The moralization paradox at work: How Supervisor's moral framing depletes subordinates' self‐regulatory resources and suppresses proactive problem prevention

Abstract Integrating moral and ethical considerations into work is often presumed to yield a wide range of beneficial outcomes. Yet these benefits may not be unconditional, as prevailing scholarship has largely overlooked the potential costs associated with self‐regulatory resource depletion and diminished self‐initiated behaviours that are critical for averting future work disruptions. Drawing on ego depletion theory, we theorize that supervisor's work moralization can inadvertently hinder subordinates' proactive problem prevention by elevating their experiences of ego depletion. Furthermore, we posit that subordinates' reflective moral attentiveness intensifies this relationship, such that highly reflective individuals are more susceptible to the depleting effects of supervisor's work moralization, which in turn exacerbates the reduction in their proactive problem prevention. To test these propositions, we conducted two complementary empirical studies: Study 1, an experience sampling investigation, and Study 2, a vignette‐based laboratory experiment. Across both studies, the findings robustly supported our hypotheses. This research advances the literature by challenging the predominantly positive narrative of work moralization, illuminating its paradoxical potential to undermine subordinates' proactive behaviours, and providing novel theoretical insight into the boundary conditions and self‐regulatory mechanisms shaping the consequences of moral framing in the workplace.