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Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 82:865887 Springer 2007 DOI 10.1007/s10551-007-9598-7
To Help or Not to Help? The Good Samaritan Effect and the Love of Money on Helping Behavior
Thomas Li-Ping Tang
Toto Sutarso Grace Mei-Tzu Wu Davis
Dariusz Dolinski Abdul Hamid Safwat Ibrahim
Sharon Lynn Wagner
ABSTRACT. This research tests a model of employee helping behavior (a component of Organizational Citizenship Behavior, OCB) that involves a direct path (Intrinsic Motives Helping Behavior, the Good Samaritan Effect) and an indirect path (the Love of Money Extrinsic Motives Helping Behavior). Results for the full sample supported the Good Samaritan Effect. Further, the love of money was positively related to extrinsic motives that were negatively related with helping
behavior. We tested the model across four cultures (the USA., Taiwan, Poland, and Egypt). The Good Samaritan Effect was significant for all four countries. For the indirect path, the first part was significant for all countries, except Egypt, whereas the second part was significant for Poland only. For Poland, the indirect path was significant and positive. The love of money may cause one to help in one culture (Poland) but not to help in others. Results were discussed in the light of ethical decision making.
Thomas Li-Ping Tang (Ph.D., Case Western Reserve University, the USA) is a Full Professor of Management in the Department of Management and Marketing, Jennings A. Jones College of Business at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). He has taught Industrial and Organizational Psychology at National Taiwan University and at MTSU. Professor Tang teaches, has taught, MBA/EMBA courses and seminars in China (Hong Kong and Shanghai), France (Nantes), and Spain (Valencia). He serves, has served, on six editorial review boards and reviews papers for 28 journals. His research interests focus upon compensation, the Love of Money, business ethics, pay satisfaction, and cross-cultural issues. He has published more than 100 journal articles in top behavior sciences and management journals (e.g., Journal of Applied Psychology, Personnel Psychology, Human Relations, Journal of Management, Management Research, Management and Organization Review, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and Journal of Business Ethics) and presented more than 190 papers in professional conferences and invited seminars. He was the winner of two Outstanding Research Awards (1991, 1999) and Distinguished International Service Award (1999) at Middle Tennessee...