Facilitator or barrier? The double-edged effects of leader perfectionism on employee innovation behavior

Although there have been studies in the past that have highlighted the important role of leader traits in motivating employee innovation behavior, leader perfectionism has been scarcely investigated in this context. This study attempts to explore whether leader perfectionism directed toward employees can facilitate or hinder employee innovation behavior. Based on the transactional model of stress, we propose and test a moderated mediation model using data from a multi-wave, multi-source survey of 334 leader-employee questionnaires. The results show that, for employees with high self-efficacy, leader perfectionism has a positive effect on their challenge stress, which in turn promotes employee innovation behavior; Meanwhile, for employees with low self-efficacy, leader perfectionism has a positive effect on their hindrance stress, thereby discouraging employee innovation behavior. This study has significant theoretical and practical implications as it highlights the underlying relationship between leader perfectionism and employee innovation behavior.

The Effect of Leader Perfectionism on Employee Deviance: An Interpersonal Relationship Perspective

Purpose

Despite growing evidence of significant role of leader perfectionism in the workplace, few theoretical accounts have delved into intricate dynamics of interpersonal relationships impacted by leader perfectionism, nor have they explored the extent to which these interactions might stimulate employee unethical behavior. From an interpersonal relationship perspective, based on interpersonal complementarity theory, this study proposes a link between leader perfectionism and employee deviant behavior while assessing the mediating impact of supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict, and the moderating influence of employee narcissism.

Methods

This study employed three-wave surveys, with 335 employees (female 55.8%, 26-35 years old 67.4%, bachelor's degree 61.5%, worked 3-10 years 67.4%, worked with their current leader 1-5 years 66.3%) across 11 enterprises in Chinato reduce the risk of common method bias. On this basis, MPLUS 7.4 was used to test the confirmatory factor analysis of data, and SPSS 24.0 was used to test the hypotheses.

Results

(1) Leader perfectionism has a positive effect on supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict. (2) Leader perfectionism has a significantly positive effect on employee deviant behavior via supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict. (3) Employee narcissism positively moderates the relationship between leader perfectionism and supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict, and further positively moderates the indirect effect of leader perfectionism on employee deviant behavior via supervisor-subordinate relationship conflict.

Conclusion

This study reveals the mechanism of how employee through deviant behavior as a opposition to leader perfectionism from an interpersonal relationship perspective, which provides theoretical and practical implications for reducing the negative impact of leader perfectionism and employee deviant behavior.

Why does a leader's other-oriented perfectionism lead employees to do bad things? Examining the role of moral disengagement and moral identity

Introduction

Moral disengagement is an essential concept in organizational behavioral ethics, as it is strongly related to employee behaviors and attitudes. What is not clear, however, is which leader traits are directly associated with employees' moral disengagement and which are indirectly associated with unethical behavior. This study draws on a social cognitive perspective that links leaders' other-oriented perfectionism (LOOP) with unethical employee behavior. Specifically, we propose that LOOP provides employees with excuses and encouragement to engage in unethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB).

Methods

We analyzed data collected from 266 full-time employees at two-time points, and used mediated and moderated structural equation models to test the hypotheses, and the findings largely support our claims.

Results

The results suggest that LOOP effectively promotes employees' involvement in UPB. Moderated mediation tests suggest that the positive indirect impact of LOOP on employees' unethical behavior via moral disengagement was attenuated by higher employees' moral identity.

Discussion

In summary, the results indicate that when leaders emphasize only perfection and make unrealistic demands on their employees, the latter perceive that engaging in unethical behavior is demanded by the leader, that the responsibility is not theirs, and thus they are more willing to engage in unethical behavior. This study discusses the implications of these findings from both practical and theoretical perspectives.

The Only way is up? How Different Facets of Employee and Supervisor Perfectionism Help or Hinder Career Development

Although the double-edged nature of perfectionism is widely acknowledged, little is known about how it shapes employee career development. By combining two field studies, we provide a multiperspective insight into the relevance of both employee and supervisor perfectionism for employee career development. While we expected self-oriented perfectionism (SOP) to have an ambivalent role for career development, we proposed that socially prescribed perfectionism (SPP) in particular, but also other-oriented perfectionism (OOP), would show maladaptive relationships with career-related indicators. In Study 1 (N = 116), we focused on the employee perspective and how multidimensional perfectionism relates to career aspirations (operationalized via work motivation) and subjective career success. Employees high in SOP reported higher, whereas those high in SPP reported lower perceived career success. OOP was negatively related to intrinsic motivation, but positively explained extrinsic (social) motivation and amotivation. In Study 2 (N = 146), we examined the role of supervisor perfectionism in supporting or hindering employees' career development by providing or draining resources. Our results show that supervisors high in SOP - and partly in OOP are reluctant to delegate highly responsible tasks; SPP even increased the likelihood of assigning illegitimate tasks to subordinates. Our findings suggest that both employee and supervisor perfectionism may boost or thwart employee career development and success. We discuss that supervisor perfectionism may limit employees' opportunities for experiential learning.

