The Nature of Satisfaction With Subordinates: Its Predictors and Importance to Supervisors

Two studies examined supervisors' satisfaction with subordinates, and its predictors and importance to supervisors. Study 1 found entity relationships in the form of similarity between supervisors' and subordinates' values were uniquely related to satisfaction with subordinates. Liking of subordinates (from LMX theory) appears to link leadership and job-satisfaction domains. In Study 2, entity relationships, functional relationships, and job performance of subordinates were related to supervisors' satisfaction with subordinates. Functional relationships were the strongest and job performance the next strongest predictors. Performance was related moderately to similarity of supervisors' and subordinates' values and functional relationships. Satisfaction with subordinates was not related to supervisors' global satisfaction and turnover intention in either study, suggesting that subordinates may not be very important to supervisors.     

Support from the top: supervisors' perceived organizational support as a moderator of leader-member exchange to satisfaction and performance relationships

The authors hypothesized that supervisors' perceived organizational support (POS) would moderate the relationships between leader-member exchange (LMX), job satisfaction, and job performance. On the basis of social exchange theory, supervisors' exchanges with the organization and subordinates should be interconnected. The authors expected that supervisors with high POS would have more resources to exchange with subordinates. Thus, supervisor POS should enhance the relationships between LMX and job satisfaction and LMX and job performance for subordinates. Hierarchical linear modeling analysis provided support for the hypotheses in a sample of 210 subordinates and 38 supervisors of a grocery store chain. The positive relationship between LMX and job satisfaction was stronger when supervisors had high POS. Moreover, LMX was related to performance only when supervisors had high POS.     

Supervisor Narcissism and Employee Performance: A Moderated Mediation Model of Affective Organizational Commitment and Power Distance Orientation

Abstract

Drawing upon social exchange theory, this research investigates how and when supervisor narcissism influences subordinates’ performance. Study 1 uses a two-wave survey and reveals that supervisor narcissism is negatively related to subordinates’ in-role performance. Subordinates’ affective organizational commitment mediates the relationship between supervisor narcissism and subordinates’ in-role performance. Moreover, the mediating effect is moderated by subordinates’ power distance orientation such that the mediation is weaker when power distance orientation is higher. Study 2 utilizes experimental research to replicate and extend the findings of Study 1. It shows that supervisor narcissism also negatively influences subordinates’ extra-role performance. Subordinates’ affective organizational commitment also mediates the relationship between supervisor narcissism and extra-role performance. Moreover, power distance orientation also moderates the mediating effect.     

COORIENTATION ON COMMUNICATION RULES IN MANAGERIAL DYADS

This field study compared the effects of three dimensions of supervisor-subordinate coorientation regarding two communication rules (initiation and termination) on satisfaction with supervision and performance evaluations. For supervisors accuracy and perceived agreement on rules had positive effects on performance ratings of subordinates, even after controlling for frequency of contact. For subordinates, only perceived agreement on rules had an impact on satisfaction with supervision. For both supervisors and subordinates agreement on communication rules was not a significant predictor of evaluations.     

Gender Differences in Supervisors’ Use of Performance Feedback1

This study examined whether male and female supervisors differed in their delivery of performance feedback to subordinates. Male and female subjects supervised 2 confederate subordinates whose performance was stable and either above or below average. Supervisors regularly checked each subordinate's performance and could deliver one of several feedback messages. A MANOVA was performed on frequency of specific negative, general negative, specific positive, general positive, and neutral feedback messages, followed by step down analyses to isolate which dependent variables contributed uniquely. Male and female supervisors were distinguished by their use of specific negative feedback. Males were more likely to provide such messages to poorly performing subordinates, a result consistent with suggestions that males are characterized by a more directive leadership style.     

