Developing Ethical Leaders: Innovations in Promoting Ethical Decision-making, Using Discretionary Power & Overcoming Immunity to Moral Integrity

Abstract

This integrative review highlights emerging issues hindering the study and practice of ethical leadership, offering a critical analysis of three fundamental topics: the role of disposition versus situation in ethical decision-making, a leader’s use of discretionary power, and the reciprocal relationship between learning and development in maximizing a leader’s capacity for ethical leadership. Following her analysis of each of these crucial topics, the first author outlines innovative strategies leaders can implement in their own organizations to remedy each, providing practical advice about: Conducting organizational ethics audits, assessing situational factors influencing leaders’ ethical decisions, and overcoming psychosocial immunity to moral integrity.