Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management

ISSN: 0885-3134 (Print) 1557-7813 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rpss20

The Effect of Perceived Ethical Climate on the

Search for Sales Force Excellence

William A. Weeks, Terry W. Loe, Lawrence B. Chonko & Kirk Wakefield

To cite this article: William A. Weeks, Terry W. Loe, Lawrence B. Chonko & Kirk Wakefield (2004)
The Effect of Perceived Ethical Climate on the Search for Sales Force Excellence, Journal of
Personal Selling & Sales Management, 24:3, 199-214

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2004.10749031

Published online: 23 Sep 2013.

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 THE EFFECT OF PERCEIVED ETHICAL CLIMATE ON THE SEARCH FOR
SALES FORCE EXCELLENCE
William A. Weeks, Terry W. Loe, Lawrence B. Chonko, and Kirk Wakefield

This study investigates the relationship of perceived ethical climate to individual commitment to quality, organizational
commitment, and performance among business-to-business salespeople from two companies. The results indicate a firm’s
ethical climate has an effect on its sales force. Salesperson’s perceptions of a positive organization ethical climate are
positively related with their individual commitment to quality and organizational commitment. Although ethical climate
does not have a direct effect on performance, it does have an indirect effect on performance when using individual
commitment to quality and organizational commitment as intervening variables. Furthermore, the findings suggest an
association exists between individual commitment to quality and performance. Implications and directions for future
research are discussed.
Downloaded by [Universiti Teknologi Malaysia] at 20:53 10 May 2016

Unethical behavior continues to occur and receive attention
throughout the business community. The public’s increasingly
negative perceptions regarding business ethics in recent years
can be attributed, in part at least, to the scandals regarding
companies such as Enron (Capell, Edmondson, and Fairlamb
2003), accusations such as those concerning Tyco (Warner
2003), and increases in personal misconduct (Clark 2003).
Investigations of business ethics by both business practitioners
and academics are increasing (cf. Sivadas et al. 2003). Evi-
dence of industry’s interest in ethics is seen in the establish-
ment and continued growth of the Ethics Officers Association
(EOA), which is dedicated to promoting ethical business prac-
tices. The Direct Selling Association’s recent study (Chonko,
Wotruba, and Loe 2002) is another example of industry con-
cern about business ethics. The focus on ethics is also seen in
higher education through ethics research and increased offer-
ings for ethics-related classes (Shaw 1996).
William A. Weeks (DBA, Indiana University), Professor of Market-
ing and Director of the Center for Professional Selling, Hankamer
School of Business, Baylor University, Bill_Weeks@baylor.edu.
Terry W. Loe (Ph.D., University of Memphis), Associate Professor
of Marketing and Director of the Center for Professional Selling,
Coles College of Business, Kennesaw State University, tloe@coles2
.kennesaw.edu
Lawrence B. Chonko (Ph.D., University of Houston), Professor of
Marketing, Department of Marketing, Hankamer School of Busi-
ness, Baylor University, Larry_Chonko@baylor.edu.
Kirk Wakefield (Ph.D., Saint Louis University), Associate Professor
of Marketing and Chair, Department of Marketing, Baylor Univer-
sity, Kirk_Wakefield@baylor.edu.
Concern about ethical behavior and the desire to better
understand ethical decision-making has led to the develop-
ment of many models, frameworks, and research efforts in
marketing (e.g., Aquino 1998; Bass, Barnett, and Brown 1998;
Chonko 1995; Ferrell and Gresham 1985; Ferrell, Gresham,
and Fraedrick 1989; Hunt and Vitell 1990; Singhapakdi and
Vitell 1991a; Sividas et al. 2003; Wobtruba 1990). These ef-
forts generally include individual influences and organizational
factors such as codes of conduct, reward systems, norms, and
organizational climate (Barnett and Vaicys 2000).
Schneider and Rentsch (1988) describe climate as the way
firms operationalize routine behaviors and the actions that
are supported and rewarded by the organization. Climate may
vary within firms due to differences in individuals, work
groups, employment histories, and individuals’ positions (Vic-
tor and Cullen 1988). A firm, work group, or subunit may be
comprised of many different types of climates (Schneider
1975). Victor and Cullen (1988) indicate the ethical dimen-
sion of organizational climate is a multidimensional construct,
which they term the “ethical work climate.” Ethical climate
represents “the prevailing perceptions of typical organizational
practices and procedures that have ethical content” (Victor
and Cullen 1988, p. 101). Whereas ethical climate is, by defi-
nition, a macro-level construct, the perception of ethical cli-
mate is relevant to subsequent individual behaviors at the
micro-level (Wyld and Jones 1997). The focus of this paper is
on an individual’s perceptions of organizational ethical cli-
mate, which is consistent with the study of organizational
climate at the micro-level (Barnett and Vaicys 2000; Victor
and Cullen 1988) and its effect on other factors.
Bruce (1994) suggests that when employees engage in un-
ethical behavior, they tend to have less time to be productive.
Such observations have stimulated research in the area of eth-
ics and the effect of ethical/unethical behavior on key outcomes/
attitudes. For example, while studying business-to-business

Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, vol. XXIV, no. 3 (summer 2004), pp. 199–214.
© 2005 PSE National Educational Foundation. All rights reserved.
ISSN 0885-3134 / 2005 $9.50 + 0.00.
 200 Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management
salespeople, Babin, Boles, and Robin (2000) find ethical cli-
mate to be significantly associated with role stress, job satisfac-
tion, and organizational commitment. Schwepker (2001) finds
similar relationships between ethical climate and job satisfac-
tion and organizational commitment. Babin, Boles, and Robin
(2000) call for future research that has a more thorough focus
on the conceptual deliberation of potential relationships be-
tween ethical climate and a larger number of organizational
constructs.
The primary objectives of this paper are threefold. First,
we follow the advice of Babin, Boles, and Robin (2000) and
build on Schwepker’s (2001) work with business-to-business
salespeople and investigate the relationship between ethical
climate and other organizational constructs, namely, indi-
vidual commitment to quality and job performance. In the
process, we will also investigate the association that Babin,
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Boles, and Robin (2000) and Schwepker (2001) find between
ethical climate and organizational commitment. Second, al-
though previous research (e.g., Bashaw and Grant 1994;
Mathieu and Zajac 1990) has produced inclusive findings,
we will explore the potential relationship between organiza-
tional commitment and performance. Third, it may be pru-
dent to recognize that there are other forms of commitment
that can be studied, such as work commitment, Protestant
work ethic, career salience, job involvement/work as a central
life interest, organization commitment, and union commit-
ment (Morrow 1983). Recognizing there are different types
of commitment, the current study investigates whether there
is a relationship between individual commitment to quality
and performance. The proposed relationships that are exam-
ined in this research are presented in Figure 1.
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND AND
HYPOTHESES
Ethical Climate
An organization’s ethical climate can be characterized in terms
of five dimensions: caring, law and code, rules, instrumental,
and independence (Victor and Cullen 1987; 1988). These
five dimensions are derived from ethical criteria (principle—
accepted or professional rules of conduct; benevolence—a
display of the desire to do good; and egoism—the doctrine
that self-interest is the basis of all behavior) and the locus of
analysis (cosmopolitan—the world; local—the firm; and in-
dividual—the person). A firm’s ethical climate drives both its
ethical values and the behaviors expected, and have been shown
to influence the ethical behavior of employees (Verbeke,
Ouwerkerk, and Peelen 1996; Wimbush and Shepard 1994).
The definition of ethical climate by Victor and Cullen (1987;
1988) and Cullen and Victor (1993) remains the most fully
developed to date (Fritzche 2000). This is reflected in recent
Figure 1
Hypothesized Model of Relationships Between
Ethical Climate, Individual Commitment to Quality,
Organizational Commitment, and Performance
studies that have explored ethical climate’s effect on ethical
judgment and behavioral intentions (Barnett and Vaicys
2000), the relationship between unethical behavior and ethi-
cal climate (Peterson 2002), and ethical climate’s effect on
organizational commitment (Cullen, Parboteeah, and Victor
2003).
As with any employee, a salesperson’s ethical work climate
is distinguished from other climate elements such as employ-
ees’ perceptions of control, organizational structure, and the
nature of reward systems (Victor and Cullen 1987). For ex-
ample, a poor ethical climate may exist when salespeople feel
compelled to perform or endorse behaviors that are perceived
as opposing standards of ethical conduct. Similarly, the exist-
ence of peers who are perceived by salespeople as unscrupu-
lous in carrying out responsibilities indicates a poor ethical
work climate (Robin and Reidenbach 1987). Therefore, a
salesperson’s perceptions of the ethical climate are shaped by
confrontations with ethical dilemmas of their own or those
experienced by others. An ethical dilemma may involve a vio-
lation of an implicit or explicit trust, the observation of oth-
ers’ morally questionable behavior, a general observation of
actions and treatment of customers and other employees, and
from perceptions of organizational priorities (Babin, Boles,
and Robin 2000). How the salesperson perceives these di-
lemmas and the behaviors undertaken in response to ethic-
laden situations will affect how the salesperson views the ethical
climate of an organization.
Ethical Climate and Individual Commitment to
Quality
The importance of service quality is well documented (Berry
and Parasuraman 1997; Hartline and Ferrell 1996;

Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry 1994; Shepherd 1999;
Wimbush, Shepard, and Markham 1997). Berry et al. con-
clude, “[e]xcellent service is a profit strategy because it results
in more new customers, more business with existing custom-
ers, fewer lost customers, more insulation from price compe-
tition and fewer mistakes requiring the reperformance of
services” (1994, p. 32).
Considerable research regarding the concept of quality, and
particularly service quality, has focused on measurement is-
sues (Babakus and Boller 1992; Carman 1990; Cronin and
Taylor 1992; Parasuramen, Zeithaml, and Berry 1994; Teas
1993). Some of this research has attempted to measure man-
agement commitment to service quality along with its out-
comes. Management commitment to service quality (MCSQ)
has been defined as “encompassing the conscious choice of
quality initiatives as operational and strategic options for the
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firm and engaging in activities such as providing visible qual-
ity leadership and resources for the adoption and implemen-
tation of quality initiatives” (Ahmed and Parasuraman 1994,
p. 85). Another stream of research has investigated potential
consequences of quality—that is, customer satisfaction, pur-
chase intentions (Cronin and Taylor 1992), and firm perfor-
mance. However, there is limited research regarding the
antecedents of quality in general, and even less concerning
antecedents of individual commitment to quality. Through
managerial activities such as MCSQ, which reflects an
organization’s corporate climate, it has the potential to effec-
tively influence employee behaviors in ways that improve ser-
vice quality (Hartline and Ferrell 1996).
The role of climate has been discussed by Klein and Sorra
(1996), who find the effective implementation of innovations
is a function of the strength of an organization’s climate for
the implementation of that innovation. Borrowing on their
work, one might draw a similar parallel regarding the rela-
tionship between ethical climate and an individual’s commit-
ment to quality. An organization that espouses the general
proposition that “good ethics is good business” might pride
itself in offering high-quality products and services to their
customers. This may be reflected in the organization’s formal
policies, personnel training, praise from supervisors for em-
phasizing a commitment to quality, financial incentives for
such behavior, and customer service and support programs.
These policies and processes are related to beliefs concerning
the employee’s role in providing quality offerings and, there-
fore, are a manifestation of managerial attitudes and actions
regarding various stakeholder interests. Also, these policies
and processes may be considered manifestations of moral de-
cision-making that are closely aligned to an ethical climate
that can affect service behavior—or quality in general
(Wimbush and Shepard 1994).
Whereas limited research has directly focused on the ethi-
cal climate–individual commitment to quality relationship,
Summer 2004 201
in an exploratory study, Loe (1996) finds a significant rela-
tionship between these two constructs. Further, Martin
Marietta Corporation conclude that their integrity-based eth-
ics program, which includes quality responsibility, has served
as an early warning system for quality concerns. This organi-
zation also attributes their award of U.S. government defense
contracts, which account for 75 percent of the company’s rev-
enues, to their integrity and quality focus (Paine 1994). There-
fore, based on the subsequent discussion, the following
hypothesis is offered:
H1: Organizational ethical climate is positively related to
individual commitment to quality.
Ethical Climate and Organizational
Commitment
Although several definitions of organizational commitment
exist, a common theme is that committed individuals believe
in and accept organizational values and goals, are willing to
provide considerable effort on their behalf, and are willing to
remain with their organizations (Mowday, Steers, and Porter
1979). Organizational commitment gained attention in the
1970s and 1980s as a key aspect of the relationship between
individuals and organizations (Mowday, Porter, and Steers
1982). Research suggests low levels of organizational com-
mitment may be dysfunctional to both the individual and
the organization, whereas high levels may have positive ef-
fects (i.e., higher performance, greater satisfaction, lower turn-
over) (Mathieu and Zajac 1990). Several authors have called
for identifying antecedents of organizational commitment if
managers wish to positively influence employee commitment
(Morris and Sherman 1981; Randall 1987).
A conceptual argument can be made regarding why we
might expect to find a relationship between ethical climate
and organizational commitment. Individuals who perceive
that their organizations are trying to improve the ethical cli-
mate should exhibit stronger commitment to that organiza-
tion, especially if the employee’s ethical values are congruent
with those of the organization. Salespeople are often in the
field with little direction as to the action to take when faced
with an ethical dilemma, and, subsequently, seek direction in
ethical situations (Dubinsky et al. 1992). When salespeople
are provided direction via a strong ethical climate, it would
seem they would be more likely to be committed to the orga-
nization and less likely to leave for another job opportunity.
Perceived ethical climate helps an organization member
answer questions such as “What issues have relevant ethical
content?” “What are the appropriate decision criteria that
should be used?” “What is the desirable alternative in the
organization’s view?” and “What should I do?” Hence, the
perceived ethical climate assists the individual in determining
 202 Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management
issues that are ethically relevant, and aids the individual in
determining what criteria should be used, evaluated, and how
to resolve the ethical issues (Kelley, Skinner, and Ferrell 1989;
Singhapakdi and Vitell 1991a, 1991b).
An argument might also be made that if higher levels of
ethical climate are perceived by salespeople, they are more
likely to agree with and accept the values communicated by
management and the organization. Thus, salespeople should
be more committed to the organization because of the values
exhibited that are considered to be more ethical.
Ethical climate is, perhaps, one of the more manageable
factors that can be used to influence ethical behavior in an
organization. Management can develop and communicate
codes of ethical conduct to provide direction regarding ac-
ceptable and unacceptable behavior. Furthermore, management
can create and implement corporate policies such as the estab-
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lishment of measurement and compensation processes that
encourage ethical behavior. Reward and punishment are also
relevant to creating an ethical climate, as management can in-
fluence behavior through their administration of rewards and
punishment (Posner and Schmidt 1987; Trevino 1986). Based
on this work, several conclusions are evident. A lack of rel-
evant codes of ethics and corporate policies can lead to greater
difficulty for employees to answer the above ethical questions
and potentially lead to drawing incorrect conclusions regard-
ing their organization’s ethical climate and could result in re-
ducing their organizational commitment. Moreover, when
employees perceive their peers are able to get by with unethi-
cal behavior without management intervention, again organi-
zational commitment can be negatively affected. Conversely,
when employees perceive his or her peers to be recognized and
rewarded for ethical behavior, one can expect it might give the
impression that their organization has an ethical climate and
positively influence organizational commitment.
Cullen and Victor (1993) provide another argument for a
relationship between ethical climate and organizational com-
mitment. They argue that, to the extent that people prefer
certain types of normative climates, individuals should be more
committed to organizations within these types of ethical cli-
mates. For example, perceived benevolent climates are reflected
in an organization having sincere interest for the well-being
of others. Characteristics inherent in a benevolent climate are
cooperation, mutual personal attraction, and positive feel-
ings about tasks, which may produce a positive affective tone
among its members (Wech et al. 1998). This dimension of
climate is known to elicit higher levels of perceived organiza-
tional commitment from its members (Cullen, Parboteeah,
and Victor 2003).
Cullen, Parboteeah, and Victor also identify principled cli-
mates. Individuals in professional fields (e.g., CPAs) often
come to an organization bringing with them professional
norms and values that are supported by their respective asso-
ciations. When such individuals recognize similar values and
standards in their organization, they are more likely to de-
velop commitment for the organization.
Ostroff (1993) shows a strong association between climate
dimensions and organizational commitment. However, an
ethical dimension of climate was not examined. In an investi-
gation of 1,246 marketing professionals (researchers and man-
agers), Hunt, Wood, and Chonko (1989) find corporate
ethical values to be significant substantive predictors of orga-
nizational commitment. The measure of corporate ethical
values capture employees’ perceptions of managers’ ethical
behaviors and those employees’ concerns about issues of eth-
ics in the organization, as well as the extent to which employ-
ees perceive ethical (unethical) behavior was rewarded
(punished) in their firm (Hunt, Wood, and Chonko 1989).
Similarly, a study of procurement executives discovered a posi-
tive relationship between a rules-based dimension of ethical
climate and organizational commitment (Kelley and Dorsch
1991). Also, in a study of hospital employees, Sims and Kroeck
(1994) find when their preferred ethical work climate and
their actual ethical work climate match, they are likely to be
more committed to the organization. Finally, a study of one
type of boundary spanner—152 salespeople from a variety of
industries—discovered that creating an ethical climate may
provide benefits such as greater job satisfaction, stronger or-
ganizational commitment, and, subsequently, lower turnover
intentions (Schwepker 2001).
One contrarian viewpoint is the possibility that organiza-
tional commitment might blind some employees to the ethi-
cal problems in their organizations (Schwepker 2001). In such
cases, an individual might feel committed and therefore per-
ceive the organization to be highly ethical. Hunt, Wood, and
Chonko (1989), however, argue that an employee’s level of
commitment to the organization is not likely to blind the
employee to the presence of ethical problems in the organi-
zation. Thus, employees who perceive their organizations as
more ethical will more likely exhibit stronger commitment
to the organization. Therefore, the following hypothesis is
suggested:
H2: Organizational ethical climate is positively related to
an individual’s organizational commitment.
Ethical Climate and Performance
The literature is replete with investigations of the determi-
nants of salesperson performance. Two decades ago, in a meta-
analysis, Churchill et al. (1985) assigned over 100 empirical
studies concerning determinants of sales performance to one
of six factors: (1) aptitude, (2) skill level, (3) motivation,
(4) role perceptions, (5) personal characteristics, and (6) or-
ganizational or environmental variables. They concluded the

