Ethical Decision-Making in Organizations in Times of Conflict: The Role of Personal Values and Collective Victimhood

Abstract This study examined the links between values and ethical decision-making in organizational contexts during a time of escalatory intergroup conflict, when social tensions can spill over into organizational life. Specifically, we compared how personal values are associated with general ethical decision-making and intergroup-related ethical decision-making and tested whether a subjective sense of collective victimhood mediates these associations. Using vignette-based measures of general and intergroup ethical decision-making, we surveyed 272 employed adults in Israel during a major escalation of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. While general ethical decision-making was positively related to social values (self-transcendence and conservation) and negatively related to individual values (self-enhancement and openness to change), intergroup ethical decision-making was positively related to growth values (self-transcendence and openness to change) and negatively related to self-protection values (self-enhancement and conservation). Collective victimhood mediated associations between personal values and intergroup ethical decisions, but did not mediate associations between personal values and other ethical decisions. Overall, findings suggest that in the context of intergroup conflict, distinct patterns of association between values, collective victimhood, and ethical choices appear across decision types. The paper concludes with implications for organizations operating under intergroup tension and notes the need for strategies that temper collective-victimhood dynamics while fostering ethical decision-making that transcends group boundaries.