PhD Defence Isabel de Bruin Cardoso
In her dissertation, "The Dark Side of the NGO Halo: Exploring moral goodness as a driver for NGO unethical behavior", ERIM's Isabel de Bruin Cardoso drew on social identity theory and cognitive dissonance theory to develop a conceptual framework of the NGO halo effect to explain unethical behaviour through NGO perceived moral goodness. She introduced the concept of the NGO halo effect to explain how people in NGOs can idealise and accordingly prioritise the moral goodness of their organisation’s mission, morals, and people. As a result, NGOs' unethical behaviour is masked by such prioritisation. Results from Isabel's research shed light on how NGO halo can drive unethical behaviour through moral justification, moral superiority, and moral naivety.