Ethnicity and Workplace Behaviour: An Empirical Examination of Counterproductive Work Behaviour among Employees in Niger State Polytechnic, Zungeru
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Date
2026-05-30
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Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
UMYU Journal of Business Administration and Management
Abstract
This study empirically examines the relationship between ethnicity and counterproductive work
behaviour among employees at Niger State Polytechnic, Zungeru. Drawing on Social Identity
Theory, the research investigates how ethnic affiliations, social categorization, and group
dynamics influence workplace deviance in a multicultural institutional setting. The study adopted
a quantitative research design utilizing a survey method. Data were collected using selfadministered
questionnaires from a stratified random sample of 370 academic and non-academic
staff. Data analysis was performed using multiple regression analysis to test the impact of
ethnicity variables including ethnic background, language diversity, group effectiveness and
inter-tribal cohesion on employee counterproductive work behaviour. The results indicate a high
positive correlation (r = 0.716) between ethnicity variables and counterproductive work
behaviour. However, the overall model generated an aggregate significance level of 0.512,
leading to the acceptance of the null hypothesis that ethnicity does not have a significant
relationship with counterproductive work behaviour at the p < 0.05 threshold. While specific variables such as ethnic background, group effectiveness, and inter-tribal cohesion were all
significant. The study concludes that ethnicity does not serve as a primary driver of
counterproductive work behaviour within the institution. Instead, strong ethnic identities may
foster benefits such as cultural respect and cross-ethnic evaluation, which can mitigate deviance.
The study recommends that management promote institutional cohesion and discourage the use
of unofficial languages during task execution to maintain professional communication and
minimize potential social divisions.