REMOTE CONTROL: PREDICTORS OF ELECTRONIC MONITORING INTENSITY AND SECRECY

Electronic monitoring research has focused predominantly on the reactions of monitored employees and less attention has been paid to the processes that trigger managers' decisions to electronically monitor subordinates. Employing a distributed virtual team simulation, this study examined the effects of dependence, future performance expectations, and propensity to trust on team leaders' decisions to electronically monitor their subordinates. Results indicate that team leaders electronically monitor subordinates more intensely when dependence on subordinates is high or future performance expectations are low. Moreover, team leaders are more likely to monitor in secret when dependence is high or propensity to trust is low. Although team leaders increased their level of electronic monitoring over time, this tendency was stronger when the leader had consistently low performance expectations.     

Employee reactions to supervision and work evaluation as a function of subordinate and manager sex

The influence of sex of manager and sex of subordinate on subordinates' reactions to supervision and work evaluation was examined. Attitude data from 463 office employees were analyzed within an ANOVA framework. There were 296 female subordinates and 35 male subordinates working under women managers and 111 female subordinates and 21 males subordinates working under men managers. The hypothesized interaction effect for sex of manager and sex of subordinate on reactions to supervision and work evaluation was supported in only one of four tests. Male subordinates working for male managers were least likely to understand how their performance was evaluated. There were no significant results when subordinate ratings of general supervision, performance ratings, and manager favoritism were used as dependent variables. The results are discussed in terms of sex-role stereotypes and actual job behaviors of men and women managers.     

An assessment of manager/subordinate perceptions of performance appraisal effectiveness

This study postulates that performance appraisal will be effective to the extent that managers and subordinates have a shared perception of its purpose and function and the degree to which it meets the needs of both groups. A two part research project was conducted to: 1) identify manager/subordinate perceptions of the purposes served by the formal performance appraisal process; 2) determine the extent to which these purposes are being satisfied in organizational practice; and 3) assess if managers and subordinates have a shared perception of the effectiveness of the appraisal process. The sample for the study included 36 managers and 143 subordinates from a division of a large Midwest service organization. The results were mixed with regard to the appraisal system effectively accomplishing its diverse goals. However, in general, there was support for the notion that both managers and subordinates find the appraisal process to be a worthwhile organizational practice. Approximately 70% of the respondents indicated that they would participate in the appraisal program whether they were required to do so or not.     

Career transitions of superiors and subordinates

The career transitions of supervisors were examined to determine the impact of their transitions on the behaviors and attitudes of subordinates who had made recent career transitions. A sample of 124 managers and subordinates participated in the field survey. The data generally supported the major proposition that the magnitude of both a supervisor's and subordinate's career transition interacted to affect a subordinate's commitment to the company, job satisfactions, and perceptions of the work environment. The magnitude of a supervisor's career transition was related to the performance evaluation of subordinates.     

Does whom you work with matter? Effects of referent group gender and age composition on managers' compensation

Much research has examined gender and age effects on compensation, concluding that a wage gap exists favoring men and negative stereotypes against older workers persist. Although the effect of an employee's gender or age has been widely studied, little work has examined the impact of the demographic characteristics of a focal employee's immediate referent groups (e.g., subordinates, peers, or supervisors) on pay. The effect of the gender and age composition of a focal manager's subordinates, peers, and supervisor on the manager's compensation levels was investigated in a sample of 2,178 managers across a wide range of organizations and functional areas. After controlling for a number of human capital variables, results indicated that not only does a wage gap favoring men exist, but also managerial pay is lower when managers' referent groups are largely female, when subordinates are outside the prime age group, and when peers and supervisors are younger.     

Cognition- and Affect-Based Trust and Feedback-Seeking Behavior: The Roles of Value,Cost, and Goal Orientations

We examined how subordinates’ cognition- and affect-based trust in supervisors influences their feedback-seeking behavior (FSB) by considering the different cost/value perception of FSB and goal orientation (i.e., learning and performance goal orientations). Using data from 194 supervisor-subordinate dyads in South Korea, we conducted multiple regression analyses to test our hypotheses. The results showed that, whereas subordinates’ cognition-based trust in supervisors positively influenced their FSB through increasing the perceived value of feedback received from supervisors, their affect-based trust in supervisors positively influenced their FSB through decreasing the perceived value of FSB. Additionally, we found that, when subordinates had high levels of learning goal orientation, the increasing influence of cognition-based trust on the value of feedback was stronger; in contrast, when subordinates had low levels of performance goal orientation, the decreasing influence of affect-based trust on the cost of FSB was stronger. The theoretical and practical implications, limitations, and suggestions for future research were discussed.     