The ways to avoid abusive supervision: the moderating effects of the characteristics of supervisors and subordinates on abusive supervision

Following the recent emphasis on supervisory interactions in abusive supervision, this study explains why and how supervisors' job insecurity and authoritarianism are related to abusive supervision and how subordinates' characteristics, agreeableness and negotiating resistance interact with the effects of supervisors' characteristics. We conducted a field study with 261 supervisor and subordinate dyads in South Korea, and the study findings confirmed that supervisors' authoritarianism is positively related to abusive supervision and that the effect is enhanced when subordinates are highly agreeable and display resistant behaviors. The study contributes to the leadership literature, particularly on abusive supervision and personality. Moreover, our findings have practical implications for employees to manage their work relationships with their supervisors or subordinates.

Perfectionism, Interactional Justice and Job Performance: A Trait Activation Perspective

Drawing on trait activation theory, this research explores the intrapersonal consequences of perfectionism in the workplace by examining the relationships between self-oriented perfectionism (SOP) and two distinct job performance dimensions, i.e., task performance and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and the moderating role of interactional justice on these relationships. Using field data collected from 121 employee–supervisor dyads in South Korea, we found a unique and incremental predictive power of employee SOP on job performance, specifically task performance. Moreover, the results showed that the interaction effect of employee SOP and interactional justice on OCB was significant, such that the trait of SOP was activated to enhance OCB when interactional justice was low. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Your Care Mitigates My Ego Depletion: Why and When Perfectionists Show Incivility Toward Coworkers

Drawing on ego depletion theory and trait activation theory, this study examines why and when employee perfectionism personality is linked with incivility toward coworkers. The study indulges ego depletion as a mediator between perfectionism personality and incivility toward coworkers, with coworker empathic concern moderating the relationship between perfectionism personality and ego depletion. A three-waved questionnaire was incorporated with sample of 253 employee-coworker dyads. Our findings demonstrate that dimensions of perfectionism personality are positively associated with incivility toward coworkers. In addition, our study confirms that ego depletion mediates the relationship between self-oriented perfectionism, other-oriented perfectionism, and incivility toward coworkers. Furthermore, our study shows that high levels of coworker empathic concern weakens the direct effect of self-oriented perfectionism on ego depletion along with the indirect effect of self-oriented perfectionism on incivility toward coworkers. Theoretical and practical implications of the study are discussed in the organizational context.

"Perfect Leader, Perfect Leadership?" Linking Leaders' Perfectionism to Monitoring, Transformational, and Servant Leadership Behavior

Despite the growing interest in perfectionism and its many facets, there is a lack of research on this phenomenon in the context of leadership. Attending to this deficit, the present study is the first to investigate the relationship between the three facets of perfectionism (self-oriented, socially prescribed, and other-oriented perfectionism) and three types of self-rated leadership behavior. In Study 1 (N = 182), leaders’ perfectionism and its association to their organizational, goal-oriented leadership behavior—self-rated as transactional (management by exception) and transformational leadership—is explored. In Study 2 (N = 185), the relationship of leaders’ perfectionism to their servant leadership as a people-centered leadership behavior is investigated. In line with the perfectionism social disconnection model (PSDM), we assume other-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism to be positively related to management by exception (i.e., monitoring behavior) and negatively related to transformational and servant leadership, whereas the opposite pattern is primarily predicted for self-oriented perfectionism. Our findings in Study 1 reveal a negative relationship between leaders’ self-oriented perfectionism as well as positive relationships to their other-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism in management by exception, while no substantial correlations with transformational leadership have emerged. In Study 2, a negative association between other-oriented perfectionism and the forgiveness dimension of servant leadership is revealed, indicating a possible barrier to building interpersonal relationships of acceptance and trust. Additionally, self-oriented perfectionism has been proven to be a rather favorable trait in servant leadership.