I Am Impacted by Your Motives Than Your Abuse: Effects of Abusive Supervision on Dysfunctional Voice

Abstract

Abusive supervision undermines subordinate’s extra role behaviors such as voice. However, certain subordinates see positive motives in their supervisor’s abusive behaviors. Taking insights from the attribution-based theory of workplace harassment, we suggest that subordinates attribute leader’s abusive supervision to three motives: injury initiation, leader-centric performance promotion and follower-centric performance promotion. We contend that the more the follower attributes their leader’s abusive behavior to injury initiation and leader-centric performance promotion motives, the more likely they are to engage in defensive voice. Contrarily, we posit that the more the follower attributes their leader’s abusive behavior to follower-centric performance promotion motive, the less likely they are to engage in defensive voice. Pilot Study employs a one-time, single-source design to test the psychometric properties of the focal measures and construct validity of the follower-centric and leader-centric performance promotion motives. Main Study employs a multi-source, time separated design to test mediation and moderated-mediation hypotheses via structural equation modeling. Further, the theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.