Skip to main content
Disciplines
Automotive Business IT + Informatics Construction + Real Estate Electrical Engineering + Electronics Energy + Sustainability Insurance + Risk Finance + Banking Management + Leadership Marketing + Sales Mechanical Engineering + Materials
Events
DE
EN
Books
Journals
Topic Page
Marketing
Start single access now
Access for companies
EXTENDED SEARCH
Log in
Top
Journal of Business and Psychology
Published in: Journal of Business and Psychology 1/2022

05-04-2021 | Original Paper

The Impact of Supervisor-Subordinate Incongruence in Power Distance Orientation on Subordinate Job Strain and Subsequent Job Performance

Authors: Orlando Richard, María del Carmen Triana, İlhami Yücel, Mingxiang Li, Brian Pinkham

Published in: Journal of Business and Psychology | Issue 1/2022

Log in

Activate our intelligent search to find suitable subject content or patents.

search-config
loading …

Abstract

Employee strain is estimated to cost American companies as much as $500 billion in lost productivity annually, and a leading cause of workforce stress is disagreements with other people (Cook, 2017; Mental Health America, 2017). In this study, we investigate supervisor-subordinate value incongruence as a cause of employee strain. Specifically, this study examines the effect of supervisor-subordinate power distance orientation incongruence on the subordinate’s job strain which, in turn, influences the subordinate’s job performance. Using a sample of 172 supervisor-subordinate dyads, we find that incongruence on power distance orientation increases subordinate job strain. Supervisor-subordinate incongruence resulted in more job strain which, in turn, resulted in lower job performance. Results reveal that the alignment of subordinates’ cultural values with those of their supervisors may mitigate negative experiences and facilitate more positive work outcomes.
previous article Organizational science and cybersecurity: abundant opportunities for research at the interface
next article Doubly Latent Multilevel Procedures for Organizational Assessment and Prediction

Dont have a licence yet? Then find out more about our products and how to get one now:

Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 102.000 Bücher
  • über 537 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Automobil + Motoren
  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Elektrotechnik + Elektronik
  • Energie + Nachhaltigkeit
  • Finance + Banking
  • Management + Führung
  • Marketing + Vertrieb
  • Maschinenbau + Werkstoffe
  • Versicherung + Risiko

Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

inform now

Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Wirtschaft" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 67.000 Bücher
  • über 340 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Finance + Banking
  • Management + Führung
  • Marketing + Vertrieb
  • Versicherung + Risiko




Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

inform now
Literature
Adkins, C. L., & Russell, C. J. (1997). Supervisor-subordinate work value congruence and subordinate performance: A pilot study. Journal of Business and Psychology, 12, 205–218.
Beehr, T. A., & Bhagat, R. S. (1985). Human stress and cognition in organizations: An integrated perspective. John Wiley & Sons.
Beehr, T. A., Jex, S. M., Stacy, B. A., & Murray, M. A. (2000). Work stressors and coworker support as predictors of individual strain and job performance. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 21, 391–405.
Bochner, S., & Hesketh, B. (1994). Power distance, individualism/collectivism, and job-related attitudes in a culturally diverse work group. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 25(2), 233–257.
Boon, C., & Biron, M. (2016). Temporal issues in person-organization fit, person-job fit and turnover: The role of leader-member exchange. Human Relations, 69(12), 2177–2200.PubMed
Brockner, J., Ackerman, G., Greenberg, J., Gelfand, M. J., Francesco, A. M., Chen, Z. X., Leung, K., Bierbrauer, G., Gomez, C., Kirkman, B. L., & Shapiro, D. (2001). Culture and procedural justice: The influence of power distance on reactions to voice. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 37(4), 300–315.
Byrne, B. M. (1998). Structural equation modeling with LISREL, Prelis, and Simplis: Basic Concepts, Applications, and Programming. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Cable, D. M., & DeRue, D. S. (2002). The convergent and discriminant validity of subjective fit perceptions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 875–884.
Caplan, R. D. (1987). Person-environment fit theory and organizations: Commensurate dimensions, time perspectives, and mechanisms. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 31, 248–267.
Carl, D., Gupta, V., & Javidan, M. (2004). Power distance. In R. J. House, P. J. Hanges, M. Javidan, P. W. Dorfman, & V. Gupta (Eds.), Culture, leadership, and organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 cultures (pp. 437–512). Sage Publications.
Chemers, M. M., Hays, R. B., Rhodewalt, F., & Wysocki, J. (1985). A person-environment analysis of job stress: A contingency model explanation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 49, 628–635.PubMed
Cifre, E., Vera, M., Rodriguez-Sanchez, A. M., & Pastor, M. C. (2013). Job-person fit and well-being from a gender perspective. Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 29, 161–168.
Clarke, N., & Mahadi, N. (2017). Mutual recognition respect between leaders and followers: Its relationship to follower job performance and well-being. Journal of Business Ethics, 141(1), 163–178.
Clugston, M., Howell, J. P., & Dorfman, P. W. (2000). Does cultural socialization predict multiple bases and foci of commitment? Journal of Management, 26, 5–30.
Cohen, A., Nahum-Shani, I., & Doveh, E. (2010). Further insight and additional inference methods for polynomial regression applied to the analysis of congruence. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 45, 828–852.PubMedPubMedCentral
Cole, M. S., Carter, M. Z., & Zhang, Z. (2013). Leader-team congruence in power distance values and team effectiveness: The mediating role of procedural justice climate. Journal of Applied Psychology, 98(6), 962–973.
Colquitt, J. A., Conlon, D. E., Wesson, M. J., Porter, C. O. L. H., & Ng, K. Y. (2001). Justice at the millennium: A meta-analytic review of 25 years of organizational justice research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86, 425–445.
De Dreu, C. K. W., & Weingart, L. R. (2003). Task versus relationship conflict, team effectiveness, and team member satisfaction: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88, 741–749.
Dorfman, P. W., & Howell, J. P. (1988). Dimensions of national culture and effective leadership patterns. Advances in International Cooperative Management, 3, 137–150.
Eder, P., & Eisenberger, R. (2008). Perceived organizational support: Reducing the negative influence of coworker withdrawal behavior. Journal of Management, 34, 55–68.
Edwards, J. R., & Cable, D. M. (2009). The value of congruence. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94, 654–677.
Edwards, J. R., & Parry, M. E. (1993). On the use of polynomial regression equations as an alternative to difference scores in organizational research. Academy of Management Journal, 36, 1577–1613.
Edwards, J. R., & Shipp, A. J. (2007). The relationship between person-environment fit and outcomes: An integrative theoretical framework. In C. Ostroff & T. A. Judge (Eds.), Perspectives on organizational fit (pp. 209–258). Lawrence Erlbaum.
Edwards, J. R., & Van Harrison, R. (1993). Job demands and worker health: Three-dimensional reexamination of the relationship between person-environment fit and strain. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78, 628–648.
