Professor Karin Lasthuizen is the Brian Picot Chair in Ethical Leadership – Aritahi at the Wellington School of Business and Government, Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand).

The Chair was established to provide evidence-based insights and international best practices that can improve ethical leadership practices in business and government and help mitigate the ethical risks that can lead to organisational failures.

Prof Lasthuizen’s research and consultancy work focuses on ethical leadership and ethics management within public and private sector organisations and cultures, and she specialises in methodology for research into integrity violations and organisational misbehaviour, such as corruption, fraud, misuse of authority, and interpersonal deviance. She has numerous publications in the field of ethical leadership, ethics management, corruption, and policing in national and international journals and books, and is co-author of the recently published book ‘HUMANGOOD. A field guide to ethical leadership’ (2021) and the Routledge Masters in Public Management textbook ‘Ethics and Management in the Public Sector’ (2013).

In November 2021 Prof Lasthuizen received a prestigious grant from the Gama Foundation Governance and Policy Studies Endowment Fund to set up a research team to investigate allegations of integrity violations by politicians and to annually release a Political Integrity Index for New Zealand. The Political Integrity Index provides a systematic and longitudinal measure covering politicians in both national and local government to enhance knowledge and transparency in the area of political integrity, lobbying and conflicts of (financial) interests.

Prof Lasthuizen is New Zealand’s National Partner for the Institute of Business Ethics (UK) global Ethics at Work Survey and co-founder of the international academic research network on Public and Political Leadership (PUPOL). She offers specialised training and consultancy, and a free online course ‘Ethical Leadership in a Changing World’ on the EdX platform for students and professionals worldwide.

Web: wgtn.ac.nz/ethical-leadership

ANZSOG programs

Prof Lasthuizen teaches in the following ANZSOG courses:

Pro-Integrity Master Class Series – Ethical Leadership

Selected publications

Bushell, J., Cain, C., Duncan, L-A. & Lasthuizen, K. (2021). HUMANGOOD. A field guide to ethical leadership. New Zealand: Brian Picot Chair in Ethical Leadership I Aritahi, Wellington School of Business and Government.

Lasthuizen, K. & Heres, L. & Webb, W. (2019) Ethical leadership within the public and political realm: A dance with wolves? Introduction to special symposium issue ‘Ethical Leadership and the Integrity of Public Institutions’. Public Integrity. (6): 549-552.

Huberts, L.W.J.C. & Lasthuizen, K. (2019). Corruption in Context: What Goes Wrong in Governance. In M. Powell, Wafa, D. & Mau, T.A. (Eds.) Corruption in a Global Context: Restoring public trust, integrity, and accountability among public leaders and governing institutions. Chapter 2, pp 44-67. London/NY: Routledge.

Lasthuizen, K. (2018). Ethical Leadership: Opportunities and Challenges for Aotearoa New Zealand. New Zealand: Brian Picot Chair in Ethical Leadership, Victoria University of Wellington.

Van Eeden Jones, I. & Lasthuizen, K. (2018). Building Public Sector Integrity in Developing Countries: An Indonesian Empirical Case Study on Ethical Leadership. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Administration 40 (3): 175-185. AJPA Best Paper 2018 Award.

Huberts, L.W.J.C., Kaptein, M. & Lasthuizen, K. (2014). A study of the impact of three leadership styles on integrity violations committed by police officers. L. Holmes (Eds.). Police Corruption: Essential Readings. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Chapter 5. Reprint.

Huberts, L.W.J.C. & Lasthuizen, K. (2014). What Goes Wrong. Integrity Violations. In: L.W.J. C. Huberts (Eds.). The Integrity of Governance. What It Is, What We Know, What Is Done, and Where to Go. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Chapter 6.

Lawton, A., Rayner, K. & Lasthuizen, K. (2013). Ethics and Management in the Public Sector. Masters in Public Management. London/NY: Routledge.

Heres, L. & Lasthuizen, K. (2013). From Ethical Competence to Ethical Leadership. In: Menzel, D.C. & T.L. Cooper (Eds.). Achieving Ethical Competence for Public Service Leadership. Chapter 3. pp.51-70. USA: M.E. Sharpe, Inc.

Heres, L. & Lasthuizen, K. (2012). What’s the difference? Ethical leadership in public, hybrid, and private organisations, Journal of Change Management, 12 (4): 441-466.

Van der Wal, Z., De Graaf, G. & Lasthuizen, K. (2008). What’s Valued Most? A comparative empirical study on the differences and similarities between the organizational values of the public and private sector. Public Administration 86 (2): 465-482.

Lasthuizen, K. (2008). Leading to Integrity. Empirical Research into the Effects of Leadership on Ethics and Integrity. Enschede: Printpartners Ipskamp.