Integrity and Youth Employment in Burundi: An Empirical Analysis of Ethical Governance and Labour Market Outcomes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-jmrr/V2E2/2026-01Keywords:
Integrity, Youth Employment, Governance, Corruption, Labour Market, BurundiAbstract
Youth unemployment remains a critical challenge in Burundi, compounded by weak governance and pervasive corruption. This study examined the relationship between Integrity and youth employment outcomes. Grounded in Social Learning Theory and Cognitive-Developmental Theory, the research adopts a quantitative approach under the positivist paradigm, employing a correlational design with a sample of 60 respondents selected through probability sampling. Data were collected using structured questionnaires (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.82) and analysed via Pearson correlation and regression analysis. Results reveal a positive correlation between integrity and youth employment (r = 0.633, p < 0.01), with integrity significantly predicting employment outcomes (β = 0.615, p < 0.05, R² = 0.401). Findings underscore the critical role of transparency, merit-based practices, and ethical governance in enhancing youth employment opportunities. The study recommends strengthening institutional integrity, promoting ethical leadership, and aligning skills development with labour market demands to address unemployment and foster sustainable socio-economic development.
References
1) African Development Bank Group. (2019). Burundi economic outlook. African Development
Bank.https://www.afdb.org/en/countries/east-africa/burundi/burundi-economic-outlook
2) American Psychological Association. (2017). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct. https://www.apa.org/ethics/code
3) Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. Prentice-Hall.
4) Barnett, T. (2001). Dimensions of moral intensity and ethical decision making: An empirical study. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 31(5), 1038–1057.
5) Bjørkelo, B., Einarsen, S., Nielsen, M. B., & Matthiesen, S. B. (2019). Reporting of ethical concerns at work among youth: Demographic and organizational factors. Journal of Business Ethics, 159(2), 453–466.
6) Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2019). Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 11(4), 589–597.
7) Brown, M. E., Treviño, L. K., & Harrison, D. A. (2005). Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing. Organizational Behaviour and Human Decision Processes, 97(2), 117–134.
8) Cialdini, R. B., Kallgren, C. A., & Reno, R. R. (1990). A focus theory of normative conduct. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 24, 201–234.
9) Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2018). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.
10) Dillman, D. A., Smyth, J. D., & Christian, L. M. (2014). Internet, phone, mail, and mixed-mode surveys: The tailored design method (4th ed.). Wiley.
11) Dixon, R. B., Elenkov, D. S., & Stumpf, S. A. (2018). Ethical leadership and mentoring relationships. Journal of Business Ethics, 151(1), 137–149.
12) Field, A. (2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.
13) Fontana, A., & Frey, J. H. (2019). The interview: From structured questions to negotiated text. In The SAGE handbook of qualitative research (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.
14) Freedom House. (2021). Freedom in the world 2021: Burundi.
15) Groves, K. S., Vance, C., & Choi, D. (2019). Examining the ethical leadership–follower outcomes link. Journal of Business Ethics, 155(2), 381–404.
16) Hartog, D. N. D. (2019). Ethical leadership. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behaviour, 6, 409–434.
17) Hörisch, J., Freeman, R. E., & Schaltegger, S. (2014). Applying stakeholder theory in sustainability management. Organization & Environment, 27(4), 328–346.
18) International Labour Organization. (2014). Guide on promoting good governance in the public service. ILO.
19) International Labour Organization. (2018). Decent work for youth in Burundi. ILO.
20) Josić, I., & Đula, J. (2020). How corruption affects youth employment. International Journal of Economics, Commerce and Management, 8(4), 228–238.
21) Kohlberg, L. (1981). The philosophy of moral development: Moral stages and the idea of justice. Harper & Row.
22) Krueger, R. A., & Casey, M. A. (2015). Focus groups: A practical guide for applied research (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.
23) Lind, G. (2017). Moral development and moral education. In The Cambridge handbook of moral development. Cambridge University Press.
24) Ngendahimana, E., & Govers, R. (2020). Culture, values, and ethical behaviour in Burundi. African Journal of Governance and Development, 9(1), 45–62.
25) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2019). Enhancing integrity in public procurement. OECD Publishing.
26) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2020). Business integrity in Eastern Africa. OECD Publishing.
27) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2020). Integrity in the public sector: A guide for ethical leadership. OECD Publishing.
28) Patton, M. Q. (2015). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
29) Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. Simon & Schuster.
30) Rehman, S. U., & Uddin, M. (2021). Integrity and organizational performance: A study of ethical practices in human resource management. Journal of Business Ethics, 171(3), 565–582.
31) Riggio, R. E. (2017). Leadership and integrity. Routledge.
32) Sayed, S. (2018). Ethics and integrity in employment practices. African Journal of Public Affairs, 11(2), 45–60.
33) Transparency International. (2018). Anti-corruption glossary.
34) Transparency International. (2020). Corruption perceptions index 2020: Burundi. https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2020/results/bdi
35) Treviño, L. K., Weaver, G. R., & Reynolds, S. J. (2014). Behavioural ethics in organizations. Journal of Management, 40(1), 123–152.
36) United Nations Development Programme. (2019). Human development indicators: Burundi. UNDP.
37) United Nations Development Programme. (2020). Integrated national financing framework for sustainable development in Burundi. UNDP.
38) Verheyden, B., Decuypere, L., & Vanderstraeten, A. (2019). Organizational integrity and trust. Journal of Business Ethics,156(1),1–15.
39) World Bank. (2016). Good governance for development. World Bank.
40) World Bank. (2019). World development indicators. World Bank.
41) World Bank. (2020). Worldwide governance indicators. World Bank.
42) World Bank. (2021). World development indicators: Burundi. World Bank.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Emmanuel Kwizera (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
