The Effect of the Spirituality in the Workplace on the Social Undermining with Mediating Role of Organizational Ethical Climate (Department Social Security of Isfahan as a Case Study)

Introduction Meaning in life is a psychological phenomenon that is conceptualized as a cognitive characteristic of personality. It also roots in the human personality and is different from a person to another. Spirituality refers to the exploration of meaning in goal in the life. According to Berker and Wang (1988), meaning in life is perception of order, integration, and goal in the life from one side, and achieving valuable goals from other side. Frankl (1988) indicates that there is an extreme meaning in the life that is independent from others, individual goals, and status. Such a meaning is related to God and is the main meaning of spirituality. Indeed, spirituality is an unnatural part of life. Spirituality is emerged in the crisis time in which it is not possible to control the situation. It should be noted that spirituality is not limited to crisis and other unpleasant events, but it may emerge in the thought and emotions of people. Broadly speaking, lack of spirituality may lead to alienation. Development and reinforcement of spirituality in the workplaces may result in moral work environment. Increasingly complexity of current organizations and increased immoral and illegal activities in them call the managers’ attention to morality and moral workplace. The results of a survey, in which 4000 employees were participated, revealed that about 25% of employees believe that moral conditions are ignored in their organization and only 17% of them indicate that their organization encourages immoral values in the employees for achieving organizational goals. Organizational morality, which is a common believe in the employees, is resulted from moral policies and procedures in the organizations. It also is considered as a psychological concept. Morality is important for organizations, as it affects employees’ moral behaviors. Indeed, organizational morality refers to perception of right or wrong in the organization. It also provides employees with norms for accepting or rejecting organizational behaviors (Rahimnian and Nikkhah Farahani, 2013: 36). In the current conditions, destructive and inhumane behaviors of employees in the workplaces are the main challenges of most organizations. Such behaviors and activities have considerable costs for organizations. Based on the results of past studies, destructive behaviors of employees root in their moral and religious beliefs. Lack of spirituality is one the main reasons of such behaviors in the workplaces. Erikson (2010) refers to the immorality and lack of moral criteria in the organizations as the main reasons of destructive behaviors. Social abrasion is one of the main destructive behaviors in the organizations that calls the attention of scholars to itself. Social abrasion refers to the degree in which an employee is accepted or rejected by his/her colleagues. Social abrasion may lead to emergence of destructive behaviors in the organization such as hostility, subversion, non-constructive criticism, insulting others, creating an obstacle in achieving organizational goals, and destroying others’ reputations. In such a condition, an unhealthy workplace will be created. Given the destructive effects of social abrasion in organizations and its antecedents (such as immorality in workplace), the present study aims to investigate the effect of morality in workplace on the social abrasion through mediating role of organizational morality in Isfahan Social Security Organization. For this purpose, the following hypotheses were developed. H1: spirituality in workplace affects social abrasion significantly. H2: spirituality in workplace affects organizational morality significantly. H3: organizational morality affects social abrasion significantly. H4: spirituality in workplace significantly affects social abrasion through organizational morality. Materials and methods The present study aims to investigate the effect of spirituality in workplace on the social abrasion through mediating role of organizational morality. This study is a practical research from goal perspective and is a descriptive-quantitative one from research methodology view. The statistical population of this study includes 270 employees of Isfahan Social Security Organization. A sample of 195 employees was selected randomly. The sample size was determined through Morgan Sampling Table. In order to collect the research data, three questionnaires were used. These include standardized questionnaire of spirituality in workplace (Milimin et al., 2003), questionnaire of social abrasion (Daffy et al., 2002), and questionnaire of organizational morality (Viktor and Kolten, 1993). In order to measure validity of questionnaire, both face and construct validities were used. Also Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient was used for measuring and confirming reliability of questionnaire. The coefficients were 0.94, 0.88, and 0.96 for questionnaires of spirituality in workplace, social abrasion, and organizational morality respectively. The coefficients confirm reliability of questionnaire. In order to analyze the research data and test the hypotheses, Pearson Correlation Coefficient Test and Structural Equating Modeling were used in the SPSS21 and AMOSS21 respectively. Discussion of results and conclusion Our findings revealed that spirituality in workplace (average: 3.142) has the most score and social abrasion (average: 2.354) has the least score in the studied case. The results of Pearson Correlation Coefficient Test tell us that there is a significant relationship between spirituality in workplace and organizational morality (r: 0.724); there is a significant negative relationship between spirituality in workplace and social abrasion (r: -0.414); there is a significant negative relationship between social abrasion and organizational morality (r: -0.312). In order to test the hypotheses, both “P” and “CR” should be investigated. If the CR is more than 1.96, the hypothesis will supported and vice versa. Based on the results, spirituality in workplace affects social abrasion significantly (path coefficient: -0.45); organizational spirituality affects social abrasion (path coefficient: -0.35); spirituality in workplace affects organizational morality (path coefficient: 0.78). The results of the fourth hypothesis showed that the hypothesis is supported (path coefficient: -0.27). In other words, spirituality in workplace significantly affects social abrasion through organizational morality. Since the effect of spirituality in workplace on the social abrasion through organizational morality (path coefficient: -0.27) is more than the effect of spirituality in workplace on the social abrasion (path coefficient: -0.45), it can be concluded that the mediating role of organizational spirituality in the relationship between spirituality in workplace and social abrasion is significant. Based on the results of this study, the following suggestion are developed for managers and administrators of Isfahan Social Security Organization: Promoting organizational culture based on the spirituality principles Developing and improving spirituality in workplace based on the Islamic-Iranian principles Developing the Islamic spirituality virtual such as religious ceremonies at organization level Establishing moral principles according to organizational culture Encouraging managers for implementing the established moral principles Using social capitals in improving morality in the organization Implementing workshops in terms of interpersonal communications Expanding justice at organization level