Employees' Behavioral Reactions to Supervisor Aggression: An Examination of Individual and Situational Factors

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Mitchell, Marie S.; Ambrose, Maureen L.
• 署名单位: University System of Georgia; University of Georgia; State University System of Florida; University of Central Florida
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0021-9010
• DOI: 10.1037/a0029452
• 发表日期: 2012
• 页码: 1148-1170
• 关键词: ABUSIVE SUPERVISION; aggression; Retaliation; displaced aggression; problem solving

摘要

This research examines employees' behavioral reactions to perceived supervisor aggression. The goal is to understand what makes employees react constructively or destructively to aggression. Three types of behavioral reactions are investigated: retaliation, coworker displaced aggression, and problem solving. We suggest employee reactions are influenced by individual and situational characteristics. We test these ideas by examining the moderating effects of 1 individual factor (locus of control) and 2 situational factors (fear of retaliation and behavioral modeling) on the relationships between perceived supervisor aggression and employee behaviors. The results of an experiment and 2 field studies provide support for the predictions and some unexpected findings. Implications for understanding reactions to perceived supervisor aggression are presented.