Abusive Supervision, Leader-Member Exchange, and Creativity: A Multilevel Examination.

Changqing He,Valerie Lynette Wang,Rongrong Teng,Liying Zhou,Jing Yuan

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.647169

Abstract

Despite the growing attention on the topic of abusive supervision, how abusive supervision affects individual and team creativity have not yet been thoroughly investigated. Drawn from the perspective of leader-member exchange (LMX), the current study develops a multilevel model to describe the relationships between abusive supervision and creativity at both team and individual levels, with a focus on the roles played by team-level leader-member exchange (TLMX) and LMX differentiation (DLMX). Based on data collected from 319 team members and their team leaders in 71 teams, the results show that abusive supervision has a negative relationship with TLMX, a practice that is conducive to both team and individual creativity. At the team level, the negative relationship between abusive supervision and TLMX is lessened by a higher level of DLMX. In addition, the positive relationship between TLMX and team creativity is weakened by a higher level of DLMX. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

Highlights

In today’s competitive and rapidly changing business environment, scholars are increasingly interested in understanding how to enhance creativity in organizations (Shalley et al, 2004, 2009)
Taken together, following the IMO Model, we propose that team-level leader-member exchange (TLMX) will mediate the relationships between abusive supervision and creativity at both team and individual levels
From a social comparison perspective, we propose that DLMX operates as a social cue driving team members to develop justice perceptions, which weaken the positive relationship between TLMX and creativity at both team and individual levels

Summary

Introduction

In today’s competitive and rapidly changing business environment, scholars are increasingly interested in understanding how to enhance creativity in organizations (Shalley et al, 2004, 2009). The relationship between abusive supervision and creativity at the team level has received less attention. Team creativity is defined as the generation of novel and useful ideas by employees working together in a team (Shin and Zhou, 2007). Previous studies have highlighted the positive aspect of leadership, such as transformational leadership, in promoting team creativity. Abusive Supervision, LMX, and Creativity (Bai et al, 2016). As a pervasive leadership style, abusive supervision may play a critical role in shaping team members’ creative performance (Liu et al, 2012). The effects of abusive supervision on team creativity remain largely unexplored

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