Paternalistic leadership and subordinate responses: Establishing a leadership model in Chinese organizations

Paternalistic leadership (PL) is the prevalent leadership style in Chinese business organizations. With an approach similar to patriarchy, PL entails an evident and powerful authority that shows consideration for subordinates with moral leadership. Although PL is widespread in Chinese business organizations, very few studies have focused on this leadership style and those that have were simply conceptual analyses and not empirical studies. We sampled 543 subordinates from local businesses in Taiwan to investigate PL, Western transformational leadership, and subordinate responses to these two leadership styles. Our hypotheses were as follows: (1) PL has a significant and unique effect on subordinate responses compared to Western transformational leadership; (2) there exists an interaction between the three elements of PL (benevolence, morality, and authoritarianism) and subordinate responses; and (3) the authority orientation of a subordinate's traditionality has a moderating effect upon the relation between PL and subordinate responses. Statistical analyses generally supported these hypotheses. Directions for follow-up studies are offered and implications for leadership theory and practice are discussed.     

The experimental effects of "autonomy" on performance and self-reports of satisfaction

Though the job characteristics model proposed by Hackman and his associates has provided the impetus for a large number of correlational studies, few of any studies have involved the systematic manipulation of one or more of the five-core dimensions (job properties) while noting the performance outcomes. In this study, the autonomy dimension was experimentally varied (four levels) in a laboratory setting. Four groups of undergraduate students performed a job comprised of three tasks under varying degrees of autonomy while measures of performance, "perceptions" of task properties, and other self-reports were obtained. It was found, contrary to our hypothesis, that variations in autonomy produced a negative effect on quantity of performance and no effect on quality of performance, though subjects in the more autonomous conditions reported a higher level of autonomy. Reservations regarding the strategy of drawing causal inferences from correlational analyses are discussed.     

The Influence of Self-Monitoring on Inflation of Grade-Point Averages for Research and Selection Purposes1

The present study investigated the tendency to inflate self-reports of GPAs on application forms and research surveys. The major purpose of the research was to examine the consistency of inflation behavior across situations and determine whether self-monitoring moderates this consistency. Two hundred and twenty-six graduating seniors reported their GPAs on application forms used at a university's placement office and 1 month later reported their GPAs on a research survey in a classroom setting. Respondents’ self-monitoring and attitude toward inflation were also measured on the survey. Results indicated that inflation was more prevalent on the research survey than on application forms and low GPA respondents exhibited greater inflation than did high GPA respondents. Furthermore, inflation across situations was more consistent and could be better predicted by inflation attitudes for low self-monitors than for high self-monitors. Implications for impression management and self-reports in employment contexts are discussed.     

Emotional intelligence, teamwork effectiveness, and job performance: the moderating role of job context

We advance understanding of the role of ability-based emotional intelligence (EI) and its subdimensions in the workplace by examining the mechanisms and context-based boundary conditions of the EI-performance relationship. Using a trait activation framework, we theorize that employees with higher overall EI and emotional perception ability exhibit higher teamwork effectiveness (and subsequent job performance) when working in job contexts characterized by high managerial work demands because such contexts contain salient emotion-based cues that activate employees' emotional capabilities. A sample of 212 professionals from various organizations and industries indicated support for the salutary effect of EI, above and beyond the influence of personality, cognitive ability, emotional labor job demands, job complexity, and demographic control variables. Theoretical and practical implications of the potential value of EI for workplace outcomes under contexts involving managerial complexity are discussed.     

Shared dialect group identity,leader–member exchange and self‐disclosure in vertical dyads: Do members react similarly?

Drawing upon social identity and status characteristic theories, we examine the reactions of vertical dyad members to shared dialect group identity in Taiwan. Supervisors and subordinates in 179 vertical dyads independently reported their dialect group identity and their perceptions of leader–member exchange (LMX) and self‐disclosure. Results indicate that subordinates reported a more positive LMX with, and greater self‐disclosure to, supervisors who shared their dialect group identity. Supervisors reported greater self‐disclosure to subordinates with the same dialect group identity, but not a more positive LMX. We also discuss implications for organizational demography theory and research.     

