Journal of Security and Sustainability Issues

This study examines and compares the attitude of management students in Croatia and Slovakia towards whistleblowing in a sample of 121 master students of business ethics at the Faculty of Economics University in Split, Croatia, and 169 master students from University of Bratislava, Slovakia. The three measurement instruments include whistleblowers’ attitudes (3 items), whistleblowing attitudes (2 items) and potential types of whistleblowing reactions (8 items), i.e. external reactions (4 items) and internal reactions (4 items). The results of the study indicated a positive attitude toward whistleblowing and whistleblowers in both student groups. It is also found that Croatian students exhibited more positive attitude towards whistleblowers than Slovakian students. Also, Croatian students showed more proneness to react in a whistleblowing situation – both inside the organization and externally via media. These conclusions suggest that the sense of moral duty to blow the whistle, as well as less fear of the potential consequences, is stronger in Croatian students. The results may be of practical use to managers who can benefit from whistleblowing while keeping in mind that whistleblowing can’t be avoided and that punishing whistleblowers seems to be a bad managerial practice.