Inferences about causes and consequences of behavior of leaders and subordinates

This study addresses spontaneous inferences about causes and consequences of performance‐related behavior of leaders and subordinates. Respondents (leaders and subordinates) completed sentences describing the behavior of leaders or subordinates. It was expected that behavior of leaders induces more causal analysis because it can more strongly affect others. This hypothesis was confirmed, suggesting that position labels can trigger control motivation. It was also found that leader behavior induced more inferences about the consequences for the environment than for the actor, supporting the assumption that leaders are seen as persons who affect their environment. In addition, the data indicate that subordinate respondents made more inferences about causes as well as consequences than leaders did, and have a more positive view of others. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of perceived power of supervisor on subordinate stress and motivation: the moderating role of subordinate characteristics

This study examined the moderating effects of subordinate individual differences, specially self‐esteem and locus of control, on the relationships between perceived supervisor power and subordinate motivation and stress. Results showed that perceived supervisor power was more strongly related to increased motivation and decreased stress for subordinates with low self‐esteem than for those with high self‐esteem. For locus of control, perceived reward, coercive and referent power were more positively related to motivation, and legitimate, expert and referent power were more negatively related to stress for externals than for internals. On the other hand, supervisor expert power and legitimate power were positively associated with increased motivation for internals, but not for externals. Implications for future research and practising managers are discussed. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Abusive according to whom? Manager and subordinate perceptions of abusive supervision and supervisors' performance

Recognizing that supervisor–subordinate dyads exist within a broader organizational hierarchy, we examine how the individual's role within the organizational hierarchy influences perceptions of abusive supervision. Specifically, we examine how supervisors' abusive behaviors are perceived by abusive supervisors' managers as well as abusive supervisors' subordinates. Drawing on role theory, we propose that these perceptions will differ. Further, we suggest that these differences will be reflected in different relationships between manager-rated abusive supervision and subordinate-rated abusive supervision and managers' evaluations of supervisor performance. Results from manager–supervisor–subordinate triads indicate differences between managers' and subordinates' view of abusive supervision. Further, managers' perceptions of abuse were related to supervisors' in-role performance, whereas subordinates' perceptions of abuse were related to workgroup performance. In Study 2, we replicate these findings and expand our investigation to an examination of supervisors' contextual performance. Additionally, we examine another contextual characteristic—aggressive climate—and demonstrate it influences how abusive supervision relates to managerial evaluations of supervisor performance. Future research and managerial implications are discussed.     

Supervisor-Directed Emotional Labor as Upward Influence: An Emotions-as-Social-Information Perspective

To access organizational resources, subordinates often strive to influence supervisors' impressions. Moreover, subordinates' interactions with supervisors are known to be ripe with emotions. Nevertheless, research on upward impression management has rarely examined how subordinates' emotion regulation in supervisor interactions may shape their tangible outcomes. The present study introduces subordinates' emotional labor toward supervisors as a novel means of upward influence. Building on the emotions-as-social-information model, we propose that supervisor-directed emotional labor indirectly relates with supervisory reward recommendations by shaping supervisors' liking and perceived competence of subordinates. Moreover, we cast supervisors' epistemic motivation as a boundary condition for these indirect relations. We tested these notions using time-lagged data from 377 subordinates and 91 supervisors. When supervisors' epistemic motivation was higher (but not lower), (1) supervisor-directed surface acting related negatively with supervisors' liking and perceived competence of subordinates and (2) supervisor-directed deep acting related positively with supervisors' liking of subordinates. Liking and perceived competence, in turn, related positively with supervisors' willingness to recommend subordinates for organizational rewards. These findings highlight supervisor-directed emotional labor as an upward impression management strategy with both beneficial (deep acting) and detrimental (surface acting) implications, and they illustrate important mechanisms and a key contingency factor for these consequences.     

