Investigating the Role of Social Responsibility, Organizational Transparency, and Organizational Commitment in Social Cynicism among Secondary School Teachers in Urmia

Authors

    Robabeh Rahimi PhD Student of Educational Management, Department of Educational Sciences, Ur.C., Islamic Azad University, Urmia, Iran
    Roghayeh Vahdat * Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Sciences, Ur.C., Islamic Azad University, Urmia, Iran r.vahdat_77@yahoo.com
    Maryam Sameri Associate Professor, Department of Educational Sciences, Ur.C., Islamic Azad University, Urmia, Iran

Keywords:

Social Cynicism, Social Responsibility, Organizational Transparency, Organizational Commitment, Secondary School Teachers, Educational Ethics, Iran

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the predictive role of social responsibility, organizational transparency, and organizational commitment in explaining social cynicism among secondary school teachers in Urmia. The research followed a descriptive-correlational design with an applied developmental objective. The statistical population included all secondary school teachers in Urmia during the 2021–2022 academic year (N = 2670). Using Cochran's formula, a sample of 400 teachers was selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using four standardized questionnaires: the Social Cynicism Questionnaire (Afshani & Kebriayi, 2020), the Social Responsibility Questionnaire (Carroll, 1991), the Organizational Transparency Questionnaire (Rawlins, 2008), and the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (Allen & Meyer, 1990). The internal consistency of the tools was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranging from 0.802 to 0.814. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS, applying Pearson correlation and multiple regression techniques. The results showed that all three independent variables—social responsibility, organizational transparency, and organizational commitment—had significant negative correlations with social cynicism (p ≤ 0.01). The multiple regression analysis revealed that these variables collectively explained 62.2% of the variance in social cynicism (R² = 0.622, p < 0.001), with organizational transparency being the strongest predictor (β = -0.489), followed by social responsibility (β = -0.268) and organizational commitment (β = -0.121). The findings underscore the critical role of ethical and organizational constructs in reducing social cynicism among teachers. By fostering socially responsible behavior, increasing transparency, and strengthening organizational commitment, educational institutions can significantly diminish negative attitudes and promote a more trusting and constructive work environment for educators.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

1. Muncy JA, Iyer R. The Impact of the Implicit Theories of Social Optimism and Social Pessimism on Macro Attitudes Towards Consumption. Psychology & Marketing. 2020;37(2):216-31. doi: 10.1002/mar.21304.

2. Bugdayci S. Examining Personal and Social Responsibility Levels of Secondary School Students. Universal Journal of Educational Research. 2019;7(1):206-10. doi: 10.13189/ujer.2019.070126.

3. Nguyen NTT, Nguyen NP, Hoai TT. Ethical Leadership, Corporate Social Responsibility, Firm Reputation, and Firm Performance: A Serial Mediation Model. Journal of Heliyon. 2021;7(4):e06809-1. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e06809.

4. Wang Y. Ethical Concepts in the Tao Te Ching and Professional Ethics Education: Principles, Challenges, and Opportunities. The Educational Review Usa. 2024;8(2):232-6. doi: 10.26855/er.2024.02.006.

5. Makundi F, Issund M. Survey of Organizational Transparency Studies in Scientific Articles of the Last 10 Years with Meta-Analysis Method. Transformative Human Resources Quarterly. 2023;7(2):89-107.

6. Masoumi SF, Hekmati M. Organizational Transparency for Preventing Administrative and Financial Corruption (Case Study: Hamadan Municipality). New Research Approaches in Management and Accounting Sciences. 2024;8(28):2383-97.

7. Diehimpoor M, Dolati H. The Impact of Organizational Transparency on Organizational Paranoia with Social Capital as a Mediator. Journal of Social Capital Management. 2020;7(3):398-73.

8. Cegarra-Navarro JG, Wensley AKP, Martinez-Martinez A, Garcia-Perez A. Linking Organisational Commitment with Continuous Learning through Peripheral Vision and Procedural Memory. European Management Journal. 2020;38(6):874-83. doi: 10.1016/j.emj.2020.05.003.

9. Yalcin S, Akan D, Yildirim I. Investigation of the Organizational Commitment and Psychological Well-Being Levels of Academicians. International Journal of Research in Education and Science. 2021;7(2):525-44. doi: 10.46328/ijres.1346.

10. Ghaffarian S, Memarzadeh Tehrani G, Mohammadi N, Farahmandian A. Presenting a Model for Developing Employee Commitment in Iranian Government Organizations. International Journal of Innovation Management and Organizational Behavior (IJIMOB). 2024;4(3):55-67. doi: 10.61838/kman.ijimob.4.3.7.

11. Hermanto YB, Srimulyani VA, Pitoyo DJ. The mediating role of quality of work life and organizational commitment in the link between transformational leadership and organizational citizenship behavior. Heliyon. 2024;10(6). doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e27664.

12. Nemr MAA, Liu Y. The Impact of Ethical Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behaviors: Moderating Role of Organizational Cynicism. Cogent Business & Management. 2021;8(1):1-14. doi: 10.1080/23311975.2020.1865860.