Joint Effects of Group Efficacy and Gender Diversity on Group Cohesion and Performance

Cette étude s'intéresse aux facteurs de l'efficience de groupe et à la conjonction de l'efficience de groupe et de la mixité sur las relation entre l'efficience et les résultats du groupe. On a constitué 45 groupes d'étudiants de 1° cycle ( N = 260) devant réaliser en classe deux projets en commun. Il est apparu que la performance antérieure et l'auto-efficience étaient toutes deux positivement corrélées à l'efficience de groupe. De plus, l'interaction de la mixité et de l'efficience de groupe entretenait une liaison positive avec l'efficacité de groupe (qualité du projet et cohésion du groupe). En particulier, la mixité facilitait la relation entre l'efficacité et l'efficience de groupe. Une discussion porte sur les implications de cette recherche.
This study examined the sources of group efficacy and the joint roles of group efficacy and gender diversity on the relationship between group efficacy and group outcomes. We used 45 project groups (260 undergraduate students) designed to complete two in-class group projects. We found that past performance and self-efficacy were both positively related to group efficacy. Further, the interaction of gender diversity and group efficacy was positively related to group effectiveness (project grade and group cohesion). Specifically, mixed gender groups facilitated the relationship between group efficacy and group effectiveness. Implications of the study are discussed.     

Enhancing Cultural Intelligence: The Roles of Implicit Culture Beliefs and Adjustment

Although international experience has been proposed as an important factor contributing to the development of cultural intelligence (CQ), its effect on CQ has often been assumed. Through a contact hypothesis framework, this study advances our understanding of CQ. It examines the process through which CQ changes occur against the backdrop of international exchanges. University students who were enrolled in an international exchange program with partners worldwide participated in this study. Using a 3‐wave time‐lagged design, we found that implicit culture beliefs (the beliefs about fixedness or malleability of cultural attributes) influenced intercultural rejection sensitivity, which impacted the cross‐cultural adjustment of sojourning students and their subsequent CQ. Specifically, we found that cross‐cultural adjustment experiences, particularly in the social domain, play an important role in influencing CQ. Findings from this study raise novel research questions and underscore the need for more empirical work in this area. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Motivating and demotivating forces in teams: cross-level influences of empowering leadership and relationship conflict

Using cross-cultural laboratory and field studies with samples of leaders, employees, and students from the United States and the People's Republic of China, we examined how team-level stimuli, including empowering leadership and relationship conflict, combine to influence individual members' motivational states of psychological empowerment and affective commitment. As predicted, we found that these motivational states are individually and jointly influenced by teams' level of empowering leadership and relationship conflict and that these motivational states mediate the relationships between team stimuli and team members' innovative and teamwork behaviors and turnover intentions. In addition, results held despite controlling for team members' nationality and collectivism. We discuss contributions of our study to the team motivation, conflict, and stress literatures.     

Transformational Leadership and Organisational Citizenship Behaviour: A Moderated Mediation Model of Leader‐Member‐Exchange and Subordinates' Gender

Transformational leadership (TL) enhances follower Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) as mediated by leader‐member exchange (LMX). However, the strength of the positive associations among TL, LMX and OCB is subject to significant variability. Accordingly, we draw on several theories (self‐identity, role congruency, self‐concept, and social exchange) to propose that followers' gender moderates the relationships between all three of these variables. We argue differences in societal expectations and/or underlying motivation combine to make leadership of lesser importance to OCB among females than males. Using 202 supervisor‐subordinate dyads from Taiwan, a moderated mediation model of TL‐LMX‐OCB, with subordinate gender as a moderator, was tested. As hypothesised, each of the positive associations among TL, LMX and OCB were weaker for females than for males, thus accounting for some of the variability in the strength of the associations typically observed. Relatedly, although LMX fully mediated the TL‐OCB relationship in the entire sample, this effect was not observed among female subordinates. Further research is required to assess the degree to which these findings apply beyond the Confucian Asian societal cluster.