Noncontingent Punishment Research Articles

Why does leadership non-contingent punishment lead to bystander workplace deviance behavior? – Dual path perspective of cognition and affection

Purpose Based on the cognition-affection personality system theory, this study constructs and tests a mediation model of leadership non-contingent punishment on bystander workplace deviance behavior through bystander affective rumination and bystander psychological contract violation, as well as a chain mediation effect of bystander affective rumination and bystander psychological contract violation, and explores the moderation role of bystander performance pressure in this model.Design/methodology/approach This study takes 454 employees and their colleagues from several Chinese enterprises as the research subjects and conducts a paired survey at three-time points using Mplus 7.4 to analyze the empirical data.Findings The research results are as follows: Bystander affective rumination and bystander psychological contract violation play a mediation role between leadership non-contingent punishment and bystander workplace deviance behavior, respectively. Bystander affective rumination and bystander psychological contract violation play a chain mediation role in the positive role of leadership non-contingent punishment on bystander workplace deviance behavior. Bystander performance pressure moderates the chain mediation path by enhancing the positive role of leadership non-contingent punishment on bystander affective rumination.Originality/value This study comprehensively explores the internal path of the impact of leadership non-contingent punishment on bystander workplace deviance behavior from the perspective of bystanders through dual paths of cognition and affection. It enriches the result variables of leadership non-contingent punishment, expands existing research on the mediation mechanism of leadership non-contingent punishment and deepens the understanding of the mechanism of leadership non-contingent punishment. At the same time, it has practical guidance significance to promote the suppression of leadership non-contingent punishment in organizations, reduce the occurrence of employee workplace deviance behavior, help employees better integrate into the organization and build a harmonious organizational environment.

Prosocial Service Behaviours and Employee Well-being

This study investigates the dual effects of Prosocial service behaviour (PSB) on employee well-being and how these outcomes are influenced by a leader’s punishment and reward behaviours. Drawing on the conservation of resources and self-determination theories, we propose that PSB consumes and provides resources through work-related rumination (i.e., affective rumination and problem-solving pondering). We conducted a longitudinal two-wave questionnaire study (N = 132) and tested hypotheses using a time-lagged model with latent variables. Results showed that when non-contingent punishment was low, PSB increased burnout through affective rumination. Moderated mediation analysis revealed that when the contingent reward is high, there was an increase in indirect effect of PSB on work enjoyment through problem-solving pondering. The direct effect of PSB on affective rumination was in the expected direction but was not significant. However, the direct effect of PSB on problem-solving pondering was significant. Our results indicate that PSB has positive and negative well-being outcomes under various leadership conditions.

The effects of non-contingent punishment on subsequent task performance, psychological response, and physiological activity

The effects of non-contingent punishment on subsequent task performance, psychological response, and physiological activity

Leadership and Job Satisfaction: Implications for Leaders of Accountants

This study conducted a review of the meta-analytic literature which correlated leadership and job satisfaction. Twenty-five meta-analytic correlations were extracted and analyzed in order to focus specifically on how leadership affected worker job satisfaction. Results indicated that charismatic and transformational leadership behaviors had the highest positive correlations with worker job satisfaction while non-contingent punishment and abusive supervision showed low negative relationships to worker job satisfaction. Implications to both overall job satisfaction and specific applications to satisfaction and attrition in the financial industry are discussed.

The Uneven Impact of Non-contingent Punishment: Misery Prefers Company

The negative adaptation hypothesis postulates that the relationship between abusive supervision and employee behavior will be stronger in certain cases than in others and that the determining factor is the treatment of the employee’s immediate coworkers, and that coworker treatment would completely negate the negative responses by employees – leading to a situation where the employee “does not retaliate”. The authors applied this prediction to the relationship between non-contingent punishment and employee overall performance, employee in-role performance, and employee OCB performance in a field study of 476 manufacturing employees in 80 workgroups. A further prediction suggested that employees would consistently experience negative attitudes as a result of mistreatment. Overall, the results of the study supported both the differential behavioral and attitudinal reactions. Further, across the three behavioral outcomes tested, the relationship between employee non-contingent punishment received and behavioral outcomes was not different than zero when peers received high levels of abusive behavior. Implications for theory and managerial practice are discussed.

