Uncovering the relationship between whistleblowing and organizational identity

Abstract

Purpose Whistleblowing – i.e. the employees’ decision to report illegal, immoral and/or illegitimate practices performed by peers, supervisors and/or subordinates – involves a contestation of the existing organizational power. Therefore, it challenges the whistleblower’s identification with the organization. Nevertheless, whistleblowing has been rarely related to organizational identity. The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap, investigating employees’ whistleblowing intentions in the context of higher education. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative, exploratory analysis concerning the whistleblowing episodes that occurred in the whole population of Italian publicly owned universities and higher education institutions was performed (n=69). Secondary data about whistleblowing were retrieved from the annual reports arranged by the supervisor for the prevention of corruption and the promotion of transparency. Findings Most of Italian publicly owned higher education institutions did not experience whistleblowing. Conversely, less than a quarter of the sample reported at least ones whistleblowing procedure. The homogeneity of organizational identity seemed to discourage the willingness of academic employees to report organizational wrongdoings. ICT-based and anonymized whistleblowing systems were found to support the propensity of academics to blow the whistle. Practical implications Tailored interventions are needed to address the interplay between organizational identity and academic employees’ whistleblowing intentions. The culture of silence predominating in institutions characterized by a hegemonic organizational identity should be overwhelmed. Prevention measures intended to guarantee the whistleblower’s anonymity through the use of ICT-based platforms are useful to support the academic employees’ willingness to blow the whistle in case of organizational misconduct. Originality/value This is one of the first attempts to investigate the interplay between organizational identity and whistleblowing in public sector organizations.