Environmental Ethical Decision Making in the U.S. Metal-Finishing Industry

We investigated the individual and contextual influences shaping the environmental ethical decision intentions of a sample of managers in the U.S. metal-finishing industry in this study. Ajzen's (1991) theory of planned behavior and Jones's (1991) moral intensity construct grounded our theoretical framework. Findings revealed that the magnitude of consequences, a dimension of moral intensity, moderated the relationships between each of five antecedents—attitudes, subjective norms, and three perceived behavioral control factors (self-efficacy, financial cost, and ethical climate)—and managers' environmental ethical decision intentions. We then developed implications for theory and practice in environmental ethical decision making.

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