Mitigating cheating behaviors in goal-intensive environments

Schweitzer, et al (2004) suggested that transparency, accountability, and monitoring may act as factors that moderate the influence of goal setting on performance. Lack of managerial oversight is likely to contribute to unethical behavior, like consultants reporting more hours than they worked. In environments where employees are monitored, goal setting may not increase unethical behavior. In academic environments, educators could mitigate potentially negative impacts of goal setting by teaching about goals within an ethical framework.