Ethical leadership and employee pro-social rule-breaking behavior in China

Chinese people generally show flexibility in obeying formal rules and emphasize rules in terms of virtue. In such a cultural background, we explore the effects of ethical leadership and ethical idealism on employee pro-social rule-breaking behavior (PSRB). Our study incorporates individual traits and situational factors to present a holistic view of the antecedents of pro-social rule-breaking behavior. Our findings shed light on a new cognitive mechanism—perceived norms—of social cognitive theory and show the boundary condition—moral idealism—of social cognitive theory.