Edwards, J. R., Caplan, R. D., & Van Harrison, R. (1998). Person-environment fit theory: Conceptual foundations, empirical evidence, and directions for future research. In C. L. Cooper (Ed.), Theories of organizational stress (pp. 28–67). Oxford University Press.
Edwards, J. R., Cable, D. M., Williamson, I. O., Lambert, L. S., & Shipp, A. J. (2006). The phenomenology of fit: Linking the person and environment to the subjective experience of person-environment fit. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91, 802–827.
Erdogan, B., Kraimer, M. L., & Liden, R. C. (2004). Work value congruence and intrinsic career success: the compensatory roles of leader-member exchange and perceived organizational support. Personnel Psychology, 57(2), 305–332.
Erez, M. (1994). Towards a model of cross-cultural I/O psychology. Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology, 4, 569–607.
Erez, M. (2010). Culture and job design. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 31, 389–400.
Farh, J. L., Dobbins, G. H., & Cheng, B. S. (1991). Cultural relativity in action: A comparison of self-rating made by Chinese and U.S. workers. Personnel Psychology, 44, 129–147.
Farh, J. L., Hackett, R. D., & Liang, J. (2007). Individual-level cultural values as moderators of perceived organizational support-employee outcomes relationships in China: Comparing the effects of power distance and traditionality. Academy of Management Journal, 50(3), 715–729.
Folkman, S., & Lazarus, R. S. (1985). If it changes it must be a process: Study of emotion and coping during three stages of a college examination. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48, 150–170.PubMed
Folkman, S., & Lazarus, R. S. (1990). Coping and emotion. In N. L. Stein, B. Leventhal, & T. Trabasso (Eds.), Psychological and biological approaches to emotion (pp. 313–332). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Frear, K. A., Donsbach, J., Theilgard, N., & Shanock, L. R. (2018). Supported supervisors are more supportive, but why? A multilevel study of mechanisms and outcomes. Journal of Business and Psychology, 33(1), 55–69.
French, J. R., Caplan, R. D., & Harrison, R. V. (1982). The mechanisms of job stress and strain. Wiley.
Gelfand, M. J., Bhawuk, D. P., Nishii, L., & Bechtold, D. (2004). Individualism and collectivism. In R. J. House, P. J. Hanges, M. Javidan, P. W. Dorfman, & V. Gupta (Eds.), Culture, leadership, and organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 cultures (pp. 437–512). Sage Publications.
Gelfand, M. J., Erez, M., & Aycan, Z. (2007). Cross-cultural organizational behavior. Annual Review of Psychology, 58, 479–514.PubMed
Griffeth, R. W., Hom, P. W., & Gaertner, S. (2000). A meta-analysis of antecedents and correlates of employee turnover: Update, moderator tests, and research implications for the next millennium. Journal of Management, 26, 463–488.
Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture's consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions and organizations across nations. Sage.
House, R., Javidan, M., Hanges, P., & Dorfman, P. (2002). Understanding the cultures and implicit leadership theories across the globe: An introduction to project GLOBE. Journal of World Business, 37, 3–10.
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55.
Hunter, L. W., & Thatcher, S. M. B. (2007). Feeling the heat: Effects of stress, commitment, and job experience on job performance. Academy of Management Journal, 50, 953–968.
Imai, L., & Gelfand, M. J. (2010). The culturally intelligent negotiator: The impact of cultural intelligence (CQ) on negotiation sequences and outcomes. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 112, 83–89.
Jackson, S. (1983). Participation in decision making as a strategy for reducing job-related strain. Journal of Applied Psychology, 68(1), 3–19.
Javidan, M., House, R. J., Dorfman, P. W., Hanges, P. J., & De Luque, M. S. (2006). Conceptualizing and measuring cultures and their consequences: A comparative review of GLOBE's and Hofstede's approaches. Journal of International Business Studies, 37(6), 897–914.
Jehn, K. A. (1995). A multimethod examination of the benefits and detriments of intragroup conflict. Administrative Science Quarterly, 40, 256–282.
Jun, S., & Gentry, J. W. (2005). An exploratory investigation of the relative importance of cultural similarity and personal fit in the selection and performance of expatriates. Journal of World Business, 40, 1–8.
Katz, D., & Kahn, R. L. (1966). The psychology of organizations. Wiley.
Khatri, N. (2009). Consequences of power distance orientation in organisations. Vision, 13, 1–9.
Kirkman, B. L., Lowe, K. B., & Gibson, C. B. (2006). A quarter century of culture’s consequences: A review of empirical research incorporating Hofstede’s cultural value framework. Journal of International Business Studies, 37, 285–320.
