Subordinates’ Individual Differences and Perceptions of Abusive Supervision

Abstract

This study explores the roles of subordinates’ individual differences in predicting their perceptions of abusive supervision. We controlled supervisor behavior via a video vignette to assess if subjects perceived the same supervisor behavior differently. A sample of 756 working adults revealed that subjects’ hostile attribution styles, negative affectivity, entitlement, trait anger, and external locus of control directly predicted perceptions of abusive supervision while self-efficacy and internal locus of control did not. Attributions for performance failures mediated the relationships between hostile attribution style, self-efficacy, entitlement, external and internal locus of control and perceptions of abusive supervision. These results extend abusive supervision research by controlling for differences in supervisory behavior and demonstrating that individual differences influence subjects’ perceptions of abuse. Attribution research is extended by demonstrating that hostile attribution styles predict a...