Peer reporting of coworker wrongdoing: A qualitative analysis of observer attitudes in the decision to report versus not report unethical behavior

An employee who observes unethical behavior by a colleague will often question whether the incident warrants reporting. The purpose of this study was to examine factors that may affect peer reporting of questionable behavior committed by a colleague. One hundred ninety-seven (N = 197) registered nurses responded to a survey regarding reports of unethical behavior by coworkers. Results revealed that individual characteristics of the observer (such as personal ethics), situational factors (such as severity of the wrongdoing), and organizational issues (such as compliance or non-compliance with policy and procedures) contributed to the reporting or not reporting of a coworker's wrongdoing. Discussion and implications suggest that various individual, situational, and organizational issues may affect an employee's decision to either report or not report unethical behavior committed by a coworker.