Consistent and Low Is the Only Way to Go: A Polynomial Regression Approach to the Effect of Abusive Supervision Inconsistency

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Yoon, Seoin; Koopman, Joel; Dimotakis, Nikolaos; Simon, Lauren H. S.; Liang, Lindie H. H.; Ni, Dan; Zheng, Xiaoming; Fu, Sherry (Qiang); Lee, Young Eun; Tang, Pok Man; Ng, Chin Tung Stewart; Bush, John T.; Darden, Tanja R.; Forrester, Juanita K.; Tepper, Bennett J.; Brown, Douglas J.
• 署名单位: Texas A&M University System; Texas A&M University College Station; Mays Business School; Oklahoma State University System; Oklahoma State University - Stillwater; University of Arkansas System; University of Arkansas Fayetteville; Wilfrid Laurier University; Sun Yat Sen University; Tsinghua University; Colorado State University System; Colorado State University Fort Collins; State University System of Florida; Florida State University; University System of Georgia; University of Georgia; National Sun Yat Sen University; State University System of Florida; University of Central Florida; University System of Maryland; Towson University; Mercer University; University System of Ohio; Ohio State University; University of Waterloo; Texas A&M University System; Texas A&M University College Station; Mays Business School
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0021-9010
• DOI: 10.1037/apl0001096
• 发表日期: 2023
• 页码: 1619-1639
• 关键词: inconsistent abusive supervision; temporal comparison; appraisal theory; POLYNOMIAL REGRESSION

摘要

The literature on abusive supervision largely presumes that employees respond to abuse in a relatively straightforward way: When abuse is present, outcomes are unfavorable, and when abuse is absent, outcomes are favorable (or, at least less unfavorable). Yet despite the recognition that abusive supervision can vary over time, little consideration has been given to how past experiences of abuse may impact the ways employees react to it (or, its absence) in the present. This is a notable oversight, as it is widely acknowledged that past experiences create a context against which experiences in the present are compared. By applying a temporal lens to the experience of abusive supervision, we identify abusive supervision inconsistency as a phenomenon that may have different outcomes than would otherwise be predicted by the current consensus in this literature. We draw from theories on time and stress appraisal to develop a model that explains when, why, and for which employees, inconsistent abusive supervision may have negative outcomes (specifically, identifying anxiety as a proximal outcome of abusive supervision inconsistency that has downstream effects on turnover intentions). Moreover, the aforementioned theoretical perspectives dovetail in identifying employee workplace status as a moderator that may buffer employees from the stressful consequences of inconsistent abusive supervision. We test our model using two experience sampling studies with polynomial regression and response surface analyses. Our research makes important theoretical and practical contributions to the abusive supervision literature, as well as the literature on time.