Punishment in horse-training and the concept of ethical equitation

Abstract By definition, punishment makes a response less likely in the future. Because horses are largely trained by negative reinforcement, they are susceptible to inadvertent punishment. Delays in the release of pressure can make desirable responses less likely and thus punish them. This study examines the correct use of negative reinforcement and identifies a continuum between poorly timed negative reinforcement and punishment. It explores some of the problems of non-contingent punishment and the prospect of learned helplessness and experimental neurosis. It concludes by introducing the concept of ethical equitation.

How Employee Race Moderates the Relationship Between Non-Contingent Punishment and Organizational Citizenship Behaviors: A Test of the Negative Adaptation Hypothesis

The negative adaptation hypothesis states that Black employees, but not White employees, have psychologically adapted to the occurrence of interpersonal mistreatment in organizations because they experience more negative events across different domains of social life than Whites. Consequently, Blacks react less strongly to the same level of actual interpersonal mistreatment compared to Whites. The authors applied this prediction to the relationship between non-contingent punishment and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). As expected, in a field study among 456 manufacturing plant workers, the relationship between non-contingent punishment and supervisory-rated OCB was negative and significant for Whites, but not for Blacks. Implications for the study of race, interpersonal mistreatment, and the perpetuation of racial inequalities in organizations are discussed.

Nation, demographic, and attitudinal boundary conditions on leader social rewards and punishments in local governments

AbstractBoundary conditions on the relationships of contingent rewards and noncontingent punishments with evaluated performance and satisfaction are sought for supervisory and professional staff in local governments in the United States and Japan. Subgroup differences in tolerance for noncontingent punishment are reflected in mean differences in its use between nations (more reported in Japan), genders (less reported by women), and regions of the United States. The effects of noncontingent punishment on outcomes were not found for U.S. police sergeants. Evidence for a national contingency is reflected in the finding that the relationship of noncontingent punishments (but not contingent rewards) with cooperation, individual effectiveness, and satisfaction was stronger in the United States than in Japan. The study adds caution to the culture‐free and contingency‐free application of the theory of performance‐contingent rewards and punishments. Implications for the theory of social rewards and punishments and for the contingencies and criteria considered in leadership research, particularly cross‐cultural leadership research, are addressed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

SUBORDINATES AS TARGETS OF NONCONTINGENT PUNISHMENT: A VICTIMOLOGY PERSPECTIVE.

This research examines the delivery of noncontingent punishment by supervisors as perceived by subordinates. A victimology approach was taken to examine whether subordinate characteristics could pr...

Individual attributes and leadership style: predicting the use of punishment and its effects

This study examined attributes of leaders that influenced their use of contingent and noncontingent punishment and the results of using punishment on leader effectiveness. Results indicated that leaders with higher levels of physical fitness and moral reasoning were more likely to use contingent punishment, while those with lower self-esteem were more likely to use noncontingent punishment. Noncontingent punishment negatively impacted leader effectiveness, while contingent punishment positively impacted leader effectiveness. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Patterns of burnout among managers and professionals: a comparison of models

