The Intersection of “Bad Apples,” “Bad Barrels,” and the Enabling Use of Performance Measurement Systems

Abstract

ABSTRACT A performance measurement system (PMS) consists of data transformed into performance measures, which is used to control operations and employee behavior. As such, a PMS is embedded within the broader accounting information system (AIS). Existing literature suggests organizations benefit from using a PMS in a way that employees perceive enables them to better perform their job tasks. However, those benefits may not always be realized depending on individual and unit-level ethical characteristics that interact with the use of AIS. The purpose of this study is to examine the intersection of AIS and business ethics by focusing on how a specific type of AIS is used; namely, the PMS. We integrate the extent of perceived amoral manipulation and the ethical work climate with the extent to which the PMS is perceived to be enabling. We document instances when the enabling use of a PMS is not always beneficial, offer implications for organizations in terms of managing the level of counterproductive work behaviors when using enabling control, and provide directions for future research.