average study accounted for less than 10 percent of the ob-
served variation in sales performance, and it tended to be job
specific. Two decades later, the search for efficiency, produc-
tivity, and success of sales teams continues to be an important
research issue.
Churchill et al. (2000) suggest that within the organiza-
tional environment there are five categories of variables that
have an effect on individual sales performance: (1) goals, ob-
jectives, and culture; (2) personnel; (3) financial resources;
(4) production capabilities; and (5) research and development.
Whereas the focus in the current study is on both short-term
and long-term performance, an argument can be made that
efficiency and effectiveness of salespeople may be influenced
negatively if their work climate includes cues that indicate
prevalent unethical actions. Conversely, a work climate em-
bodied with high moral standards, trust, and responsibility
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should support the efficiency and effectiveness of salespeople
and nurture the overall well-being of employees. Hyman (1990)
made a similar argument for marketers in general. A well-de-
fined mission, together with top management’s values and
beliefs, leads to the development of a strong corporate culture.
Cultures shape the attitudes and actions of employees and
assist in determining the appropriate plans, policies, and pro-
cedures that are implemented by managers (Churchill et al.
2000). If an organization’s management espouses the busi-
ness mantra “do the right thing” and strives to have an ethical
corporate climate, a subcategory of the organization’s culture,
it should be reflected in the creation and implementation of
policies, processes, reward systems, and hiring practices that
are consistent with doing the right thing for internal and ex-
ternal customers. An organization that espouses an ethical
climate might emphasize high levels of customer service,
implement performance evaluation systems that measure and
reward high customer satisfaction scores, and recruit and se-
lect salespeople who enjoy building strong customer relation-
ships. It is conceivable that individuals who do not hold similar
values regarding ethical business practices might self-select
themselves out of their respective jobs. Those salespeople who
perceive a strong ethical climate and hold similar values might
demonstrate higher levels of performance due to “doing the
right thing” in customer relationships.
As Bruce (1994) points out, the issues of productivity and
ethics will be important in the foreseeable future. To date,
limited research has been conducted that has looked at the
relationship between performance and ethical climate. Babin,
Boles, and Robin (2000) suggest future research related to
ethical climate should integrate such measures as performance.
Prior to this work, Kelley and Dorsch (1991) propose that
subsequent research efforts focus on individual job perfor-
mance as it relates to ethical climate.
Encouraging ethical behavior is both philosophically and
financially important (Bruce 1994). Ethical business prac-
Summer 2004 203
tices have consistently been found to be more profitable than
unethical ones. For example, in a 20-year study, Knowles
(1992) finds that Fortune 500 firms with written standards
of conduct financially outperformed other firms. In a study
concerning value congruence of managers, Posner and
Schmidt (1993) find successful managers were more ethical
than unsuccessful managers. In another study, Bruce concludes
“in this country alone, the costs (of unethical behavior) to
employers in lost time, reduced productivity and spillover
effects on other employees is now thought to be over 195
billion dollars per year” (1990, p. 1). Werner Grosshans, di-
rector of policy of the U.S. General Accounting Office notes,
“High ethical standards and high quality work are not only
the key to success for an individual manager but most assur-
edly they are the cornerstone of a successful organization”
(1989, p. 62).
It should be kept in mind that corporate performance is
the sum of individual employee’s performance. Hunt, Wood,
and Chonko (1989) conclude corporate ethical values (given
their relationship to commitment and commitment’s long-
established relationship to improved performance) might be
a key ingredient for success. Finally, in a study of one organi-
zation, Weeks and Nantel (1992) find preliminary evidence
that a well communicated code of ethics may be related to
ethical sales force behavior, and it appears a sales force em-
ployed in such an environment can be profiled as being rela-
tively high in job performance. Accordingly, the following
hypothesis is suggested:
H3: Organizational ethical climate is positively related to
individual performance.
Individual Commitment to Quality and Performance
In order for a firm to deliver a quality offering, its employees
should exhibit an individual commitment to quality, which
could be expected to be associated with higher levels of per-
formance. As noted by Grosshans (1989), high-quality work
is most assuredly a cornerstone of a successful organization.
Also, George (1990) and Gronroos (1983) provide a theoreti-
cal argument that MCSQ, highly related to individual com-
mitment to quality, is one of the most important determinants
to good service delivery to customers. Hartline and Ferrell
(1996) find that MCSQ is positively related to perceived ser-
vice quality by customers. Salespeople are integral to provid-
ing service given their boundary-spanning role, and
high-quality service delivery can be argued to be important to
salesperson performance. For example, research has demon-
strated the strategic benefits of quality in contributing to per-
formance outcomes such as market share and return on
investment (cf. Phillips, Chang, and Buzzell 1983). Moreover,
the General Accounting Office argue in their “Management
 204 Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management
Practices—U.S. Companies Improve Performance Through
Quality Efforts” report that there is a cause and effect relation-
ship between total quality management practices and corpo-
rate performance (Garvin 1991). Therefore, the following
hypothesis is suggested:
H4: Individual commitment to quality is positively related
to sales performance.
Organizational Commitment and Performance
Interest in improving organizational efficiency has stimulated
a large body of research on organizational commitment. Again,
organizational commitment can be viewed as an individual’s
identification with, and involvement in, a particular organi-
zation (Mowday, Steers, and Porter 1979). A common as-
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sumption is that organizational commitment can influence
almost any behavior that is beneficial to the organization such
as attendance, retention, and performance (Mathieu and Zajac
1990; Meyer and Allen 1997; Mowday, Porter, and Steers
1982; Randall 1990). It seems reasonable to expect that if an
individual feels a close attachment to his or her organization
that he or she will give full effort in their job responsibilities,
hopefully being reflected in a higher performance level. Fur-
thermore, an individual who is committed to his or her orga-
nization would most likely stay with the firm longer, and as
he or she gains experience and tenure, would be expected to
produce a higher performance level.
Studies regarding the relationship between organizational
commitment and performance have found some evidence that
organizational commitment is positively correlated with in-
dividual performance (Mowday, Porter, and Dubin 1974;
Steers 1977). Meyer et al. (1989) examine first-level manag-
ers and their district managers in a large food service organi-
zation and find positive correlations between affective
commitment and four performance measures. However,
Mathieu and Zajac (1990), in a review of previous research
and 48 meta-analyses, conclude organizational commitment
has relatively little direct influence on performance in most
instances. In a more recent meta-analytic study, Riketta (2002)
finds the corrected mean correlation between attitudinal or-
ganizational commitment and job performance is 0.20. He
uses two forms of performance: in-role performance, which
is defined as behavior required by a formal job description,
and extra-role performance, which is defined as behavior that
is voluntary, beneficial to the organization and goes beyond
formal job requirements (i.e., extra hours and altruistic be-
havior). The correlation was marginally significantly stron-
ger for extra-role performance compared to in-role
performance. Since extra-role performance is voluntary, one
could argue that it should depend on intrinsic motivational
factors to a greater extent than does in-role behavior.
A few studies have looked at the relationship between or-
ganizational commitment and performance in the sales con-
text. Bashaw and Grant (1994) report results that generally
support the expected relationships between three types of work
commitment and sales performance. Leong, Randall, and Cote
(1994) discover a weak correlation between organizational
commitment and performance, whereas MacKenzie,
Podsakoff, and Ahearne (1998) find that in- and extra-role
performance are intertwined with in-role performance serv-
ing as an antecedent of organizational commitment.
Although some positive results have been found between
organizational commitment and performance, much prior re-
search has been inconclusive regarding this relationship. With
the inconclusive findings to date, we suggest that further study
is needed regarding the organizational commitment–perfor-
mance relationship and, in particular, in the sales context.
Therefore, we offer the following research question:
RQ1: To what degree does commitment to quality add to
understanding the relationship between organizational
commitment and sales performance?
METHOD
Sample and Data Collection
Data were collected from two firms with sales forces operat-
ing in the United States. One firm manufactures and sells
(direct as well as through distributors) countertop and floor-
ing products, and the second firm is a distributor of elec-
tronic products direct to other businesses, as well as through
distributors. These firms employ business-to-business sales-
people, and have similar channels of distribution. Two hun-
dred forty-four surveys were distributed during a national sales
meeting at one firm and training meetings at the other com-
pany. A total of 199 surveys were returned, for a response rate
of 82 percent, 100 percent from the first firm and 71 percent
from the second, as indicated in Table 1. One hundred fifty-
three (84 + 69) surveys were deemed usable for analysis after
eliminating surveys from sales managers, specification repre-
sentatives, and service personnel. These participants were
eliminated as the primary focus is on individuals who are
involved in the sales process. Company affiliation was used
as a control variable in the subsequent analysis to take into
consideration company effect. Characteristics of the sample
by company are provided in Table 1.
Measures
Ethical Climate
Our measure of perceived ethical climate (EC) is based on
work by Schwepker, Ferrell, and Ingram (1997), which con-
 Summer 2004 205

