Employees’ perceptions of their manager’s authentic leadership

Qaiser Mehmood,Bert Schreurs,Melvyn R.W Hamstra

doi:10.1108/pr-03-2019-0097

Qaiser Mehmood, Bert Schreurs + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.1108/pr-03-2019-0097

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Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to test whether managers’ political skill is relevant for employees’ authentic leadership perceptions. Political influence theory assumes that political tactics seek to affect others’ interpretations of a person or situation. Thus, what matters for employees’ perceptions of their manager’s authentic leadership may be whether the manager actively seeks to show behavior that can be interpreted as authentic leadership. Combining political influence theory and gender stereotypes research, it is further suggested that manager gender moderates the employees’ interpretation of political influence attempts that are ambiguous.Design/methodology/approachManagers (n=156; 49.5 percent female) completed measures of their political skill. Employees (n=427; 39.1 percent female) completed measures of the manager’s authentic leadership.FindingsManagers’ apparent sincerity was positively related to employees’ perceptions of managers’ authentic leadership; managers’ networking ability was negatively related to employees’ perceptions of female managers’ authentic leadership, but not of male managers.Research limitations/implicationsThe methodology does not allow claims about causality.Originality/valueFindings add knowledge of authentic leadership, such as difficulties that female managers face, and show the value of a fine-grained approach to political skill. Female managers should be aware that networking might have disadvantageous side effects. Conversely, sincere behavior attempts seem favorable for authentic leadership perceptions.

Highlights

The purpose of this paper is to test whether managers’ political skill is relevant for employees’ authentic leadership perceptions
Considering that behaviors are open to interpretation when they do not carefully craft others’ interpretation, this research further draws upon gender stereotypes research (e.g. Rudman and Glick, 2008), which suggests that manager political tactics are differentially interpreted by employees depending on whether the manager is a man or a woman
We do not dismiss the possibility that women in organizations have fewer chances to practice their political skills, our focus was on individuals who have already attained a managerial position and, of those individuals, we suggest that subordinates may interpret networking behavior differently depending on whether the manager is a man or a woman

Summary

Introduction

The purpose of this paper is to test whether managers’ political skill is relevant for employees’ authentic leadership perceptions. Building on political influence theory (Ferris and Judge, 1991), this research tests relationships between dimensions of managers’ political skill and employees’ perceptions of managers’ authentic leadership According to this theoretical perspective, political behaviors seek to influence others’ interpretation of a person or situation, rather than to create an accurate representation of reality. If managers do not carefully craft their image, for example, by showing behaviors that are open to the opposite interpretation, they may harm their employees’ positive perceptions of authentic leadership This is partly because employees cannot recognize whether managers are or are not authentic leaders (Douglas et al, 2005). Instead of women potentially differing in their political behaviors and skills, we are suggesting that, compared with men’s, women’s political behavior could be interpreted differently by their subordinates

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