Is Transformational Leadership Always Perceived as Effective? Male Subordinates' Devaluation of Female Transformational Leaders1

This study investigated the impact of the gender composition of the leader–subordinate dyad on the relationship between leaders' transformational leadership behavior and their subordinates' ratings of the leaders' effectiveness. There were 109 dyads of leaders (58 male, 51 female) paired with a subordinate who was either the same or a different gender from themselves. The relationship between a leader's self‐report on transformational leadership and their subordinates' evaluation of their performance was significantly less positive for female leaders with male subordinates than for female leaders with female subordinates. The male and female subordinates of male leaders rated their performance as equally effective, regardless of their levels of transformational leadership.     

工作绩效的结构及其与胜任特征的关系

本研究旨在验证党政领导干部对下级工作绩效评定的结构,并探讨其与胜任特征之间的关系。两个省市的450名党政领导干部完成了对自己下级的工作绩效和胜任特征的评定。结果表明,评定下级干部工作绩效的两因素结构,即任务指向和个人素质,得到了验证;分别以工作绩效的两个二阶因素为因变量,以胜任特征的七个维度为预测变量进行逐步回归分析,胜任特征可以解释工作绩效的“才”和“德”成分54．5％和55．3％的变异。胜任特征和工作绩效中“德”和“才”的成分之间存在复杂的关系,既可以相互促进,也可以交互抑制。文中还对这一结果的含义及本土化研究的意义进行了深入讨论。     

Leaders’ receptivity to subordinates’ creative input: The role of achievement goals and composition of creative input

We identified leaders’ achievement goals and composition of creative input as important factors that can clarify when and why leaders are receptive to, and supportive of, subordinates’ creative input. As hypothesized, in two experimental studies, we found that relative to mastery goal leaders, performance goal leaders were less receptive to subordinates’ voiced creative input. In Study 1, we further showed that image threat appraisal and learning opportunity appraisal mediated this effect. In Study 2, we demonstrated that when merely creative ideas were expressed by the subordinate, performance goal leaders responded like mastery goal leaders. However, as in Study 1, performance goal leaders were less receptive to, and less supportive of, subordinates’ creative input than mastery goal leaders when the composition of subordinates’ creative input included both problem identifications and creative ideas.     

组织中上下级的双向信任：影响及机制

研究采取双向信任的视角,同时考虑组织中员工感知到的来自上级的信任(即,被信任感)和员工对上级信任对员工心理和行为的影响及机制。以737名企业员工为被试、运用问卷调查法、采用结构方程模型分析数据,结果显示：下级的被信任感与对上级的信任正相关;下级对上级的信任对下级工作绩效的影响主要通过心理安全的完全中介作用实现;而下级的被信任感分别通过感激和心理授权的完全中介作用影响下级工作绩效和满意度。     

When Accomplishments Come Back to Haunt You: The Negative Effect of Competence Signals on Women's Performance Evaluations

This research explores the possibility that the very accomplishments that are critical to success during the hiring process (e.g., educational attainment, promotion history) can lead to a drop in future performance evaluations for women. We theorized that evaluators may see such competence signals as a threat to the traditional gender hierarchy, which leads to a negative bias when evaluating women's on‐the‐job performance. In Study 1, we examined this hypothesis among commanding officers in the U.S. military, who gave lower performance ratings to female subordinates whose pay grade approached their own. The same was not true for male subordinates. Studies 2, 3a, and 3b experimentally tested the boundary conditions of this effect using two additional competence signals (educational attainment and past career successes) and 2 different populations. Across these studies, we replicated the negative relationship between competence signal strength and performance evaluations for female subordinates but only under conditions in which the evaluator would be particularly likely to experience gender hierarchy threat. Specifically, it emerged when the evaluator was male and high social‐dominance oriented and when the female subordinate's objective on‐the‐job performance was high. Finally, Study 3a demonstrated how organizations can mitigate this negative bias by using objective (rather than subjective) performance evaluations.     

