Volume 5, Issue 2 (Spring 2019)                   JCCNC 2019, 5(2): 81-86 | Back to browse issues page


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Fagbenro D A. Role Ambiguity and Organizational Justice as the Predictors of Unethical Behavior Among Nurses. JCCNC 2019; 5 (2) :81-86
URL: http://jccnc.iums.ac.ir/article-1-208-en.html
Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. , dareinui2008@yahoo.com
Abstract:   (2812 Views)
Background: Unethical behavior among nurses is gradually becoming a severe problem in the health sector of Nigeria, and this calls for urgent concern. However, it may be associated with issues inside healthcare organizations. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between role ambiguity, organizational justice, and unethical behavior among nurses. 
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. In total, 300 participants were selected from Lagos State Teaching Hospital (LUTH) in Lagos metropolis using a convenience random sampling method. A structured questionnaire consisting of demographics and Unethical Behavior Scale (UBS), Role Ambiguity Scale (RAS), and Organizational Justice Scale (OJS) was used to collect the required data. Multiple regression model was used to analyze the obtained data in SPSS. 
Results: Among the subjects, 71.9% were females, and 28.1% were 99 males. Their age ranged from 24 to 57 years Mean±SD: 31.66±3.13. There was an independent relationship between role ambiguity and unethical behavior (β=0.229; t=3.157; P<0.05). Additionally, there was an independent relationship between organizational justice and unethical behavior (β=-0.317; t= -2.182; P<0.05). 
Conclusion: Role ambiguity and organizational justice predicted unethical behavior. Therefore, the authorities and hospital managers of Nigeria should design an intervention program tailored for resolving role ambiguity and improving organizational justice. This will help to reduce the menace of unethical behavior among these nurses. 
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● Recently, unethical behavior among nurses has generated intense research attention among scholars and concerned stakeholders, especially in Africa.
● The destructive nature of unethical behavior among nurses has a negative implication on the health sector as well as the overall patient wellbeing.
● Role ambiguity and organizational justice have been found to strongly influence unethical behavior among nurses. 
● Interventions should be tailored for these variables to reduce the menace of unethical behavior.
● Generalizability of the study findings to all nurses in Nigeria is impossible.
Plain Language Summary 
Nursing is a profession saddled with the responsibility of taking care of and improving patients’ wellbeing. However, some nurses engage in unethical behavior; i.e. possibly destroying the health sector and jeopardizing the integrity of nursing profession. Therefore, the present study investigated the relationship between unethical behavior, role ambiguity, and organizational justice. The study results suggested that role ambiguity and organizational justice are joint variables affecting the unethical behavior of nurses in a developing country, like Nigeria. If these variables are not given adequate attention, people would probably no longer seek care from the hospitals where nurses operate; instead, they might seek other alternate treatments, which could harm their wellbeing. 

Type of Study: Research | Subject: Special
Received: 2018/10/1 | Accepted: 2019/02/27 | Published: 2019/05/1

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