Using structural equation modeling, this paper compares the intertemporal sequences of the burnout components proposed by Maslach (1982) and Golembiewski (1989) using responses from 354 human resource professionals. The relationship between the burnout components and several critical variables that are theoretically linked to the phenomenon are also investigated. Studying human resource professionals allows us to examine the generalizability of burnout. This group of employees provides a range of services to a largely internal client group, and thus experience strain from interpersonal interactions. Results support Maslach's three-factor sequential model of burnout, although its superiority over the Golembiewski sequential model is not definitive. A post hoc analysis reveals a significant path between emotional exhaustion and personal accomplishment, and an insignificant path between depersonalization and personal accomplishment. Investigation of the relationship between the burnout components and several critical, theoretically linked variables indicates significant paths between (a) role overload and emotional exhaustion, (b) noncontingent punishment and depersonalization, and (c) contingent rewards and personal accomplishment. The work documents the generalizability of burnout to managers and professionals in corporate settings. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Patterns of burnout among managers and professionals: a comparison of models

Using structural equation modeling, this paper compares the intertemporal sequences of the burnout components proposed by Maslach (1982) and Golembiewski (1989) using responses from 354 human resource professionals. The relationship between the burnout components and several critical variables that are theoretically linked to the phenomenon are also investigated. Studying human resource professionals allows us to examine the generalizability of burnout. This group of employees provides a range of services to a largely internal client group, and thus experience strain from interpersonal interactions. Results support Maslach's three-factor sequential model of burnout, although its superiority over the Golembiewski sequential model is not definitive. A post hoc analysis reveals a significant path between emotional exhaustion and personal accomplishment, and an insignificant path between depersonalization and personal accomplishment. Investigation of the relationship between the burnout components and several critical, theoretically linked variables indicates significant paths between (a) role overload and emotional exhaustion, (b) noncontingent punishment and depersonalization, and (c) contingent rewards and personal accomplishment. The work documents the generalizability of burnout to managers and professionals in corporate settings. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Effects of rewards and punishments on leader charisma,leader effectiveness and follower reactions

This study examines the effects of leader reward and punishment on leader effectiveness and charisma. Follower reactions to leaders' punishment behavior are also examined. The sample of leaders consisted of 286 male upper class cadets at an all-male military college, while the followers were drawn from approximately 400 freshmen at the same institution. Followers completed surveys measuring leader reward, punishment, and charisma. Leaders completed peer rankings of effectiveness. Critical incident data on leadership were collected to gauge follower reactions to punishment. Correlation and ordinary least squares were used to analyze the relationships between rewards, punishment, charisma, and effectiveness. Chi-square statistics were used to compare follower reactions to contingent and noncontingent punishment. Results indicated noncontingent reward and contingent punishment were positively related to follower perceptions of leader charisma, while contingent reward was positively related to leader effectiveness. Followers also had different reactions to contingent and noncontingent punishment.

Petty Tyranny in Organizations

A petty tyrant is defined as one who lords his or her power over others. Preliminary empirical work suggests that tyrannical behaviors include arbitrariness and self-aggrandizement, belittling others, lack of consideration, a forcing style of conflict resolution, discouraging initiative, and noncontingent punishment. A model of the antecedents of tyrannical management and the effects of tyranny on subordinates is presented. Petty tyranny is argued to be the product of interactions between individual predispositions (beliefs about the organization, subordinates, and self, and preferences for action) and situational facilitators (institutionalized values and norms, power, and stressors). Tyrannical management is argued to cause low self-esteem, performance, work unit cohesiveness, and leader endorsement, and high frustration, stress, reactance, helplessness, and work alienation among subordinates. It is further argued that these effects may trigger a vicious circle which sustains the tyrannical behavior. Research implications are discussed.

An Examination of Subordinate-Perceived Relationships Between Leader Reward and Punishment Behavior and Leader Bases of Power

This paper extends earlier research on perceived leader reinforcement behavior and its affective and behavioral correlates. The current study examines relationships among subordinate perceptions of our supervisory ("leader") reinforcement behaviors (contingent and noncontingent reward and punishment behavior) and the five French and Raven (1959) bases of power (reward, coercive, legitimate, expert, and referent power). Based upon the literature, five sets of hypothesized relationships were developed, relating the perceived power bases to the perceived reward and punishment behaviors. Bivariate correlation, stepwise multiple regression, and hierarchical multiple regression analyses were performed on data obtained from surveys conducted in two large (N = 375, 297) samples. The results supported the positive effects of subordinate-perceived supervisor contingent reward and punishment behavior and the negative effects of noncontingent punishment on subordinate perceptions of their supervisor's power. Not supported were the moderating effects of time spent in interaction or time under the direction of the supervisor on these relationships. Implications for practicing managers and for future research are discussed.

