Feedback in Organizations: The Role of Giver, Receiver, and Feedback Characteristics

Abstract

Feedback is an integral part of organizational life. It is a crucial process through which individuals can improve their learning, growth, and development (Ashford & Cummings, 1983; Higgins & Thomas, 2001). Past research has highlighted how the influence of feedback on employee attitudes and behaviors can depend on the approach through which feedback is delivered (Brutus, 2010; Ilgen et al., 1979; Kluger & DeNisi, 1996; Shute, 2008; Zhou, 1998). This symposium aims to deepen our understanding of the antecedents and consequences of different feedback styles and approaches. The presented work offers insights from the giver perspective of providing different forms of performance feedback, as well as the receivers’ perspective regarding preferences for and receipt of different forms of feedback. Altogether, this symposium highlights two primary aspects of feedback in organizations, using a variety of methodologies. First, papers 1 and 2 demonstrate how givers’ work experiences and goal frames influences the type and delivery of feedback offered, which can lead to different employee attitudes and perceptions. Subsequently, papers 3 and 4 turn to feedback receivers, and highlight gender differences in the types of feedback women and men receive and prefer. Overall, this symposium offers insights into how givers’ experiences and attitudes can meaningfully impact the type of feedback offered, and how recipient gender can shape the experience of receiving different types of feedback. Managers’ Experience at Work Determines Their Approaches in Feedback Presenter: Jinseok Chun; Duke U. Presenter: Jin Nam Choi; Seoul National U. When Best Intentions Backfire: The Interpersonal Cost of Motivational Feedback Presenter: Min Ju Lee; U. of Texas at Austin Presenter: Paul Isaac Green; U. of Texas at Austin Presenter: Ethan Burris; U. of Texas at Austin Benevolent Sexism in Workplace Feedback Presenter: Ariella Kristal; Harvard Business School Presenter: Michael Yeomans; Imperial College Business School Relative Performance Feedback: Gendered Preferences and Asymmetric Costs Presenter: Judy Qiu; London Business School Presenter: Selin Selin Kesebir; London Business School