The effects of abusive supervision on cyberloafing behavior

Abstract

With the development of the Internet, cyberloafing becomes the workplace problem for many organizations. It will negatively influence organisations’ productivity and performance. In this study, we examined the direct and indirect relationship (via meaningful work) between abusive supervision and cyberloafing, based on the theory of social cognition and social exchange. Data collected from 183 participants were analysed using hierarchical regression. The results showed that abusive supervision has a significant positive impact on cyberloafing, both directly and indirectly. We suggest that organizations should reduce abusive supervision by leaders and take measures to cultivate employees ' sense of work meaning.