Affective States and Work Attitudes Linking Abusive Supervision to Employee Performance and the Impact of Ethical Climate on Abusive Supervision and Work Attitudes
Abstract
Prior research indicates that abusive supervision (AS, Tepper, 2000) is associated with employee job performance. On the other hand, ethical organizational climate (EOC; Victor & Cullen, 1988) has yet to be investigated in the context of AS. The objective of the present study is to evaluate, within a general sample of US employees, (1) the relative strength of specific indirect effects of AS on performance via positive (PA) and negative (NA) affect, and via work-related attitudes (Leader-member exchange, LMX; Interactional justice, IJ; Perceived organizational support, POS; Affective organizational commitment, AOC), and (2) the relationship between EOC, AS, and the same work-related attitudes. It was expected that the indirect effects of AS on performance would be stronger via affect (PA, NA) than via attitudes referencing the supervisor (LMX, IJ), which would in turn be stronger than the indirect effects via attitudes referencing the organization (AOC, POS). Moreover, EOC was expected to show a negative association with AS, a positive association with each work-related attitude, and to moderate the effects of AS on the work-related attitudes. Data was collected using web-based questionnaires. Employees completed attitude measures and rated how frequently they experienced AS and affective states in the prior month. Coworkers rated job performance. Analyses take a nonparametric approach due to departures from multivariate normality. Indirect effects and pairwise contrasts between specific indirect effects were evaluated using bootstrap confidence intervals. Hypotheses involving moderation were analyzed using moderated multiple regression. Mediation analyses generally confirm prior findings when indirect effects were analyzed separately. When modeled in parallel however, only the indirect effects via NA and AOC are significant. Pairwise contrast generally failed to show significant differences between specific indirect effects. Consistent with predictions, EOC was negatively associated with AS and positively associated with each work-related attitude. Interestingly, EOC also moderated the effects of AS on work-related attitudes, albeit in a direction inconsistent with predictions. Implications for future research are discussed.
Subject Area
Psychology
Recommended Citation
Falcon, Armando, "Affective States and Work Attitudes Linking Abusive Supervision to Employee Performance and the Impact of Ethical Climate on Abusive Supervision and Work Attitudes" (2019). ProQuest ETD Collection for FIU. AAI28315740.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/dissertations/AAI28315740