sists of seven five-point Likert-type statements previously used Table 1

to measure the presence and enforcement of codes of ethics, Characteristics of Sample (in Percent)
top management actions related to ethics, and corporate poli-
Company 1 2
cies on ethics (Ferrell and Skinner 1988; Hunt, Chonko, and
Wilcox 1984; Singhapakdi and Vitell 1991a; Vitell and Davis Years with Current Company
1990) (see the Appendix). Comparable to other studies (Loe 1. 1 year or Less 37 17
1996; Schwepker, Ferrell, and Ingram 1997), this scale was 2. 2 to 5 years 51 38
found to be reliable (α = 0.93). 3. 6 to 10 years 7 13
4. 11 or more years 5 32
Years in the Industry
Individual Commitment to Quality 1. 1 year or less 8 3
2. 2 to 5 years 20 17
Individual commitment to quality (ICQ) was measured as 3. 6 to 10 years 37 29
the salesperson’s affective desire to improve his or her territory’s 4. 11 or more years 35 51
service quality, which is an adaptation of Hartline and Ferrell’s Age
(1996) scale. Hartline and Ferrell (1996) introduced their scale 1. 29 years or less 26 10
2. 30 to 39 years 45 51
when they selected nine items from Mowday, Steers, and
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3. 40 to 49 years 22 22
Porter’s (1979) organizational commitment scale. Because this 4. 50 to 59 years 5 17
scale was originally designed to measure affective commit- 5. 60 years and older 2 —
ment to an organization, Hartline and Ferrell (1996) reword Gender
the items to reflect a manager’s affective commitment to ser- 1. Male 92 87
2. Female 8 13
vice quality. Although this scale was originally targeted at man-
Income
agers, it was deemed suitable in its present form for employees, 1. $20,000–$29,000 10 2
in general, and salespeople, in particular, because of its ge- 2. $30,000–$39,000 38 9
neric content. Hence, both Hartline and Ferrell (1996) and 3. $40,000–$49,000 18 22
the current study measure individual respondent’s own com- 4. $50,000–$59,000 16 29
mitment to service quality. The salespeople were asked to in- 5. $60,000–$69,000 7 20
6, $70,000–$79,000 5 12
dicate their agreement with each item through a five-point 7. $80,000–$89,000 2 6
scale ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree.” The 8. $90,000–$99,000 — —
nine-item scale was found to be reliable (α = 0.90), as did 9. $100,000 or more 4 —
previous studies (Hartline and Ferrell 1996; Loe 1996). Education
1. Less than high school 2 —
2. High school 11 8
Organizational Commitment 3. Some college 39 25
4. Four-year college 35 44
Organizational commitment (OC) was operationalized by 5. Graduate school 13 23
using a four-item, three-point Likert-type scale that captures Response Rate 100 71
a salesperson’s psychological bonds to the organization and
strength of intentions to remain with the organization. The
salespeople were asked to indicate their agreement with each use with salespeople in these previous studies, and the design
item ranging from “no, definitely would not leave” to “uncer- to measure the same construct, it was deemed appropriate for
tain about leaving” to “yes, definitely would leave.” The origi- this particular study. The scale reliability (α = 0.86) is com-
nal scale was developed by Hrebiniak and Alutto (1972). parable to other studies employing similar scales (Dubinsky
Dubinsky and Hartley (1986) introduce the four-item ver- and Hartley 1986; Hampton, Dubinsky, and Skinner 1996).
sion. Hampton, Dubinsky, and Skinner (1996) and Hunt,
Wood, and Chonko (1989) also use the shorter version in a Job Performance
study with salespeople. The original scale was developed to
measure retail salespeople’s commitment to the retail organi- Salesperson performance was measured by using a self-report
zation (Still 1983). Hunt, Chonko, and Wood (1985) also approach. Self-report methods have been frequently used in
use the scale to determine commitment of marketers in gen- sales management studies (cf. Behrman and Perreault 1982,
eral. This scale is based on the definition of organizational 1984; Chonko, Tanner, and Weeks 1993; Churchill, Ford,
commitment as a “strong desire to remain a member of the and Walker 1974; Tyagi 1985; Weeks and Nantel 1992; Weeks
particular organization, given opportunities to change jobs” and Stevens 1997). In this study, each salesperson provided
(Hunt, Chonko, and Wood 1985, p. 116). Due to the scale’s by percentage how he or she compared himself or herself with
 206 Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management