Pat on the Back Versus Kick in the Pants

This laboratory study developed a leader categorization model to provide an application of cognitive inference to understanding the impact of leader reward and punishment behaviors. In addition to traditional leader contingent and noncontingent reward and punishment behaviors, the study divided noncontingent rewards and punishment behav iors into discretionary and required. It was found that whereas both contingent and noncontingent rewards aroused feelings of positive affect toward the leader, it took contingent punishment to result in a significantly higher improvement in production between the first and second production periods. Practitioner implications of these findings are discussed.

Culture-Free Leadership Effectiveness Versus Moderators of Leadership Behavior: An Extension and Test of Kerr and Jermier's “Substitutes for Leadership” Model in Taiwan

This study was designed to examine whether several situational variables serve as moderators of the effects of leader reward and punishment behaviors for Taiwanese workers. Contrary to what would be expected from Kerr and Jermier's (1978) substitutes for leadership model, none of the situational variables was found to reverse (1) the positive relationship between leader contingent reward behavior and subordinate performance or satisfaction, or (2) the generally negative relationship between leader noncontingent punishment behavior and these subordinate criterion variables. Potential limitations of these findings, and their implications for the study of leadership effectiveness across cultures are then discussed.

Expectation of success following noncontingent punishment in introverts and extraverts.

Recent findings indicate that extraverts are more likely than introverts to continue responding in the face of punishment and frustrating nonreward (Newman & Kosson, 1984; Tiggemann, Winefield, & Brebner, 1982). The current study investigates whether extraverts' expectations for success are, similarly, resistant to interruption and alteration. To test this hypothesis, 50 introverted and 50 extraverted male undergraduates were exposed to pretreatment with either a 50% level of noncontingent reward or a 50% level of noncontingent punishment. As predicted, there were significant Group X Pretreatment interactions on all dependent measures. In comparison to those introverts who received the punishment pretreatment, extraverts exposed to the same pretreatment placed larger wagers on their ability to succeed, and reported higher levels of perceived control. In addition, relative to their estimates for the pretreatment task, extraverts exposed to noncontingent punishment increased their expectation for success, whereas introverts exposed to noncontingent punishment decreased their performance expectations. No differences were observed between the two groups following pretreatment with noncontingent reward. The results suggest that extraverts are characterized by a distinctive reaction to punishment involving response facilitation as opposed to response inhibition.

Expectation of success following noncontingent punishment in introverts and extraverts.

Expectation of success following noncontingent punishment in introverts and extraverts.

Relationships Between Leader Reward and Punishment Behavior and Group Processes and Productivity

This study was designed to investigate the relationships between subordinates' perceptions of leader reward and punishment behaviors and group cohesiveness, drive, and productivity. In addition, the effects of common method or same-source variance on these relationships was also assessed. Questionnaires were administered to 827 employees in three different organizations. Leader contingent reward behavior (CR) was found to be positively related to group drive, cohesiveness, and group productivity. These relationships were found to be robust, even when they were statistically controlled for common method variance. Leader contingent punishment behavior (CP) was also found to be positively related to group drive and productivity in this study, although only the relationship between CP and group productivity remained significant when same-source variance was partialled out. Leader noncontingent punishment behavior (NCP) was negatively related to group drive. Finally, while leader noncontingent reward behavior (NCR) was not initially related to group drive, cohesiveness, or productivity, this leader behavior was found to be negatively related to each of these group criterion variables when general method variance was partialled out.