THE ROLE OF UPWARD INFLUENCE TACTICS IN HUMAN RESOURCE DECISIONS

A model was examined which proposes that employee influence tactics impact human resource decisions by affecting managers' perceptions of the subordinate's interpersonal skills, manager liking of subordinates, and managers' perceptions of similarity to subordinates. The human resource decisions investigated were performance ratings, promotability assessments, and salary. Data were collected from 247 subordinates and their managers and from company records. Structural equation modeling results indicated that influence tactics were related to managers' perceptions of subordinates' interpersonal skills, liking, and perceptions of similarity to subordinates. Specifically, subordinates' use of reasoning, assertiveness, and favor rendering were positively related to managers' perceptions whereas bargaining and self-promotion were negatively related to these perceptions. Finally, there was no support for direct relationships between influence tactics and HR decisions.     

A Meta-Analysis of Incremental Validity and Nomological Networks for Subordinate and Peer Rating

Use of subordinates and peers for job performance ratings has increased markedly in recent years, on the assumption that these sources cover different parts of the criterion space and provide incremental validity over and above supervisors. This study directly tested this assumption using a meta-analytically derived correlation matrix including supervisor-, subordinate-, and peer-ratings as well as objective performance measures. Hierarchical regression results showed that both subordinates and peers accounted for significant variance in objective measures, over and above other sources. Further meta-analyses investigated nomological networks of subordinate and peer ratings, specifically relations with personality and ability measures. Ability correlations for peers and especially subordinates were lower than those previously found for supervisors. Correlations for personality dimensions affiliation and agreeableness, although low, were somewhat higher than previous supervisor values. Results provide justification for the added expense of including subordinates and peers in a rating system.     

THE EFFECTS OF FEEDBACK ACCOUNTABILITY ON UPWARD APPRAISAL RATINGS

Do subordinates feel and respond differently to upward appraisal procedures depending on whether they are accountable or anonymous? Accountability requires subordinates to identify themselves on the upward appraisal questionnaires they complete. In an experimental field study, 38 managers and their subordinates from an insurance company were randomly assigned to use one of the appraisal procedures. As hypothesized, managers who received feedback from specific individuals in the accountability procedure viewed the upward appraisal process more positively than did managers in the anonymity procedure. However, subordinates felt more comfortable giving anonymous responses. As a result, subordinates who used the accountability procedure rated their managers significantly higher than the subordinates who responded anonymously. Therefore, the results of this study suggest that an upward appraisal procedure in which individuals are accountable for their responses may produce inflated ratings of managers' performance. Further research should compare the accountability and anonymous upward appraisal procedures to determine which procedure produces more accurate ratings.     

Supervisors' performance feedback to subordinates: The impact of subordinate performance valence and outcome dependence

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of two variables on supervisors' performance feedback to subordinates: (1) the valence of the subordinate's performance, that is, whether the subordinate has performed well or poorly, and (2) the degree to which the supervisor's monetary outcomes are dependent on the subordinate's performance. It was hypothesized that supervisors would give subordinates feedback less often about instances of poor performance than about instances of good performance, but that when given, their feedback about poor performance would be more specific than their feedback about good performance. It was also hypothesized that supervisors would give feedback more often under conditions of high outcome dependence than under conditions of low outcome dependence. The results strongly supported the two performance valence hypotheses. The outcome dependence hypothesis was also supported, but only when the subordinate exhibited a pattern of gradually worsening performance. The implications of these findings are discussed, as are directions for future research.