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Purpose
This study aims to examine the roles of perceived organisational support (POS), attitude and self-efficacy in understanding the external whistleblowing intentions among senior auditors through the lens of stimulus–organism–response theory.


Design/methodology/approach
This study uses data from 119 senior auditors in audit firms in Malaysia. POS is predicted to be a stimulus factor from the external environment that affects the attitude and self-efficacy (organism) of the auditors and reassures them to act to whistleblow (response).


Findings
POS has a significant impact on self-efficacy and on attitude. Self-efficacy is shown as a significant mediator between POS and external whistleblowing intentions, but there is no statistical support for self-efficacy having a mediating effect on the relationship between the attitude of senior auditors and external whistleblowing intentions.


Practical implications
The findings can assist accounting professional bodies in understanding the psychological behaviours of auditors that contribute to their intention to shine a light on wrongdoing in audit firms and in providing a better insight into the critical factors that could influence auditors to whistleblow.


Originality/value
This study is among the earliest to investigate the application of stimulus–organism–response theory in whistleblowing, and hence it illustrates how the theory can be applied in studies on the ethical behaviours of actors in professional careers. The findings shed light on the role of self-efficacy as a significant mediator between POS and external whistleblowing intentions.

Das Thema Whistleblowing ist in den letzten Jahren immer mehr in den Fokus der Literatur und Rechtsprechung sowie der breiten Öffentlichkeit gerückt. Verantwortlich hierfür sind eine Reihe von Deutschland erschütternden Skandalen, wie das Zugunglück in Eschede, der Gammelfleischskandal oder die Schmiergeldaffäre bei Siemens. Dementsprechend ist es nicht verwunderlich, dass in letzter Zeit viel über Whistleblowing geschrieben worden ist, sowohl aus juristischer als auch aus betriebswirtschaftlicher Sicht. Noch nicht eingehend untersucht wurde dabei eine der wenigen gesetzlichen Whistleblowingregelungen, die sich im deutschen Arbeitsschutzrecht finden lässt, nämlich der auf Art. 11 Abs. 1 und 6 RL 89/391 EWG zurückgehende § 17 Abs. 1 und 2 ArbSchG. Dem soll sich diese Arbeit widmen.

Recognizing the importance of whistleblower protection, government has equipped itself with legal tools to protect whistleblowers. At the federal level, the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) of 2012 represents the most recent legislative action protecting whistleblowers. Currently, all 50 states have their own whistleblower protection laws. However, given the variations among states in statutory protections for whistleblowers, a need exists to examine important changes to state whistleblower laws in light of larger legislative trends at the federal level. This study addresses this research gap by exploring how state whistleblower protection laws have changed following passage of the 2012 WPEA through the lens of institutional theory. Content analysis findings suggest that post-WPEA state whistleblower laws have adopted changes directly reflecting WPEA provisions. The findings further suggest that post-WPEA state whistleblower laws also contain changes which display loose connection to primary components of the WPEA.

This study examines how organizational structure, political control, and internal system responsiveness to employee complaints or grievances influence U.S. federal employees' internal and external whistleblowing. Although prior research has investigated a number of personal, organizational, and social factors that affect whistleblowing, very little research has examined the three factors that are the focus of this study and the roles that they might play in whistleblowing behavior. The results show that (a) wider spans of control of middle-level versus upper-level managers have opposite effects on internal whistleblowing, (b) fixed terms for agency leaders are negatively related to internal whistleblowing, and (c) internal system responsiveness to employee complaints or grievances has mixed effects on internal whistleblowing. This study concludes by discussing the implications of these findings and proposing effective ways to manage whistleblowing within public organizations.

In the book Digital Whistleblowing Platforms in Journalism: Encrypting Leaks (Palgrave Macmillan, 2020), Philip Di Salvo, a postdoctoral researcher at USI's Institute of Media and Journalism in Lugano, presents an introduction and overview of the journalistic use of whistleblowing platforms and encryption tools.