Machiavellian personality dimensions and work ethics among bank employees in Nigeria

Abstract

Work ethics which has been a major concern in Nigerian public and . private financial institutions is not known to be given much research attention on contemporary workplace issues that impact employee productivity. This necessitated the survey, which involved a sample size of 230. Participants that include male and females were drawn from employees of different branches of a commercial bank in Lagos. Using standardised scales for data collection, results of multiple regression analysis confirmed the first hypothesis which predicted that Machievallian personality would influence work ethics (R2 = .33; F [7, 221] = 13.58; p<.00l). The second hypothesis was rejected based on the t-test result which showed no significant difference between male and females on work ethics. It was concluded that the dimensions in Machievallian personality among dispositional characteristics are important factors that influence work ethics among bank workers, whereas being male or female is not a necessary factor. It implied that the personality dimensions are important characteristics to consider in behavior modification to achieve higher work ethics among employees. A major recommendation is the need to consider the assessment of employees during selection in order to incorporate their modification in induction training programmes