Why do you reveal? Perceived organizational motives of instrumental and image-enhancement orientations on employee transparency efforts in E-commerce

Paschal Jao^1,*, Shurong Zhao², Baraka Jao Anthony³, Ailing Luo⁴, Joel Dossa⁵, Tiantian Sun⁴, Koroma Abu Bakarr¹
1 School of Economics and Management, University of Electronics Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
2 School of Public Administration, Center for West African Studies, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
3 Finance Department, Tanzania Revenue Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
4 School of Public Administration, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
5 Business School, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
* Corresponding Author: Paschal Jao. Email: email

Journal of Psychology in Africa https://doi.org/10.32604/jpa.2026.076434

Received 20 November 2025; Accepted 09 May 2026; Published online 29 July 2026

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Abstract

Employee transparency is critical for operational effectiveness in e-commerce organizations. Drawing on cost-value framework and self-regulatory theory, this study examines how organizational motives shape employee transparency behaviors. Study 1 surveyed 300 e-commerce employees (females 44%, main job categoty 38%) to assess differences in perceived motives and transparency behavior, showing instrumental motives positively predict transparency, while image-enhancement motives negatively predict it. Study 2 surveyed 400 participants with managerial experience were recruited from e-commerce platforms to participate in the experimental design manipulated organizational motives, showing that instrumental motives increase quality and sensitivity of transparency behaviors, while image-enhancement motives reduce feedback quality without affecting sensitivity. We find employees perceiving transparency initiatives as instrumentally motivated show higher engagement, while those seeing image-enhancement motives show reduced engagement. Findings emphasize instrumental motives’ stronger influence and highlight the importance of framing transparency for performance improvement to drive employee engagement. Study findings extend the cost-value framework to employee transparency and shifts from individual traits to organizational motives. Findings provide guidelines for e-commerce organizations in designing transparency initiatives that maximize engagement and learning, particularly in digitally mediated work environments.