Determinants of delegation and consultation by managers

Few studies have identified determinants of delegation and consultation. To investigate this question further, we surveyed managers and subordinates in two samples and interviewed managers individually or in focus groups. The use of delegation and consultation with individual subordinates was determined in part by characteristics of the subordinates and the manager–subordinate relationship. More delegation was used for a subordinate who was competent, shared the leader's task objectives, had worked longer for the manager, was a supervisor also, and had a favorable exchange relationship with the manager. Consultation with a subordinate was predicted by goal congruence, subordinate job level, and quality of the leader–member exchange relationship. The managers acknowledged that developing subordinates and empowering them to do their work were important reasons for delegation, but many managers were reluctant to give up control over important decisions or assign an important task to an inexperienced subordinate. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The supervisor POS–LMX–subordinate POS chain: Moderation by reciprocation wariness and supervisor's organizational embodiment

We present three studies providing an increased understanding of the interdependence between perceived organizational support (POS) and leader–member exchange (LMX). Using employees from a social service agency and new hires from a variety of organizations, we report evidence for a relational chain leading from supervisors' perceptions of support by the organization (supervisor POS) to the formation of high‐quality LMX relationships with their subordinates (first link), who interpret high‐quality LMX as support from the organization (subordinate POS, second link) and, ultimately, repay the organization with increased dedication and effort (examined here in terms of reduced withdrawal behavior). The relationship between supervisor POS and LMX with subordinates was strongly moderated by supervisor fear of exploitation in exchange relationships (reciprocation wariness), holding only for supervisors with low reciprocation wariness. Consistent with the view that employees perceive the organization as partly responsible for treatment received from supervisors, LMX was found to be more strongly related to POS when employees highly identified their supervisors with the organization (supervisor's organizational embodiment), and this interaction extended to reduced withdrawal behavior. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Does participative leadership enhance work performance by inducing empowerment or trust? The differential effects on managerial and non‐managerial subordinates

We examined whether participative leadership behavior is associated with improved work performance through a motivational process or an exchange‐based process. Based on data collected from 527 employees from a Fortune 500 company, we found that the link between superiors' participative leadership behaviors and subordinates' task performance and organizational citizenship behavior toward organizations (OCBO) was mediated by psychological empowerment (motivational mediator) for managerial subordinates. Yet, for non‐managerial subordinates such as supporting and front‐line employees, the impact of participative leadership on task performance and OCBO was mediated by trust‐in‐supervisor (exchange‐based mediator). Implications for theories and practices are discussed. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Explaining task performance and creativity from perceived organizational support theory: Which mechanisms are more important?

Perceived organizational support (POS) theory specifies three mechanisms—felt obligation, group identification, and outcome expectancy—to explain the effects of organizational support on employee work outcomes. These mechanisms have usually been examined in isolation so that it is not possible to assess their relative explanatory power. The present study aims to remedy this problem by examining the three mechanisms simultaneously using structural equation modeling. On the basis of a sample of 206 bank employees in China, we focus on two types of employee performance—task performance and creativity—as dependent variables. Drawing on self‐determination theory and characteristics of the research context, we propose that task performance is more strongly predicted by felt obligation than by the other two mechanisms, whereas identification and expectancy more strongly predict creativity than felt obligation. We conclude by discussing our contribution to POS and creativity research, and highlight some important implications of our findings. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The influence of subordinate age on managerial actions: An attributional analysis

The present research examined the effects of employee age on managers attributions and actions toward subordinates. The major prediction was that managers attributions would mediate the effects of age on managerial actions. One-hundred and twenty-four undergraduate management students participated in a laboratory experiment in which subordinate age (30 versus 60 years) and performance (high versus low) were manipulated. A laboratory study was conducted so that subordinate credentials and performance levels could be controlled. Analyses indicated that poor performance by older subordinates was attributed more to stable factors than similar performance by younger subordinates. In addition, job simplification was rated as more appropriate and training was recommended as less appropriate for older subordinates. A series of hierarchical regression analyses indicated that the differences in managerial actions were a function of subjects' attributional patterns. Implications of the findings for practice and future research are discussed.     

Attributional conflict between managers and subordinates: An investigation of leader-member exchange effects

The present study investigated the discrepancies, or conflict, between the attributions of leaders and members as a function of LMX quality and explored the relation between attributional conflict and subordinate job satisfaction, perceptions of equity, and turnover intentions. Data for the study were provided by 141 supervisor-subordinate dyads from the managerial ranks of a large manufacturing organization. Both parties of the dyad made attributions for subordinate loyalty, affect, and contributions, member behaviors identified as critical in previous LMX research. Limited support emerged for the hypothesis that attributional conflict would be greater in dyads where subordinates reported lower rather than higher LMX quality. Findings suggested that attributional discrepencies are due, in part, to the tendency of leaders to make more favorable attributions for subordinates reporting higher LMX quality than for subordinates reporting lower LMX quality. Results also revealed that, while attributional conflict was negatively related to subordinate satisfaction and perceptions of equity and positively related to turnover intentions, attributional conflict did not predict subordinate work outcomes when the effects of LMX quality were controlled. Implications of these findings were discussed.     