Kirkman, B. L., Chen, G., Farh, J.-L., Chen, Z. X., & Lowe, K. B. (2009). Individual power distance orientation and followers reactions to transformational leaders: A cross-level, cross-cultural examination. Academy of Management Journal, 52, 744–754.
Kline, R. (2005). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (2nd ed.). The Guilford Press.
Koslowsky, M. (2009). A multi-level model of withdrawal: Integrating and synthesizing theory and findings. Human Resource Management Review, 19, 283–303.
Krishnan, V. R. (2002). Transformational leadership and value system congruence. International Journal of Value-Based Management, 15, 19–33.
Kristof-Brown, A. L., Zimmerman, R. D., & Johnson, E. C. (2005). Consequences of individual’s fit at work: A meta-analysis of person-job, person-organization, person-group, and person-supervisor fit. Personnel Psychology, 58(2), 281–342.
Lambert, L., Tepper, B. J., Carr, J. C., Holt, D. T., & Barelka, A. J. (2012). Forgotten but not gone: An examination of fit between leader consideration and initiating structure needed and received. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97(5), 913–930.
Lang, J., Thomas, J. L., Bliese, P. D., & Adler, A. B. (2007). Job demands and job performance: the mediating effects of psychological and physical strain and the moderating effect of role clarity. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 12(2), 116–124.PubMed
Lazarus, R. S. (1966). Psychological Stress and the Coping Process. McGraw Hill.
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, Appraisal, and Coping. Springer.
Lee, Y.-T., & Antonakis, J. (2014). When preference is not satisfied but the Individual is: How power distance moderates person-job fit. Journal of Management, 40(3), 641–675.
Lehman, W. E. K., & Simpson, D. D. (1992). Employee substance abuse and on-the-job behaviors. Journal of Applied Psychology, 77, 309–321.
LePine, J. A., Podsakoff, N. P., & LePine, M. A. (2005). A meta-analytic test of the challenge stressor-hindrance stressor framework: An explanation for inconsistent relationships among stressors and performance. Academy of Management Journal, 48, 764–775.
Liao, H., Joshi, A., & Chuang, A. (2004). Sticking out like a sore thumb: Employee dissimilarity and deviance at work. Personnel Psychology, 57, 969–1000.
Lovelace, K., & Rosen, B. (1996). Differences in achieving person-organization fit among diverse groups of managers. Journal of Management, 22, 703–722.
Matta, F. K., Scott, B. A., Koopman, J., & Conlon, D. E. (2015). Does seeing “eye to eye” affect work engagement and organizational citizenship behavior? A role theory perspective on LMX agreement. Academy of Management Journal, 58(6), 1686–1708.
Meglino, B. M., Ravlin, E. C., & Adkins, C. L. (1989). A work values approach to corporate culture: A field test of the value congruence process and its relationship to individual outcomes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 74, 424–432.
Mitra, A., Jenkins, G. D., & Gupta, N. (1992). A meta-analytic review of the relationship between absence and turnover. Journal of Applied Psychology, 77, 879–889.
Motowidlo, S. J., & Van Scotter, J. R. (1994). Evidence that task performance should be distinguished from contextual performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 79, 475–480.
Murphy, K. R. (1993). Honesty in the workplace. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.
Ostroff, C., Shin, Y., & Kinicki, A. J. (2005). Multiple perspectives of congruence: relationships between value congruence and employee attitudes. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 26, 591–623.
Perrewé, P. L., & Zellars, K. L. (1999). An examination of attributions and emotions in the transactional approach to the organizational stress process. Journal of Organizational Rehavior, 20, 739–775.
Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Lee, J. Y., & Podsakoff, N. P. (2003). Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88, 879–903.
Posner, B. B. (2010). Another look at the impact of personal and organizational values congruency. Journal of Business Ethics, 97(4), 535–541.
Rahimnia, F. R., & Sharifirad, M. (2015). Authentic leadership and employee well-being: The mediating role of attachment insecurity. Journal of Business Ethics, 132(2), 363–377.
Reus, T. H. (2012). Culture’s consequences for emotional attending during cross-border acquisition implementation. Journal of World Business, 47, 342–351.
Rosenthal, R., & Rosnow, R. L. (2008). Essentials of behavioral research: Methods and data analysis (3rd ed.). Boston: McGraw-Hill.
Saks, A. M., & Ashforth, B. E. (1997). A longitudinal investigation of the relationships between job information sources, application perceptions of fit, and work outcomes. Personnel Psychology, 50, 395–426.