Table 2 Figure 2
Confirmatory Factor Analysis Structural Model

Construct

Commitment to Ethical Organizational

Quality Climate Commitment

Q1 0.628
Q2 0.584
Q3 0.875
Q4 0.841
Q5 0.702
Q6 0.812
Q7 0.816
Q8 0.621
EC1 0.744
EC2 0.855
EC3 0.911
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χ2145 = 182.76, p = 0.02, GFI = 0.89, AGFI = 0.86, RMR = 0.04

EC4 0.851
EC5 0.892 Note: Paths show standardized regression weight (t-values).
EC6 0.627
OC1 0.668
OC2 0.738
OC3 0.657 sure individual commitment to quality. Consequently, the
OC4 0.606 remaining eight items in this scale are used for this analysis.
Confirmatory factor analysis indicates that the measure-
Notes: χ2129 = 154.09, p = 0.065, GFI = 0.901, AGFI = 0.869,
ment model produces acceptable fit to the data (χ2129 = 154.09,
RMR = 0.046.
p = 0.065, GFI [goodness-of-fit index] = 0.901), thus pro-
viding evidence of discriminant and convergent validity. The
standardized factor loadings (see Table 2) confirm that the
their peers for their annual performance. Prior to analysis, scale items appropriately load only on the respective latent
the self-report performance measure was standardized in ac- constructs.
cordance with the distribution of scores within each sales-
person’s company. Structural Model

RESULTS The proposed structural model including the hypothesized

To account for the possibility that the proposed relationship
might differ between the two companies in the sample, a
stacked group structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis
was conducted. The results revealed no significant differ-
ences in any of the hypothesized relationships between the
two companies.
Confirmatory Factor Analysis
SEM was used to test the hypothesized relationships. We first
examined the measurement model including the measures of
ethical climate, individual commitment to quality, and orga-
nizational commitment. An initial confirmatory factor analysis
revealed that one item from Hartline and Ferrell’s (1996) nine-
item scale was unacceptable. This item (“The way I feel about
quality is very similar to the way my organization feels about
quality”) was highly correlated with other items in the mea-
surement model, indicating that it does not uniquely mea-
relationships among the constructs provides acceptable fit to
the data ( χ2145 = 182.76, p = 0.02, GFI = 0.89). Figure 2
reports the standardized coefficients and associated t-values
for each of the hypothesized paths. As expected (H1), organi-
zational ethical climate has a strong influence on individual
commitment to quality (0.492, t = 4.88, p < 0.001). Simi-
larly, ethical climate significantly influences organizational
commitment (0.225, t = 2.28, p < 0.025), supporting H2.
Counter to expectations (H3), the firm’s ethical climate does
not have a significant direct effect on individual performance
(0.023, t = 0.237, n.s.). However, ethical climate does pro-
duce substantive indirect effects on individual performance
through individual commitment to quality and organizational
commitment (see Table 3).
As hypothesized (H4), an individual salesperson’s commit-
ment to quality has a significant influence on the salesperson’s
performance (0.180, t = 1.82, p < 0.05). Organizational com-
mitment positively affects the individual salesperson’s perfor-
mance (0.202, t = 2.12, p < 0.025), supporting RQ1. In this
 Summer 2004 207

Table 3
Direct and Indirect Effects on Individual Performance

Individual Performance
(SMC = 17.5 percent)

Standardized Effects

Individual Factors Total Effect Direct Effect Indirect Effect

Ethical Climate 0.135 –0.003 0.138

Individual Commitment to Quality 0.213 0.213* —
Organizational Commitment 0.153 0.153* —
Individual Factors (controls)
Tenure 0.257 0.134 0.123
Compensation 0.225 0.225* —

* significant at p < 0.05; as would be expected, individuals with longer tenure earn higher levels of compensation (0.54, t = 5.24, p < 0.01).
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data, individual commitment to quality and organizational DISCUSSION