What does team–member exchange bring to the party? A meta‐analytic review of team and leader social exchange

Both leader–member exchange (LMX) and team–member exchange (TMX) measure the quality of reciprocal exchange among employees in the workplace. Although LMX focuses on supervisor–subordinate relationships while TMX examines the relationships among team members, both have theory‐based and empirically proven relations with workplace outcomes such as job performance, organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and turnover intentions. However, it is not yet known which has more of an impact on such workplace outcomes—specifically, it is not clear if an employee's time is best spent developing vertical relationships among supervisors and subordinates (LMX) or on the horizontal relationships among team members (TMX). Accordingly, this meta‐analysis explores the incremental validity and relative importance of these two social exchange‐based constructs. The theoretical logic underlying LMX and TMX is clarified, and the parameter estimates between LMX, TMX, and work outcomes are reported. Results demonstrate that TMX shows incremental validity above and beyond LMX for some outcomes (organizational commitment and job satisfaction), but not others (job performance and turnover intentions). Also, LMX shows greater relative importance across all four outcomes. In sum, the clarification of the theoretical and empirical landscape lays a foundation for recommendations for future research. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Gender in the boss–subordinate relationship: a Nigerian study

The present study examines the interaction effect of gender of both subordinates and supervisors on subordinates' perception of differentiation of boss–subordinate relationship in an African setting. Data was collected from a total of 60 boss–subordinate dyads in four‐sex combinations obtained through a survey of a large five‐star hotel in Abuja, Nigeria. Results revealed that subordinates in opposite‐sex dyads perceived better quality of exchange than those in same‐sex dyads. The strongest quality of exchange was perceived in male boss–female subordinate dyad, while the weakest was perceived in female boss–female subordinate dyad. This emphasizes the importance of gender in the differentiation of boss–subordinate relationships in an African setting. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Leader–member exchange and job performance: The effects of taking charge and organizational tenure

We theorized and tested the mechanisms by which leader–member exchange (LMX) quality is associated with job performance. The results obtained using 212 employee–supervisor pairs from eight Chinese companies indicated that LMX quality had an indirect and positive relationship with taking charge via psychological empowerment and had an indirect and positive relationship with job performance via taking charge. In addition, organizational tenure significantly moderated the relationship between taking charge and job performance, such that the positive effect of taking charge on job performance became weaker as organizational tenure increased. Furthermore, organizational tenure significantly moderated the indirect positive relationship between LMX quality and job performance via taking charge; the indirect effect became weaker as organizational tenure increased. These results suggest that organizations should encourage managers to develop high‐quality LMX with their subordinates, which may make them feel more empowered and engage in more taking charge, and result in better job performance. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Not seeing eye to eye: differences in supervisor and subordinate perceptions of and attributions for psychological contract breach

This study examines supervisor and subordinate perceptions of and attributions for psychological contract breach. The data suggest that supervisor and subordinate perceptions are most likely to differ on the extent to which the organization violated its obligations to provide fair pay, advancement opportunities, and a good employment relationship. In addition, the results indicate that the greater the degree of psychological contract breach reported by subordinates, the less committed they are to the organization and the lower their job performance (as rated by their supervisor). Moreover, when psychological contract breach is perceived, supervisors' and subordinates' attributions regarding the reasons for the breach are likely to differ. Specifically, the findings suggest that subordinates are more likely to attribute breach to the organization's intentional disregard for the commitments that it had made to the employee, while supervisors are more inclined to attribute breach to situations beyond the organization's direct control. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The politics of leadership: The relationship between task-people leadership and subordinate influence

The purpose of the present research was to investigate the political nature of leadership by examining the association of the task-people leadership approach with strategies used by subordinates to influence their superiors. Forty-eight faculty members (31 males and 17 females) from a school of higher education completed the T-P Leadership Questionnaire and Profile of Organizational Influence Strategies. Reponses were analyzed using Pearson product-moment correlations. The results indicated that as perceived task-centered leadership increased, employees reported a significantly greater use of bargaining, assertiveness, higher authority, and coalition as strategies to influence their superiors. The relationships were observed only during second influence attempts. Further, it was observed that as the perceived level of people-centered leadership behavior rose, subordinates reported a significantly decreased use of bargaining and higher authority as influence strategies during first influence attempts. The findings are discussed in terms of the reciprocal and political character of managerial- subordinate relationships.     

