When supervisor support backfires: the link between perceived supervisor support and unethical pro-supervisor behavior

Perceived supervisor support is widely studied in terms of its positive outcomes. This paper, in contrast, investigates employees’ unethical pro-supervisor behavior as a negative consequence of perceived supervisor support. Drawing upon the multifoci approach of social exchange theory and the recipr...

Descrizione completa

Salvato in:  
Dettagli Bibliografici
Autori: Li, Shike (Autore) ; Jain, Kriti (Autore) ; Tzini, Konstantina (Autore)
Tipo di documento: Elettronico Articolo
Lingua:Inglese
Verificare la disponibilità: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Caricamento...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Pubblicazione: Springer Science + Business Media B. V 2022
In: Journal of business ethics
Anno: 2022, Volume: 179, Fascicolo: 1, Pagine: 133-151
Altre parole chiave:B Machiavellianism
B Reciprocity
B Aufsatz in Zeitschrift
B Unethical pro-supervisor behavior
B Perceived supervisor support
B Social Exchange
Accesso online: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Descrizione
Riepilogo:Perceived supervisor support is widely studied in terms of its positive outcomes. This paper, in contrast, investigates employees’ unethical pro-supervisor behavior as a negative consequence of perceived supervisor support. Drawing upon the multifoci approach of social exchange theory and the reciprocity principle, we hypothesized that perceived supervisor support can engender unethical pro-supervisor behavior via employees’ feelings of reciprocity towards the supervisor. Building on the instrumental reasons that underlie social exchanges, we further hypothesized that this mediation relationship is stronger for employees high in Machiavellianism. We collected data for three experimental studies from full-time MBA students of a European business school (Study 1: N = 72) and from U.S. working professionals (Study 2: N = 320; Study 3: N = 325), and the results provided consistent support for our proposed model. Taken together, the current study highlights the "dark side" of perceived supervisor support, in that it can lead to unethical behavior and that this effect can be accentuated by employees’ Machiavellianism.
ISSN:1573-0697
Comprende:Enthalten in: Journal of business ethics
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1007/s10551-021-04797-1