A cross‐cultural examination of subordinates' perceptions of and reactions to abusive supervision

Published date01 July 2015
Date01 July 2015
DOIhttp://doi.org/10.1002/job.1984
A cross-cultural examination of subordinates
perceptions of and reactions to abusive supervision
RYAN M. VOGEL
1
*, MARIE S. MITCHELL
2
, BENNETT J. TEPPER
3
,
SIMON L. D. RESTUBOG
4
, CHANGYA HU
5
,WEIHUA
6
AND JUI-CHIEH HUANG
7
1
Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, Erie, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
2
Terry College of Business, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, U.S.A.
3
Fisher College of Business, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, U.S.A.
4
College of Business and Economics, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
5
Department of Business Administration, National Chengchi University, Taipei City, Taiwan
6
International Perspective Pte Ltd, Singapore
7
National Taipei University of Business
Summary This manuscript explores cross-cultural differences in reactions to perceived abusive supervision. Based on an
integration of fairness heuristic theory with principles about cross-cultural differences in the importance of
hierarchical status, we theorize that subordinates from the Anglo culture perceive and react to abusive
supervision more negatively than subordinates from the Confucian Asian culture. The predictions were tested
within two eldstudies. Study 1 results showthat culture moderated thedirect effect of perceived abusivesuper-
vision on interpersonal justice andthe indirect effects of perceived abusivesupervision (via interpersonaljustice)
on subordinatestrust in the supervisor and work effort. The negative effects of perceived abusive supervision
were stronger for subordinates within the Anglo versus the Confucian Asian culture; subordinates from Anglo
culture compared with Confucian Asian culture perceived abusive supervision as less fair. Perceived abusive
supervision indirectly and negatively inuenced subordinatestrust in the supervisor and work effort. Study
2 replicated the ndings from Study 1 and extended them to show culture (Anglo vs. Confucian culture)
moderated the effects because it inuences subordinatespower distance orientation. Copyright © 2014
John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Keywords: culture; cross-cultural management; abusive supervision; interpersonal justice; power distance
orientation
The increasing trend of globalization has drawn research attention to how culture affects business practices and
leadership effectiveness (Javidan, Dorfman, de Luque, & House, 2006). It is widely accepted that culture plays an
important role in shaping leaderfollower interpersonal dynamics (Brislin, 2000; Hofstede, 1980). Much of the
cross-cultural leadership research that has progressed has examined cultural differences in the effects of positive
and effective leader behavior (see Tsui, Nifadkar, & Ou, 2007, for a review). This research shows that subordinates
from different cultures view some positive leader behaviors (i.e., charisma and transformational leadership)
similarly, while the effects of other leader behaviors do not generalize across cultures. For instance, an empowering
leadership style seems to strongly motivate subordinates from the Anglo culture (i.e., the U.S.A.), but it is less
effective in motivating subordinates from other countries and cultures (Robert, Probst, Martocchio, Drasgow, &
Lawler, 2000; Triandis, 2002).
Although researchers have developed considerable knowledge about cross-cultural differences in reactions to
positive leadership behaviors,the depth of knowledge on cross-culturaleffects related to negativeand hostile leadership
behaviors is farmore limited (Martinko, Harvey,Brees, & Mackey, 2013; Tepper, 2007).This is surprising, as research
*Correspondence to: Ryan M. Vogel, Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, 265 Burke Center, 5101 Jordan Road, Erie, PA 16563. U.S.A.
E-mail: rmv13@psu.edu
Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Received 05 February 2014
Revised 07 October 2014, Accepted 27 October 2014
Journal of Organizational Behavior, J. Organiz. Behav. 36, 720745 (2015)
Published online 25 November 2014 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/job.1984
Special Issue Article
has demonstrated that not all leaders engage in positive behaviors toward their subordinates (Martinko et al., 2013).
Some leaders interact with their subordinates using hostile and negative behaviors, such as ridiculing, lying to,
stealing ideas from, and ignoring subordinates (Tepper, 2000). These types of behaviors are known as abusive
supervision, dened as subordinatesperceptions of the extent to which supervisors engage in the sustained display
of hostile verbal and nonverbal behaviors (Tepper, 2000). Subordinates negatively react to abusive supervision
because supervisors who treat their subordinates with hostility are perceived to violate social norms of appropriate
interpersonal conduct (see Martinko et al., 2013 and Tepper, 2007, for reviews) and, specically, fairness rules
associated with treating others with respect and dignity (Tepper, 2000).
We question whether abusive supervision behaviors are perceived as similarly unfair from subordinates across
different cultures. Different cultures highlight dissimilar norms about interpersonal interactions, such as those that
prescribe how supervisors should treat subordinates. For instance, the Anglo/Western culture (e.g., U.S.A.)
emphasizes norms that would suggest that abusive supervision is highly unfair and inappropriate. By contrast,
the Confucian Asian culture emphasizes hierarchical status differences and legitimizes the use of hostility by those
in authority against the less powerful as a necessary means of maintaining control and social order (Bond, 2004;
Hofstede, Hofstede, & Minkov, 2010). Therefore, it is possible for subordinates from the Confucian Asian
culture to view abusive supervision as more interpersonally fair compared with subordinates from the Anglo
culture. If this is the case, the strength of subordinatesreactions to perceived abusive supervision likely
differs across cul tures.
The purpose of our study is to develop and test a theoretical model that explains how culture inuences
subordinatesperceptions of and reactions to abusive supervision (see Figure 1). Based on an integration of fairness
heuristic theory (Lind, Kulik, Ambrose, & de Vera Park, 1993; Tyler & Lind, 1992) with principles about cross-
cultural differences in the importance of hierarchical status (e.g., Bond, 2004; Hofstede et al., 2010; Tyler, Lind,
& Huo, 2000), we argue that culture shapes the heuristic subordinates use when interpreting supervisory behavior.
In particular, culture is theorized to affect subordinatesassessments about the fairness of abusive supervision and,
accordingly, the level of trust subordinates hold in their supervisor and the level of effort they put into task behavior.
Specically, we suggest that within Confucian Asian culture, subordinatesheuristics will suggest that abusive
supervision behaviors are more acceptable and, therefore, perceived abusive supervision will be viewed as more
fair, which will suggest that these leaders are more trustworthy and these subordinates should exert more effort
Figure 1. Theoretical model
CULTURE AND ABUSIVE SUPERVISION 721
Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. J. Organiz. Behav. 36, 720745 (2015)
DOI: 10.1002/job

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