Leader‐member exchange,differentiation, and task interdependence: implications for individual and group performance

We investigated the effects of leader‐member exchange (LMX) differentiation on individual and group performance with a sample of 120 work groups consisting of 834 employees who represented six different organizations. LMX differentiation was defined as the degree of variability in the quality of LMX relationships formed within work groups. Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) results did not indicate support for a main effect of LMX differentiation on individual performance. Rather, the results demonstrated that LMX moderated the relation between LMX differentiation and individual performance, such that increases in LMX differentiation were accompanied by increases in individual performance for low LMX members, but no change in individual performance for high LMX members. At the group level, there was not a main effect for LMX differentiation on group performance. However, the hierarchical regression results revealed that the relation between LMX differentiation and group performance was moderated by task interdependence, such that for groups high in task interdependence, the greater the differentiation among group members, the higher the performance of the group. Conversely, for groups with relatively lower levels of task interdependence, differentiation among subordinates was not related to group performance. Finally, LMX differentiation was positively related to group performance in groups with a low LMX median, but was not related to performance in groups with a high LMX median. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

When leaders are forced to stay: The indirect effects of leaders' reluctant staying on subordinates' performance

Leaders who desire to leave the current organization are sometimes forced to stay. The leadership behaviors of these leaders are underexplored in the current literature. Building on proximal withdrawal states theory, this study examines two pathways through which leaders' reluctant staying mindset (i.e., desire but are unable to quit) relates to their subordinates' task performance and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). One pathway proposes increased laissez-faire leadership behaviors due to leaders' lower intrinsic motivation; the second pathway proposes increased delegation behaviors due to leaders' higher extrinsic motivation. Using three-wave data collected from 100 leaders and 313 subordinates, we found that leaders' reluctant staying was indirectly and negatively associated with subordinates' task performance and OCB through leaders' lower perceptions of task significance and higher laissez-faire leadership behaviors. At the same time, leaders' reluctant staying increased their bottom-line mentality and delegation behaviors, but the indirect effects on subordinates' performance outcomes were not significant. We discuss the implications of our findings for theory, practices, and future research regarding how to manage leaders who stay reluctantly in the organization.     

The Janus face of paternalistic leaders: Authoritarianism,benevolence, subordinates' organization‐based self‐esteem,and performance

We investigated how the two components of paternalistic leadership, namely authoritarianism and benevolence, jointly influenced work performance through their impacts on organization‐based self‐esteem (OBSE). Using a sample of 686 supervisor–subordinate dyads collected from a manufacturing firm in the People's Republic of China, we found that OBSE mediated the negative relationship between authoritarian leadership on one hand and subordinate task performance and organizational citizenship behavior toward the organization (OCBO) on the other. We also found that the negative effect of authoritarian leadership on subordinate OBSE, task performance, and OCBO was weaker when supervisors exhibited higher levels of leader benevolence. Also, OBSE mediated the joint effect of authoritarian leadership and benevolent leadership on subordinate task performance and OCBO. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

R&D professionals' views of criteria for intrafirm job mobility: Individual and aggregate analyses of transfer climate perceptions in West German and British Industrial R&D Organizations

Prior research on employees' views of various criteria for obtaining a desirable intrafirm transfer has conceptualized these perceptions on an individual level of analysis (i.e. has examined psychological transfer climates). It is argued that the identification of aggregate transfer climate dimensions on an organizational (subsystem) level of analysis is important for improving the effectiveness of R&D via better transfer policies. Factor analyses of questionnaire data obtained from 729 R&D professionals in 11 FRG industrial firms and 141 R&D professionals in three U.K. industrial firms revealed that both FRG and U.K. subjects perceived three broad means (overall task performance, publication and patent productivity, favouritism) for obtaining a desirable job transfer. Empirically the idea was supported that, for certain transfer criteria (overall task performance, manifest professional output, educational level, luck), individuals' scores can be meaningfully aggregated to obtain organizational transfer climate measures. Remarkable differences in the importance of company tenure and educational level as criteria for transfers in R&D were found between FRG and U.K. organizations. Using the FRG data set differences in the performance responsiveness of organizational transfer climates were shown to be significantly related to work-related outcome variables. Implications are sketched for R&D transfer policies and for explaining U.K./FRG differences in the corporate treatment of R&D activities.