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.     

When does benevolent leadership lead to creativity? The moderating role of creative role identity and job autonomy

The present study identified creative role identity and job autonomy as two moderators that influence the relationship between benevolent leadership, a leadership style that prevails in paternalistic contexts, and creativity. Using 167 dyads of supervisor and subordinate as a sample, we found that both creative role identity and job autonomy have significant moderating effects: When each moderator is high, the positive relationship between benevolent leadership and creativity is stronger; when each moderator is low, this relationship is weaker. Our results suggest that the effect of benevolent leadership upon creativity is dependent on the coexistence of important individual and contextual factors. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Leader–member exchange: Moderating the health and safety outcomes of job insecurity

IntroductionJob insecurity has been repeatedly linked with poor employee health and safety outcomes. Although research on high quality leader–member exchange (LMX) has demonstrated many beneficial effects, no research to date has examined the extent to which positive LMX might attenuate those adverse health and safety-related consequences of job insecurity. The current study extends research in this area by specifically examining the buffering impact of LMX on the relationship between job insecurity and safety knowledge, reported accidents, and physical health conditions. Furthermore, the study also examines whether positive LMX mitigates the typically seen negative impact of job insecurity on supervisor satisfaction.MethodsThe hypotheses were tested using survey data collected from 212 employees of a mine located in southwestern United States.ResultsAs predicted, job insecurity was related to lower levels of supervisor satisfaction, more health ailments, and more workplace accidents, and was marginally related to lower levels of safety knowledge. Results indicated that LMX significantly attenuated these observed relationships.ConclusionsThe quality of the dyadic relationship between supervisor and subordinate has a significant impact on the extent to which job insecurity is associated with adverse health and safety outcomes.Practical applicationsPractical implications for supervisor behavior and developing high quality LMX are discussed in light of today's pervasive job insecurity.     

The impact of subordinate–supervisor similarity in growth‐need strength on work outcomes: the mediating role of perceived similarity

Based on data collected from 205 vertical dyads, we found that subordinate–supervisor similarity in their self‐reported growth‐need strength (GNS) had a positive effect on subordinate‐perceived and supervisor‐perceived global similarity. The findings also suggested that subordinate‐perceived global similarity mediates the link between similarity in GNS and subordinate's trust in and loyalty to supervisor; whereas supervisor‐perceived global similarity mediates the link between similarity in GNS and supervisor‐rated in‐role/extra‐role performances. In addition, we found that subordinate–supervisor similarity in self‐reported GNS and perceived global similarity had independent effects on work outcomes for both subordinates and supervisors. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A laboratory experiment testing the antecedents of leader cognitions

A laboratory experiment was conducted to test relationships between leadership style, feedback on subordinate performance within the context of either the vision or goals of the organization, and leader cognitions representing a modified version of Wofford and Goodwin's (1994) cognitive processing model of leadership. The results indicated that: (1) positive feedback leads to the access of transformational cognitions, whereas negative feedback leads to the access of transactional cognitions; (2) negative feedback about subordinate performance causes transformational leaders to access transactional cognitions in response to subordinates; (3) the relationship between transformational leadership behavior and transformational cognitions is strengthened when feedback received about subordinates is vision‐related compared to feedback that is goal‐related; and (4) the relationship between transactional leadership behavior and transactional cognitions is strengthened when feedback received is goal‐related compared to feedback that is vision‐related. Limitations and future research directions are discussed. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Factors affecting supervisors' use of disciplinary actions following poor performance

The present study, as an extension of Mitchell and Woods (1980), examined the relationships between supervisor and subordinate variables and disciplinary action severity in a field setting. Hypotheses were tested using questionnaire data from nursing supervisors. Analyses confirmed that supervisor attributions, severity of the incident of poor performance, supervisor intent, and subordinate work history were related to disciplinary action severity. Moreover, regression analysis indicated that severity of the incident of poor performance was the largest contributor to the choices of a disciplinary action. Implications of the study for organizations and future research are discussed.     

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.     

The effects of leadership dimensions,safety climate,and assigned priorities on minor injuries in work groups

This study is based on three premises: (a) Leadership style affects the level of concern for subordinate safety; (b) Concern for safety, operationalized with supervisory practices, provides the source for safety climate perceptions; and (c) Safety priority as assigned by higher superiors influences supervisory safety practice independently of leadership style. Assigned safety priority was expected to moderate the relationship between leadership style and injury rate in organizational subunits, with safety climate mediating this leadership–injury relationship due to its demonstrable effect on safety behavior. A within‐group split‐sample analysis of 42 work groups, coupled with prospective design, indicated that transformational and constructive leadership predicted injury rate, while corrective leadership provided indirect, conditional prediction. Leadership effects were moderated by assigned safety priorities and mediated by commensurate safety‐climate variables. The results suggest that transformational and transactional leadership provide complementary modes of (mediated and moderated) influence on safety behavior of group members. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Supervisor monitoring and subordinate innovation

