Followers\u27 constructive voice and leaders\u27 reactions to voice: A self-enhancement perspective

In the past decade, employee voice has attracted much attention in the field of organizational behavior. Voice refers to employees\u27 proposal of ideas and suggestions aiming at improving organizational performance. Yet, to date, very little research has been devoted to the leader outcomes of followers\u27 voice, particularly how leaders react to such voice. Addressing the issue through the lens of the self-enhancement principle, this dissertation advances the voice literature by exploring why leaders react to followers\u27 constructive voice in a more positive vs. negative way. In addition, this study investigates the conditions that influence leaders\u27 different reactions to their followers\u27 constructive voice. Specifically, this study hypothesized a curvilinear relationship between followers\u27 constructive voice and their leaders\u27 attention to voice depending on the leaders\u27 attribution of the followers\u27 prosocial voice motive. Moreover, this study hypothesized two curvilinear moderated mediating mechanisms linking followers\u27 constructive voice with leaders\u27 self-advancing (consultation with followers) and self-protecting (defensive resistance to voice) reactions to followers\u27 voice via leaders\u27 attention to this voice, depending on the leaders\u27 leadership self-efficacy. Using data collected from 289 employees and their 41 managers in a large Chinese consulting company, this study failed to find support for the hypothesized curvilinear relationships. However, the results showed that the followers\u27 constructive voice did have a significantly positive linear effect on their leaders\u27 attention to voice. This effect was stronger when leaders attributed their followers\u27 voice to a greater extent to the followers\u27 prosocial motive. Further supplemental analyses also showed that when leaders felt more confident about their leadership capabilities (i.e., leadership self-efficacy), they were more likely to consult with their followers and less likely to defensively resist such voice. This occurred as the followers\u27 constructive voice increased and leaders paid more attention to such voice. However, when leaders felt less confident about their leadership capabilities, there was no significant indirect effect of followers\u27 constructive voice on leader\u27s consultation or defensive resistance via leaders\u27 attention to such voice. Finally, theoretical and practical implications, limitations of this study, and future research directions are discussed