Introduction
One of the important issues that has caused several problems for organizations is corruption or unethical activities in various societies. Ethics is necessary for the survival of a healthy society and has long been the focus of thinkers, educators and managers of organizations and they have tried to preserve or survive it. It is important to pay attention to a person’s ethics and incentives, because they affect their success and performance. Non-observance of some ethical standards has caused many concerns in the governmental and non-governmental sectors of Iran. Studies have shown that Iran’s work culture is at a lower level compared to industrialized countries, such that the average work culture of Japan is 3.32, Malaysia is 3.26, Turkey is 3.19, China is 3.02, and Iran is 2.86. Variables affecting work ethics can be divided into two general categories: 1) Macro level: structural or non-organizational factors such as social/economic status and non-structural or organizational factors such as work experience, occupational group, type of employment relationship, income level, number of times receiving incentives or rewards, organizational level; 2) Micro level: Individual characteristics such as marital status and educational level. This study aims to investigate the work ethic status and factors affecting it in Farabi Hospital in Tehran, Iran.
Methods
This cross-sectional study was conducted in Farabi Hospital in Tehran, Iran in 2020. Using the census method, all the personnel working in the hospital (n= 616) were selected as the study samples. The Occupational Work Ethic Inventory (OWEI) was used to measure the work ethic. It measures four dimensions of being dependable (16 items), being persistent (12 items), interpersonal skills (14 items), and being cooperative (8 items). Data analysis was done in SPSS software, version 20.
Results
Most of the participants had 26-35 years (43.7%); 61.7% are female and 38.3% were male. The mean score of OWEI and its subscale scores were significantly different based on the type of employment, the number of times receiving incentives or rewards, work experience, education level, and socio-economic status of the employees. However, no significant difference was reported in terms of sex, marital status, and income level.
Conclusion
Shortening the long periods of time for changing the employment status of employees, modifying the reward system, identifying the reasons for the decline in work ethics among employees with long service years, modifying the payment system, providing individual or group counseling to employees, if necessary, to prevent the impact of employee problems on the performance in the organization, and training of social workers in hospitals for improving work ethics in hospitals are recommended.
Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
All the participants participated signed an infromed consent form and were fully informed about the study process and the confidentiality of their personal information. This study was approved by the ethics committee of Tehran University of Medical Sciences on 26/8/2013.
Funding
This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
Authors' contributions
Design and data interpretation: Roghayeh Khosravi and Shuresh Lotfi; data collection, data analysis, draft preparation: Shuresh Lotfi and Nahid Ramezanghorbani; final approval: All authors.
Conflicts of interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the staff of Farabi Hospital for their cooperation.
References
- Asadi R, Salajegheh S, Manzari Tavakoli H, Fatehi Rad N. [Modeling ethical behaviors based on the roles of managers in ministry of sports and youth (Persian)]. Strateg Stud Youth Sports. 2020; 19(47):105-32. [Link]
- Gorsira M, Steg L, Denkers A, Huisman W. Corruption in organizations: Ethical climate and individual motives. Adm Sci. 2018; 8(1):4. [DOI:10.3390/admsci8010004]
