Distributor whistleblowing: The effects of manufacturer trustworthiness, opportunism, and transaction contexts

Jing Zhou (), Chuang Zhang () and Shibin Sheng ()
Additional contact information
Jing Zhou: Dalian University of Technology
Chuang Zhang: Dalian University of Technology
Shibin Sheng: University of Alabama at Birmingham

Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 2025, vol. 42, issue 3, No 17, 1717-1741

Abstract: Abstract Distributor whistleblowing, which involves disclosing peers’ misconduct to the manufacturer, plays a crucial role in the governance of distribution relationships. This study focuses on the interfirm relationship between a potential distributor whistleblower and a manufacturer to explore the effects of manufacturer characteristics on distributor whistleblowing. In particular, drawing on relational exchange theory and transaction cost economics, this study examines the effects of manufacturer trustworthiness and opportunism on distributor whistleblowing, along with the moderating effects of transaction contexts (distributor relative transaction-specific investment and relationship duration). Data from 211 senior distributor managers reveal that manufacturer trustworthiness has a positive effect on distributor whistleblowing, which is weakened by distributor relative transaction-specific investment and strengthened by relationship duration. In contrast, manufacturer opportunism has a negative impact on distributor whistleblowing that is undermined by relationship duration. These findings provide new insights into how to encourage distributor whistleblowing.

Keywords: Whistleblowing; Unethical behavior; Trustworthiness; Opportunism; Transaction-specific investment; Relationship duration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10490-024-09971-3 Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:kap:asiapa:v:42:y:2025:i:3:d:10.1007_s10490-024-09971-3

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer. ... 29/journal/10490/PS2

DOI: 10.1007/s10490-024-09971-3

Access Statistics for this article

Asia Pacific Journal of Management is currently edited by Jane Lu

More articles in Asia Pacific Journal of Management from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().