-based survey was employed and the statistical population are the employees who work in three anonymous public service organizations in Tehran, Iran. The sample size was estimated at 287. A convenience sampling approach was utilized to collect the required sample. The results of structural analysis indicated that cultural orientation, personal traits and ethical position are significant antecedents of whistle-blowing behaviour. This research suggests that the whistle-blowers have contributed to the disclosure of illegitimate, immoral, and/or illegal practices under their employers' control that may affect action through their participation in the politicization of whistle-blowing and through their communal and personal transformations.