13. Ko J, Jang H, Kim SY. The Effect of Corporate Social Responsibility Recognition on Organisational Commitment in Global Freight Forwarders. The Asian Journal of Shipping and Logistics. 2021;37(2):117-26. doi: 10.1016/j.ajsl.2020.12.005.

14. MacNeill K, Bolt B, Barrett E, McPherson M, Sierra M, Miller S. An Ethical Engagement: Creative Practice Research, the Academy and Professional Codes of Conduct. Research Ethics. 2021;17(1):73-86. doi: 10.1177/1747016120915950.

15. Headley SAA, Melendez K. Addressing Contemporary Challenges in the Unified Code of Ethics for Health Educators. Health Education Journal. 2020;79(4):417-30. doi: 10.1177/0017896919888556.

16. Burakgazi SG, Can I, Coskun M. Exploring Pre-Service Teachers' Perceptions about Professional Ethics in Teaching: Do Gender, Major, and Academic Achievement Matter? International Journal of Progressive Education. 2020;16(4):213-28. doi: 10.29329/ijpe.2020.268.14.

17. Kabirian M. The Process of Professional Ethics Development in Midwifery Students: A Grounded Theory Study. Iranian Journal of Nursing and Midwifery Research. 2024;29(3):302-8. doi: 10.4103/ijnmr.ijnmr_12_23.

18. Moradi Dolisekani M, Mohammadi Mehr M. Investigating the Relationship between Professional Ethics and Teaching Quality among Faculty Members at Army Medical University. Journal of Educational Strategies in Medical Sciences. 2020;13(3):150-43.

19. Khajeh Hosseini M, Haji Alizadeh S, Amiri A. Investigating the Role of Professional Ethics and Accountability in Organizational Commitment. Quarterly Journal of New Research Approaches in Management and Accounting. 2020;50:32-27.

20. Adeoye AO. Ethical Leadership, Employee's Commitment and Organizational Effectiveness: A Study of Non-Faculty Members. Athens Journal of Business & Economics. 2021;7(2):161-72. doi: 10.30958/ajbe.7-2-3.

21. Habibi R. The Impact of Perceived Ethical Leadership Behavior on Citizenship Rights and Organizational Paranoia. Journal of Bioethics. 2019;9(31):20-9.

22. Qamoshi Z, Izadi M, Mohseni Mehr Z. The Role of Faculty Members' Professional Ethics in Organizational Transparency (Case Study: Imam Khomeini University). Higher Education Journal. 2019;12(48):64-37.

23. Stanic MK. Transparency in Public Relations: Evidence from Associations, Ethics Codes. Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems. 2019;17(2):417-29. doi: 10.7906/indecs.17.2.15.

24. Yao T, Qiu Q, Wei Y. Retaining Hotel Employees as Internal Customers: Effect of Organizational Commitment on Attitudinal and Behavioral Loyalty of Employees. International Journal of Hospitality Management. 2019;76:1-8. doi: 10.1016/j.ijhm.2018.03.018.

25. Cheng WY, Cheung RYM, Chung KKH. Understanding Adolescents' Perceived Social Responsibility: The Role of Family Cohesion, Interdependent Self-Construal, and Social Trust. Journal of Adolescence. 2021;89:55-62. doi: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2021.04.001.

26. Schiff DS, Logevall E, Borenstein J, Newstetter W, Potts C, Zegura E. Linking Personal and Professional Social Responsibility Development to Microethics and Macroethics: Observations from Early Undergraduate Education. Journal of Engineering Education. 2021;110(1):70-91. doi: 10.1002/jee.20371.

27. Liu Y, Liu S, Zhang Q, Hu L. Does Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility Motivate Hotel Employees to Voice? The Role of Felt Obligation and Positive Emotions. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management. 2021;48:182-90. doi: 10.1016/j.jhtm.2021.06.006.

28. Afshani SA, Kebriayi S. Investigating the Relationship between Social Capital and Social Distrust among Citizens of Yazd City. Journal of Social Capital Management. 2020;7(4):561-35.

29. Kanapeckaitė R. Relationships Between Team Characteristics and Soldiers’ Organizational Commitment and Well-Being: The Mediating Role of Psychological Resilience. Frontiers in Psychology. 2024;15. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1353793.

30. Guney Z. Professional Ethics in Performance and Educational Technology. Educational Policy Analysis and Strategic Research. 2019;14(4):190-200. doi: 10.29329/epasr.2019.220.11.

Downloads

Published

2025-06-01

Submitted

2025-02-17

Revised

2025-05-17

Accepted

2025-05-27

How to Cite

Rahimi , R. ., Vahdat, R., & Sameri , M. (2025). Investigating the Role of Social Responsibility, Organizational Transparency, and Organizational Commitment in Social Cynicism among Secondary School Teachers in Urmia. Assessment and Practice in Educational Sciences, 3(2), 1-10. https://journalapes.com/index.php/apes/article/view/63

Similar Articles

1-10 of 62

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.