Relationship Between Ethical Climate and Burnout: A New Approach Through Work Autonomy

Burnout is a factor that affects organizational performance. Researchers have not determined whether an ethical climate and adequate work autonomy provide sufficient emotional stability to dampen burnout or, conversely, increase it. In addition, the abundant literature analyzing the relationship between work autonomy and burnout does not sufficiently establish whether it acts as a stress-reducing resource or a stress-increasing demand. It is also unknown to what extent work autonomy contributes to explaining the relationship between ethical climate and burnout. Therefore, the main aim of this study is to examine the relationship between an ethical climate based on principles and norms and burnout using the moderating effect of work autonomy. We approached this question using a multivariate moderation analysis. The sample consists of 448 employees in the Colombian electric sector. The results show that an ethical climate of principles and work autonomy are positively related to burnout, measured by the dimensions of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. However, the relationship between an ethical climate of principles and burnout shifts from positive to negative when a rule-demanding work environment is associated with a high perception of work autonomy. In conclusion, when employees have considerable control over their usual tasks, they develop a pattern of behavior that incorporates both the organization’s internal standards and the principles that shape individual morality. In this case, employees are able to balance the workload with the high psychological demands of an ethical climate of principles, without it being a disturbance to their emotional well-being. The results of this research are particularly relevant because they show for the first time that an ethical climate of principles can have opposite effects on employee burnout, both positive and negative, depending on the degree of work autonomy. This opens the door to new strategies for organizations to prevent certain psychosocial occupational risks, such as burnout, which often have a serious impact on employees’ mental health. Moreover, the model of moderation proposed in this article can be replicated in other Latin American countries with similar characteristics to those of Colombia or even transferred to rich countries.