This study introduces a new and parsimonious classification of supervisor monitoring (observational monitoring and interactional monitoring) and examines the effects of these two monitoring styles on subordinate innovation. Guided by social exchange theory, we propose that the two monitoring styles influence subordinate job attitudes (trust and distrust in their supervisor), relationship quality (leader–member exchange), and work behaviors (feedback‐seeking behaviors), which, in turn, affect their innovation. The pilot study developed the scales for the two monitoring styles and tested their content validity among 189 undergraduate students. Using a sample of 385 subordinates, Study 1 assessed the construct validity of the two monitoring styles. In Study 2, the results of a survey of 388 supervisor–subordinate dyads show support for the proposed theoretical model. Specifically, observational monitoring and interactional monitoring were related to subordinates' trust and distrust in their supervisor. Trust and distrust in the supervisor, in turn, were related to the quality of the leader–member exchange, feedback‐seeking behaviors, and ultimately, supervisor‐rated innovation. These findings suggest that supervisors' monitoring styles have both positive and negative effects on their subordinates' innovation, which depends on the type of monitoring supervisors engage in. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The moderating effects of political skill on the perceived politics–outcome relationships

Previous research has established that perceptions of organizational politics are associated with negative organizational outcomes. However, this may not hold true for all individuals. We offer subordinate and supervisor political skill, the ability to understand interactions at work and to use that understanding to effectively influence others, as possible moderators. Specifically, this study investigates the impact of both employees' self‐rated political skill and their managers' political skill on job satisfaction, job performance, and manager‐rated commitment. We examined these relationships in an organizational sample of 106 matched dyadic pairs and found mixed support for the joint moderating effect of self and manager political skill on the politics perceptions‐outcome relationships. Strengths, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Can self‐sacrificial leadership promote subordinate taking charge? The mediating role of organizational identification and the moderating role of risk aversion

The extant literature on the relationship between self‐sacrificial leadership and subordinate behavioral outcomes has primarily focused on the influence of this leadership on subordinate affiliative behaviors. Our research proposed a theoretical model explaining why and when self‐sacrificial leadership might promote taking charge, an exemplar of challenging behaviors. We tested this model across two studies conducted in China. In addition, we also examined the differences in the boundary conditions for self‐sacrificial leadership to influence taking charge and affiliative behaviors (cooperation in Study 1 and helping in Study 2 ). Our results revealed that (i) self‐sacrificial leadership was positively related to subordinate taking charge, with organizational identification acting as a mediator for this relationship, and (ii) risk aversion moderated both the self‐sacrificial leadership–subordinate taking charge relationship and the mediating effect of organizational identification, such that the relationship and its mediating mechanism were weaker for subordinates high rather than low in risk aversion. These moderating effects, however, could not generalize to cooperation and helping. Finally, the theoretical and practical implications of our results and directions for future research were discussed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bridge building within the province of proactivity

The research questions posed in this study highlight the importance of valuing proactivity in both prompting an individual to engage in proactive behavior and encouraging the expression of that behavior. We integrate a variety of constructs from the proactivity literature to gain a deeper understanding of proactive behavior as it relates to proactive motivation and supervisory performance evaluations. First, we draw upon self‐determination theory, expectancy–value theory, and the recent integration of the proactive motivation literature to hypothesize that proactive behavior is predicted by the interaction of “can do” and “reason to” proactive motivational states. Second, on the basis of performance theory, we hypothesize that the relationship between proactive behavior and performance depends upon the extent to which the supervisor values proactivity. Specifically, we argue that supervisors with proactive personalities are more likely to value and reward subordinate proactive behavior than passive supervisors. Results provide support for both of our hypotheses. Interestingly, results show that proactive behavior did not result in negative consequences but rather that there was a cost (i.e., lower performance rating) for not taking charge for employees with proactive supervisors. Copyright © 2012 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.     

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.     

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.     

The consequences of (not) seeing eye-to-eye about the past: The role of supervisor–team fit in past temporal focus for supervisors' leadership behavior

This study seeks to advance our understanding of the leadership consequences that may ensue when supervisors and their teams have similar versus differing orientations toward the past. Integrating a leader–team fit perspective with functional leadership theory, we cast incongruence between supervisor and team past temporal focus as a key antecedent of supervisors' active (i.e., task-oriented and relationship-oriented) and passive (i.e., laissez-faire) leadership behaviors toward the team. We tested our hypotheses in a team-level study that included a field sample of 84 supervisors and their teams using polynomial regression and response surface analyses. Results illustrated that supervisors demonstrated more task-oriented and relationship-oriented leadership when supervisors' and their team's past temporal focus were incongruent rather than aligned. Furthermore, in situations of supervisor–team congruence, supervisors engaged in less task-oriented and relationship-oriented leadership and more laissez-faire leadership with higher (rather than lower) levels of supervisor and team past temporal focus. In sum, these findings support a complex (mis)fit model such that supervisors' attention to the past may hinder their productive leadership behaviors in some team contexts but not in others. Hence, this research advances a novel, multiple-stakeholder perspective on the role of both supervisors' and their team's past temporal focus for important leadership behaviors.     