commitment are not correlated (–0.104, t = –1.01, n.s.).
Contribution

Controlling for Individual Factors
In order to account for other individual factors that might
explain an individual salesperson’s performance, we calculated
the relative effects of career factors—tenure (years in current
position, years in career, years employed with the current com-
pany) and compensation. For modeling purposes, years in cur-
rent position, years in career, and years with the company were
treated as indicators forming the tenure construct. As would
be expected, the length of tenure is positively correlated with
levels of compensation (r = 0.546, t = 5.24, p < 0.01).
Table 3 reflects the results of including the salesperson’s
tenure and compensation in the structural model. Overall,
the organizational and individual variables explain 17.5 per-
cent of the variance in the individual performance levels re-
ported by salespeople. The individual’s reported level of
compensation positively influences the individual salesperson’s
performance (0.225, t = 2.30, p < 0.025). Hence, not surpris-
ingly, individuals who make more money tend to be better
performing salespeople. Although tenure does not have a sig-
nificant direct effect on individual performance (0.134, t =
1.11, n.s.), the total indirect and direct effects of tenure on
performance is relatively strong (0.257). Importantly, even
when accounting for the effects of tenure and compensation
in explaining salesperson performance, individual commit-
ment to quality and organizational commitment remain sig-
nificant predictors (p < 0.05) of individual performance.
Further, indirectly, the firm’s ethical climate contributes to
individual performance levels (0.135) is comparable to the
direct effects of organizational commitment (0.153).
The current study extends Schwepker’s (2001) work, as well
as provides support for the relationship he reports between
ethical climate and organizational commitment. More spe-
cifically, the current study indicates that additional benefits
of enhanced individual commitment to quality, increased or-
ganizational commitment, and high performance levels might
be gained by establishing higher levels of ethical climate. Fur-
thermore, our preliminary evidence suggests individual com-
mitment to quality has a positive effect on performance.
The current study adds to the literature by demonstrating
how ethical climate is related to an individual salesperson’s
commitment to quality. Thus, our findings support the prior
research of Loe (1996), who solicited feedback from the ex-
ecutives, managers, frontline employees, and salespeople
within one organization to examine the relationship between
ethical climate and individual commitment to quality. To the
best of our knowledge, with the exception of Loe’s (1996)
study, no research looks at the relationship between ethical
climate and individual commitment to quality. In the cur-
rent study, we have extended Loe’s research by focusing strictly
on salespeople.
With the exception of Babin, Boles, and Robin (2000)
and Schwepker (2001), no other studies examine the rela-
tionship between ethical climate and organizational commit-
ment in the sales context. Other studies have focused on the
aforementioned relationship for researchers, hospital employ-
ees, purchasing executives, and managers (Hunt, Wood, and
Chonko 1989; Kelley and Dorsch 1991; Sims and Kroeck
1994). The current study builds on past research by examin-
ing the relationship between ethical climate and organizational
 208 Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management
commitment in the business-to-business environment among
salespeople, and illustrates the relevance for organizations to
establish the proper ethical climate in order to improve
salesperson’s commitment to the firm and desired business
outcomes.
Bruce (1994) and Babin, Boles, and Robin (2000) call for
research that explores potential antecedents of sales perfor-
mance. In response to this call, the current study investigated
the relationship between ethical climate and performance.
Although this study does not find a direct relationship be-
tween ethical climate and performance, an indirect relation-
ship between these constructs when using individual
commitment to quality and organizational climate as inter-
vening variables is revealed. These findings are encouraging,
as Churchill et al. (1985) report in their meta-analysis that
the studied variables account for less than 10 percent of the
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observed variation in sales performance. Therefore, any find-
ings revolving around an increase in performance is extremely
important. According to the preliminary findings in the cur-
rent study, we now recognize that if we can implement strat-
egies that enhance our salespeople’s commitment to quality,
and to their organization, it might translate into higher per-
formance levels.
Managerial Implications and Limitations
As previously noted, an organization’s ethical climate influ-
ences the ethics of its employees (Verbeke, Ouwerkerk, and
Peelen 1996; Wimbush and Shepard 1994). Creating an ethi-
cal climate by establishing and enforcing codes of ethics, poli-
cies and directives that specify, discourage, monitor, and
correct unethical behavior has often been considered as a
method to curb unethical behavior within organizations.
Schwepker (2001) finds that creating such a climate has ad-
ditional benefits such as creating greater job satisfaction, stron-
ger organizational commitment, and lower turnover intentions
for at least one type of boundary spanner, salespeople.
A clear trend in U.S. business strategies is to concentrate
on growing existing business relationships, especially the 20
percent of the accounts that are generating 80 percent of the
revenue, and relying less on establishing new accounts since
this is typically a more profitable strategy to follow. Pursuing
a long-term relationship with accounts offers the opportu-
nity to sell one’s current product line to different departments
within the same company and sell new product lines to the
current buyer. Such a strategy encourages the selling organi-
zation to follow through on all promises while operating at
the highest ethical level. Some firms have even implemented
a “promise less and deliver more” strategy in order to foster
better customer relationships. Following a lesser strategy will
become obvious to existing customers and, in the short run,
result in them taking their business elsewhere and undermin-
ing their willingness to provide you access to other depart-
ments within the company. The above approach is suitable
for an organization that believes in “taking the high road”
and has an ethical corporate climate.
Finding a significant relationship between individual com-
mitment to quality and performance corroborates findings
in previous research. Other studies (cf. Phillips, Chang, and
Buzzell 1983) conclude firms that emphasize strategies that
focus on quality often experience greater market share and
return on investment. Furthermore, Grosshans (1989) sug-
gests quality work is a cornerstone of a successful organiza-
tion. Cronin and Taylor (1992) find service quality positively
influences customer satisfaction, which in turn positively in-
fluences purchase decisions and performance.
Findings from the current study also illustrate the poten-
tial importance of ethical climate in the sales context, as ethi-
cal climate appears to indirectly influence performance
through organizational commitment. Such intervening rela-
tionships might explain why the results of previous research
do not reflect a direct relationship between ethical climate
and performance.
Ethics research is conducive to the possibility of socially
desirable responses. This study attempted to guard against
such responses by guaranteeing anonymity. The surveys were
either collected personally by the researchers or were mailed
directly to the researchers. Furthermore, the generalizability
of the current study’s findings is limited by the two-firm
sample, the size of the sample, and the gender mix.
Using a self-report performance measure and, in particu-
lar, a one-item measure also is a limitation of this study. For
example, Jaramillo, Carrillat, and Locander (2003) find that
bottom performers overestimate their performance, whereas
top salespeople underestimate their job performance, which
is referred to as better-than-average effect and below-average
effect, respectively. Yet, when using supervisory ratings of sub-
ordinates, rater leniency has been found to occur, which is the
tendency to rate employees at the top of job performance scales
(e.g., Kane et al. 1995). Also, in a comparative study of sev-
eral types of performance measures (i.e., self-report, one-item
versus ten-item, objective company measures), Chonko et al.
(2000) determine that for the self-report measures, there is a
significantly positive correlation between the one-item and
ten-item scales. Therefore, the use of a one-item scale appears
to be more parsimonious, whereas the use of a ten-item scale
does not provide much additional insight. Furthermore, they
find that for the various performance measures, most of the
correlations (33 of 45; 73 percent) were below 0.20, indicat-
ing very little common variance among the performance mea-
sures. They conclude that the preponderance of low
correlations among the performance measures indicates that
the different performance measures may be measuring differ-