- Halvorsen B, Bartram T, Kia N, Cavanagh J. Meeting customer needs through ethical leadership and training: Examining Australian bank employees. Asia Pac J Human Resour. 2023; 61(1):79-100. [DOI:10.1111/1744-7941.12329]
- Samad A, Tahir A, Igirisa. I. Performance effectiveness of apparatus in improving services in the field of HR development at BKPSDM Bulol District. Cent Asian J Soc Sci Hist. 2023; 4(1):14-30. [Link]
- Agisilaou VH, Harris H. Learning to be ethical: The role of ethical capability in community development education. Community Dev J. 2023; 58(1):154-72. [DOI:10.1093/cdj/bsac041]
- Susanto PC, Syailendra S, Suryawan RF. Determination of motivation and performance: Analysis of job satisfaction, employee engagement and leadership. Int J Bus Appl Econ. 2023; 2(2):59-68. [DOI:10.55927/ijbae.v2i2.2135]
- Ruggeri GC, Yu W. On the dimensions of human capital: An analytic framework. Working Paper Series 2000-05. 2023. [Link]
- Nahavandi M, Moghadam M. [Comparative analysis of the factors affecting work culture in Iran and in four Asian countries (Persian)]. Soc Sci. 2018; 25(81):171-209. [DOI:10.22054/qjss.2018.29112.1724]
- Akinlade ME, Gberevbie DE, Abasilim UD. Tackling public service delivery challenges through appropriate work ethics in Nigeria. Perspektif J. 2022; 11(4):1597-611. [DOI:10.31289/perspektif.v11i4.7684]
- Jahangiri J, Heidarian MH., Iman MT. Investigating Work Ethic and its pertinent Factors: A Cross-sectional Study in Shiraz, Iran. Int J Soc Sci. 2018; 7(2):17-35. [DOI:10.20472/SS2018.7.2.002]
- Moradi A. [The survey of relationship between staffs economic-social position and altruism behaviors (case study: Kermanshah Oil Corporation) (Persian)]. Q J Soc Dev. 2018; 12(4):79-112. [DOI:10.22055/QJSD.2018.13681]
- Ghasemi R. [The impact of work ethics on quality of life (case of study: Milad Hospital staff) (Persian)]. [MA thesis]. Tehran: Allameh Tabataba’i University; 2013.
- Farkas KJ, Romaniuk JR. Social work, ethics and vulnerable groups in the time of coronavirus and Covid-19. J Soc Regist. 2020; 4(2):67-82. [DOI:10.14746/sr.2020.4.2.05]
- Hanson K, Brikci N, Erlangga D, Alebachew A, De Allegri M, Balabanova D, et al. The Lancet Global Health Commission on financing primary health care: Putting people at the centre. Lancet Glob Health. 2022; 10(5):e715-72. [DOI:10.1016/S2214-109X(22)00005-5] [PMID]
- Úriz MJ, Viscarret JJ, Ballestero A. Ethical decision-making of social workers in Spain during COVID-19: Cases and responses. Qual Soc Work. 2023; 22(1):86-103. [DOI:10.1177/14733250211050118] [PMID]
- Sezavar H, Kavari SHA, Hatamizadeh N, Torabi SS. [Investigating the work ethics of the employees of medical rehabilitation centers affiliated to the unioversity of social welfare and rehabilitation sciences of Tehran in 2013 (Persian)]. J Woman Stud Fam. 2013; 6(21): 87-102. [Link]
- Mohammadi E, Khalil Nezhad Sh, Golmohammadi E. [An investigation of the impact of social capital on social-organizational accountability with an emphasis on business ethics (Persian)]. Soc Cap Manag. 2020; 7(3):431-56. [Link]
- Harahap MA Ausat AM, Suherlan S. Analysing the role of religious education in improving the work ethic of MSME owners. Journal Educ. 2023; 5(4):15050-7. [DOI:10.31004/joe.v5i4.2591]
- Mashiri BG, Chavunduka D, Bhebhe T, Mufudza T. Rethinking best practices in promoting academic staff performance in Zimbabwean State Universities. Asian J Manag Entrep Soc Sci. 2023; 3(03):7-18. [Link]
- Karimiyan M. [Factors influencing the work ethic of Bank Mellat employees (Persian)] [MA thesis]. Tehran: Allameh Tabataba’i University; 2009. [Link]
- Kezri Z, Khorasani MM, Dokhtbahmani MN. [Sociological investigation of the relationship between capital factors, work ethics and job performance (case study: Employees of Kalat Industrial Town of Mashhad) (Persian)]. J Soc Sci Ferdowsi Univ Mashhad. 2022;18(2):91-130. [DOI:10.22067/social.2021.69298.1020]