High ethics and social responsibility are sometimes related to good financial performance. Ethical leadership in the studies was usually measured by subordinate evaluations of their supervisor or manager. A major result of the analysis was that ethical leadership was positively related to job attitudes, job performance, and overall evaluation of the leaders. Another key finding of the meta-analysis was that ethical leadership was slightly related to task performance and good organizational citizenship behavior and was also helpful in reducing counterproductive work behavior.

A contributing factor to the findings of the study was that ethical leaders are more trusted by employees, and trust often results in positive job attitudes and behaviors. According to a study conducted by the Ethics Resource Center, employees who work in an ethical environment tend to be better motivated. The study concluded that the chance to contribute to something larger than themselves and be recognized for it is a strong incentive to employees for delivering superior performance. Using this approach, it is helpful if company leaders explain why the work is larger than oneself.