Schaubroeck, J., Cha, S. E., & Lam, S. S. K. (2007). Embracing transformational leadership: Team values and the impact of leader behavior on team performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92, 1020–1030.
Seggewiss, B. J., Boeggemann, L. M., Straatmann, T., Mueller, K., & Hattrup, K. (2019). Do values and value congruence both predict commitment? A refined multi-target, multi-value investigation into a challenged belief. Journal of Business and Psychology, 34(2), 169–187.
Sherif, M., Harvey, O. J., White, B. J., Hood, W. R., & Sherif, C. W. (1961). Intergroup Conflict and Cooperation: The Robbers’ Cave Experiment. University of Oklahoma Press.
Singelis, T. M., Triandis, H. C., Bhawuk, D. P. S., & Gelfand, M. J. (1995). Horizontal and vertical dimensions of individualism and collectivism: A theoretical and measurement refinement. Cross-Cultural Research, 29, 240–275.
Skiba, T., & Wildman, J. L. (2019). Uncertainty reducer, exchange deepener, or self-determination enhancer? Feeling trust versus feeling trusted in supervisor-subordinate relationships. Journal of Business and Psychology, 34(2), 219–235.
Taras, V., Steel, P., & Kirkman, B. L. (2012). Improving national cultural indices using a longitudinal meta-analysis of Hofstede’s dimensions. Journal of World Business, 47, 329–341.
Tepper, B. J., & Taylor, E. C. (2003). Relationships among supervisors’ and subordinates’ procedural justice perceptions and organizational citizenship behaviors. Academy of Management Journal, 45, 97–105.
Tillman, J., Hood, A., & Richard, O. C. (2017). Supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict asymmetry and subordinate turnover intentions: The mediating roles of stress and counterproductive work behaviors. Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 17(3), 169–196.
Triandis, H. C., Kurowski, L. L., & Gelfand, M. J. (1994). Workplace diversity. In H. C. Triandis, M. D. Dunnette, & L. M. Hough (Eds.), Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology (pp. 769–827). Consulting Psychologists Press.
Turban, D. B., & Jones, A. P. (1988). Supervisor-subordinate similarity: Types, effects, and mechanisms. Journal of Applied Psychology, 73, 228–262.
Tyler, T. R., Lind, E. A., & Huo, Y. J. (2000). Cultural values and authority relations: The psychology of conflict resolution across cultures. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 6, 1138–1163.
Van Knippenberg, D., De Dreu, C. K., & Homan, A. C. (2004). Work group diversity and group performance: an integrative model and research agenda. Journal of Applied Psychology, 89(6), 1008–1022.
Van Vianen, A. E. M. (2000). Person-organization fit: The match between newcomers’ and recruiters’ preferences for organizational cultures. Personnel Psychology, 53, 113–149.
van Vianen, A. E. M. (2018). Person-environment fit: A review of its basic tenets. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 5, 75–101.
Vogel, R. M., Rodell, J. B., & Lynch, J. W. (2016). Engaged and productive misfits: How job crafting and leisure activity mitigate the negative effects of value incongruence. Academy of Management Journal, 59(5), 1561–1584.
Wexley, K. N., Alexander, R. A., Greenawalt, J. P., & Couch, M. A. (1980). Attitudinal congruence and similarity as related to interpersonal evaluations in manager-subordinate dyads. Academy of Management Journal, 23, 320–330.
Zhang, Z., Wang, M., & Shi, J. (2012). Leader-follower congruence in proactive personality and work outcomes: The mediating role of leader-member exchange. Academy of Management Journal, 55(1), 111–130.
Metadata
Title
The Impact of Supervisor-Subordinate Incongruence in Power Distance Orientation on Subordinate Job Strain and Subsequent Job Performance
Authors
Orlando Richard
María del Carmen Triana
İlhami Yücel
Mingxiang Li
Brian Pinkham
Publication date
05-04-2021
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Journal of Business and Psychology / Issue 1/2022
Print ISSN: 0889-3268
Electronic ISSN: 1573-353X
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-021-09738-3

Other articles of this Issue 1/2022

Journal of Business and Psychology 1/2022 Go to the issue

Original Paper

Visible Tattoos as a Source of Employment Discrimination Among Female Applicants for a Supervisory Position

Original Paper

An Approach–Avoidance Lens on Sexual Harassment: The Effects of Relative Attractiveness, Gender, Relationship Status, and Role

Original Paper

Can You Always Catch More Flies with Honey than with Vinegar? Applying an Asymmetric Approach to Transformational Leadership Research

Original Paper

Doubly Latent Multilevel Procedures for Organizational Assessment and Prediction

Original Paper

Measuring General Job Satisfaction: Which Is More Construct Valid—Global Scales or Facet-Composite Scales?

Original Paper

In the Eye of the Beholder: How Self-Other Agreements Influence Leadership Training Outcomes as Perceived by Leaders and Their Followers

Premium Partner

    Image Credits