ent phenomena, illustrating the challenge in determining the
best performance measure to use for sales force studies.
Future Research
A replication of the current study with a larger sample with
greater female representation across different cultures and with
foreign-based salespeople may be fruitful in order to deter-
mine if the relationships found in this study exist in other
societies. The answer to this and other questions could prove
to be invaluable in the continuing quest for a sustained com-
petitive advantage in the international arena. Trust between
partners in the international marketplace is imperative for
success, as ethical issues will arise due to differences in cul-
ture. Research in global settings would provide information
that would assist managers in determining whether they can
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use the same managerial strategies with sales teams in other
cultures or if culture-specific approaches are necessary.
Using a sample with a greater gender variance might pro-
vide insight regarding the need for different management ap-
proaches. Investigating gender issues continues to be an
important research focus, which is reflected in topics being
covered such as gender-based barriers to senior management
(Oakley and Lynch 2000), gender differences of Russian man-
agers regarding ethical conduct (Deshpande, Joseph, and
Maximov 2000), gender differences of business professionals
concerning ethical beliefs (Peterson, Rhoads, and Vaught
2001), differences in management response to unethical sales
force behavior based on gender and weight of the salesperson
(Bellizzi and Hasty 2001), gender differences in rating of fe-
male sales managers in China (Liu, Comer, and Dubinsky
2001), comparison of female and male sales managers con-
cerning their behavior-based control approaches (Piercy, Cra-
vens, and Lane 2001), gender difference of salespeople in
Turkey concerning ethical perceptions (Ergeneli and Arikan
2002), and gender comparison of U.S. and Indian individuals
regarding cognitive moral development (Kracher, Chatterjee,
and Lundquist 2002). Another example of the current impor-
tance of gender issues is reflected in the 2002 special issues of
the Journal of Business Ethics.
Finally, it would be interesting to test potential intervening
variables in the model—that is, customer satisfaction (between
individual commitment to quality and performance)—to de-
termine if hypothesized relationships are affected. Are custom-
ers likely to see the effect of salesperson individual commitment
to quality in how their services are delivered? Also, one might
consider using perceived stress at work as a mediating variable
in the relationship between ethical climate and individual com-
mitment to quality, ethical climate, and performance. For ex-
ample, if successful salespeople have less stress than unsuccessful
salespeople, then possibly successful salespeople may be more
ethical than unsuccessful salespeople who are constantly un-
Summer 2004 209
der pressure to compete. Size of an organization may also serve
as an intervening variable, hypothesizing that smaller firms
are less ethical because they have to compete against larger,
more powerful players and feel they have to use unethical tac-
tics to compete. Finally, ethical conflict should be considered
as a mediator in ethical climate–individual commitment to
quality, ethical climate–organizational commitment, and ethi-
cal climate–performance relationships.
This research has demonstrated a positive individual com-
mitment to quality–performance relationship, but, as de-
scribed in the literature, performance is multidimensional (e.g.,
Chonko et al. 2000). Research focused on understanding the
effect of individual commitment to quality on other job out-
comes is needed. Further, research investigating the organiza-
tional communications and empowerment (e.g., Flynn,
Schroeder, and Sakakibara 1994), teamwork (e.g., Kanji and
Asher 1995), and training/education (e.g., Woodruff 1995–
96) is also suggested. If salespeople feel empowered and in-
formed, will they increase their individual commitment to
quality and performance? Does the pooling of expertise and
resources increase individual commitment to quality and per-
formance? What training/education is needed to increase in-
dividual commitment to quality and performance?
CONCLUSION
The current study’s findings suggest ethical climate has either
direct or indirect relationships with several important sales
force outcomes. Consequently, managers should strive to cre-
ate and maintain an ethical climate within their organiza-
tions. Such activity would be considered consistent with the
common wisdom that top management sets the ethical tone
for an organization (e.g., Chonko and Hunt 1985). Compa-
nies should be careful not to rely totally on individual integ-
rity to guide behavior (Boling 1978). Corporate management
has an ongoing challenge to encourage high ethical standards
throughout the organization. Given salespeople experience
opportunities that threaten ethical performance, management
must assume that ethical issues will arise. If a firm expects to
maintain a high level of ethical climate, guidance must be
given through the development of a thorough written corpo-
rate code of ethics.
Conveying moral values are most forceful and the message
of ethical performance most eloquent when communicated
by consistent ethical example and leadership at the highest
levels of the firm. However, education and training sessions
may be necessary to demonstrate the real-life aspect of ethical
decision-making. The message of ethical behavior may need
to be supplemented with educational materials or approaches
that reflect the circumstances and pressures inherent in real-
life sales roles. Furthermore, training regarding moral reason-
ing may prove beneficial.
 210 Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management
Loe and Weeks (2000) find one’s moral reasoning (cogni-
tive moral development, CMD) can be influenced through
ethics training. The four components proposed by Rest (1986)
and developed into a framework for teaching ethical decision-
making by Wotruba (1993) seem to provide a foundation upon
which a firm can build an effective ethics training program.
Loe and Weeks (2000) also find that CMD ethics training
methods that employ sales role-play and sales-specific sce-
narios that introduce ethical dilemmas provide an opportu-
nity to discuss and reason through the moral aspects of
on-the-spot decisions that must be made in such situations.
They introduce a reasoning process that takes into consider-
ation the ramifications to relevant parties of certain business
decisions made by salespeople and their customers in a sales
setting. A similar approach might be taken where adjustments
are made to reflect different cultural environments.
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 214 Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management

APPENDIX
Questionnaire Scales
Ethical Climate: The following questions ask for your opinions regarding ethical issues within your organization. Please answer
these questions using the following scale:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Strongly Strongly
disagree agree

EC1: My company has a formal, written code of ethics.

EC2: My company strictly enforces a code of ethics.
EC3: My company has policies with regard to ethical behavior.
EC4: My company strictly enforces policies regarding ethical behavior.
EC5: Top management in my company has let it be known, in no uncertain terms, that unethical behavior will not be tolerated.
EC6: If a salesperson in my company is discovered to have engaged in unethical behavior that results primarily in personal gain
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(rather than corporate gain), he or she will be promptly reprimanded.

EC7: If a salesperson in my company is discovered to have engaged in unethical behavior that results in primarily corporate gain
(rather than personal gain), he or she will be promptly reprimanded.

Quality: The following questions ask how you feel and what you think about quality, in general, and service quality, in particu-
lar. Please remember that all of your answers are confidential. Please answer these questions using the following scale:
1 2 3 4 5
Strongly Strongly
disagree agree
Q1: I feel strongly about improving the quality of my organization’s services.
Q2: I enjoy discussing quality-related issues with people in my organization.
Q3: I gain a sense of personal accomplishment in providing quality services to my customers.
Q4: I completely understand the importance of providing high-quality services to our customers.
Q5: I often discuss quality-related issues with people outside of my organization.
Q6: Providing high-quality services to our customers should be the number one priority of my organization.
Q7: I am willing to put in a great deal of effort beyond that normally expected in order to help my organization deliver high-
quality services to our customers.
Q8: The way I feel about quality is very similar to the way my organization feels about quality.
Q9: I really care about the quality of my organization’s services.
Q10: The quality of service that I deliver to my customers is very high.

Organizational Commitment: Assume you are offered a position within another organization. Would you leave your present
organization under any of the following conditions?

1 2 3
No, Uncertain Yes,
definitely would about leaving definitely
not leave would leave
OC1: For a slight increase in pay.
OC2: For slightly more freedom to be personally creative.
OC3: For slightly more status.
OC4: To work with people who are a little friendlier.