What happens when you trust your supervisor? Mediators of individual performance in trust relationships

To understand how trust in supervisor translates into individual job performance, we hypothesize that trust in supervisor facilitates positive psychological conditions of meaningfulness, safety, and availability, which in turn predict individual job performance. We assert that each of the three mediating paths in our model represents a distinct mechanism by which trust in supervisor contributes to individual job performance. We test our hypotheses with 206 supervisor–subordinate dyads and find that trust in supervisor contributes to job performance through psychological availability and psychological safety but not psychological meaningfulness. By examining three different psychological mechanisms within the same frame, we provide a test that compares and contrasts the uniqueness of the three pathways. Our findings suggest practical ways for managers to build trust with subordinates and guidance for the design of productive work conditions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Leader–member social exchange (LMSX): development and validation of a scale

In the last 10 years, research devoted to the construct of leader–member exchange (LMX) has increasingly relied on the tenets of social exchange as a theoretical foundation to propose and test relationships between supervisor‐subordinate dyads and variables of significant consequence. Despite the theory underpinning such relationships, researchers continue to measure LMX with scales developed to assess vertical dyad linkage (VDL), not social exchange. To address this concern, we investigated the content validity of LMX7 (the most widely cited measure of LMX) and LMX‐MDM (a popular multidimensional measure of LMX). Findings from content validity assessments by 25 LMX experts revealed LMX7 and LMX‐MDM items are not representative of the construct of social exchange. As such, we undertook a series of studies to develop a new scale we label, leader–member social exchange (LMSX). Results indicate LMSX is able to assess different, as well as the same, components of the supervisor–subordinate relationship as previous scales while being more theoretically consistent with the notion of social exchange. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Facilitating and inhibiting effects of job control and social support on stress outcomes and role behavior: a contingency model

High levels of job control and social support are often related to effective job performance and coping with work stressors. However, support may have more positive effects on role behavior when job control is low. In addition, despite theoretical expectations, simple demands–control and demands–support interactions are infrequently found to predict health and psychological strain outcomes. The ‘demands–control–support’ model (Johnson and Hall, 1988) of stress coping integrates these ‘stress buffering’ and ‘decision latitude’ models and observes more consistent findings. This model posits that social support buffers the adverse effects of high demand, low control jobs. However, explicit tests of the interaction of these variables suggest that control can have positive or negative effects on strain, depending on the level of social support. In this study, supervisor consideration was positively related to subordinate job performance, extra-role behavior, and in-role prosocial behavior (conscientiousness) among subordinates perceiving low job control. The relationship between consideration and performance and extra-role behavior was negative among high control subordinates. The demands×control×support interaction predicted health symptoms, organizational commitment, supervisor satisfaction, and absence due to illness, but the interaction plots do not support the prevailing perspective that support buffers the effects of ‘high strain’ (i.e. low control, high demand) jobs. Patterns were similar for different demands and different social support loci (i.e. supervisor, co-workers). An alternative theoretical process of the demands–control–support interaction is proffered, and implications for organizational intervention are discussed. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Episodes of incivility between subordinates and supervisors: examining the role of self‐control and time with an interaction‐record diary study

Scholars have hypothesized that experiencing incivility not only negatively affects well‐being, but may even trigger further antisocial behavior. Previous research, however, has focused mainly on the relation between incivility and well‐being. Thus, little is known about the behavioral consequences of incivility. With this in mind, we conducted an interaction‐record diary study to examine whether supervisor incivility causes retaliatory incivility against the supervisor. Using the self‐control strength model as a framework, we further examined whether the target's trait (trait self‐control) and state (exhaustion) self‐regulatory capacities moderate this effect. In addition, we examined the role of time by testing the duration of the effect. When we analyzed the full data set, we found no support for our hypotheses. However, using a subset of the data in which the subsequent interaction happened on the same day as the prior interaction, our results showed that experiencing incivility predicted incivility in the subsequent interaction, but only when the time lag between the two interactions was short. Furthermore, in line with the assumption that self‐regulatory capacities are required to restrain a target from retaliatory responses, the effect was stronger when individuals were exhausted. In contrast to our assumption, trait self‐control had no effect on instigated incivility. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.