THE EFFECT OF ETHICAL SIGNALS ON RECRUITMENT ...

alpha of .81 (Rest, Narvaez, Thoma, & Bebeau, 1999). The DIT2 has been advocated by
several researchers as a tool for measuring moral development of individuals (Weeks,
Loe, Chonko, Martinez, & Wakefield, 2006; Rest et al., 1999; Trevino, 1986). The
DIT2 consists of six stories or moral dilemmas and twelve statements related to these
stories. Participants were asked to rate the statements in terms of importance. Finally,
participants were then asked to select the four most important statements (from the
original twelve) and rate them from most important to least important. The scoring of
the DIT2 was done by an unbiased source at The Center for the Study of Ethical
Development at the University of Alabama. Scores reflect the relative level of moral
development of the individual.
Controls
Socially desirable responding (SDR) was controlled because participants who are
high in SDR may be more likely to give more socially acceptable and “ethical”
responses. Socially desirable responding will be measured using Crowne and Marlowe’s
scale (1960). Sample items include, “I am always careful about my manner of dress”
and “I like to gossip at times.”
Results
Mean attractiveness and perceptions of the organization portrayed in each
scenario can be found in Table 7. As one would expect, the scenario with high
performance, ethical organizational practices, and ethical recruitment practices had the
highest mean attractiveness (5.97), while the scenario with low performance, unethical
organizational practices, and unethical recruitment practices had the lowest
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