IS LEADER-MEMBER EXCHANGE DIFFERENTIATION BENEFICIAL OR DETRIMENTAL FOR GROUP EFFECTIVENESS? A META-ANALYTIC INVESTIGATION AND THEORETICAL INTEGRATION

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Yu, Andrew; Matta, Fadel K.; Cornfield, Bryan
• 署名单位: Michigan State University; Michigan State University's Broad College of Business; University System of Georgia; University of Georgia; Michigan State University
• 刊物名称: ACADEMY OF MANAGEMENT JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0001-4273
• DOI: 10.5465/amj.2016.1212
• 发表日期: 2018
• 页码: 1158-1188
• 关键词: VERTICAL DYAD LINKAGE; ORGANIZATIONAL JUSTICE; procedural justice; CITIZENSHIP BEHAVIOR; TASK INTERDEPENDENCE; LMX DIFFERENTIATION; REWARD ALLOCATIONS; TEAM CREATIVITY; LABOR UNION; WORK GROUPS

摘要

Despite the burgeoning number of studies that have examined leader-member exchange (LMX) differentiation, definitive conclusions regarding its effects remain scarce. We propose a theoretical framework for studying LMX differentiation through an equity-equality perspective derived from allocation preferences theory, allowing us to elucidate both the beneficial and detrimental influences LMX differentiation can have on workgroups. In a meta-analytic investigation including 4,114 workgroups and 21,745 individuals, we found that LMX differentiation was detrimental to collective harmony and solidarity, as indicated by a consistent negative relationship with emergent states and group processes. A theoretical integration of our predictions within an input-mediator-outcome model of group effectiveness revealed a more complex pattern of relationships with group performance. By simultaneously considering the proximal and distal nature of group outcomes, we found that emergent states and group processes not only mediated the negative indirect relationship, but also suppressed the positive direct relationship between LMX differentiation and group performance. These findings demonstrate the utility of an equity-equality framework for understanding LMX differentiation in workgroups and imply that there are tradeoffs associated with differentiation that must be considered when predicting group effectiveness criteria.