THE EFFECT OF ETHICAL SIGNALS ON RECRUITMENT ...

the organization as ethical, as well as their attraction to the organization (only measured
one time at the end).
Participants were also given a packet of surveys to measure their demographic
information, socially desirable responding, self-importance of moral identity, and
cognitive moral development. This packet was completed following the scenarios. All
other information was the same across scenarios. The scenario and manipulations
appear in Appendix B.
Performance
Experimental Conditions
The first factor was performance. Participants were either assigned to high firm
performance or low firm performance. Those assigned to the high firm performance
read that revenues, earnings per share, and per share dividends have been increasing,
while operating costs have been decreasing. A sample statement from the high
performance condition is: “Revenues have increased by at least 10% every year over the
past 10 years.” Those in the low performance condition read that revenues, earnings per
share, and per share dividends have been decreasing, while operating costs have been
increasing. A sample statement from the low performance condition is: “Revenues have
decreased by at least 10% every year over the past 10 years.”
Organizational Practices
The second factor was organizational practices. Organizational practices were
manipulated using information from a real news report regarding an organization’s
environmental violations. For the study, the company name was replaced with the
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