How Supervisor–Subordinate Guanxi Influence Employee Innovative Behavior: A Moderated Mediation Model

Abstract

Purpose In the practice of inspiring employees’ innovative behavior (IB), managers often pay attention to the role of policies, capitals, incentive measures, equipment and other factors, while ignoring the role of the relationship between leaders and employees. Based on social exchange theory and conservation of resources theory, this paper is to examine the mediating role of job satisfaction (JS) and organizational commitment (OC) in the relationship between supervisor–subordinate guanxi (SSG) and employee IB, and the moderating role of psychological safety (PS) in the series mediation model between SSG and employee IB. Patients and Methods Cross-sectional data came from 207 employees of Chinese scientific and technological enterprises. The participants completed the SSG scale, JS scale, OC scale, IB scale, and PS scale. SPSS PROCESS macro was used to test the research hypothesis. Results SSG was positively associated with employee IB. SSG can not only influence IB through JS or OC (SSG→JS→IB; SSG→OC→IB) but also influence IB through JS and OC (SSG→JS→OC→IB). PS moderated the joint mediating effects between SSG and IB (SSG→JS→OC→IB). Conclusion To stimulate employees’ IB within an enterprise can pay attention to the relationship between leaders and employees, improve employee JS, and strengthen employee OC. The lower the PS, the stronger the joint mediation effects between SSG and employee IB. Therefore, leaders should also pay attention to employees with high PS to avoid the counterproductive effect of cultivating SSG.

Understanding the Link Between Work-Related and Non-Work-Related Supervisor–Subordinate Relationships and Affective Commitment: The Mediating and Moderating Roles of Psychological Safety

“…39 At present, COR theory has also been applied to the research of leadership styles on employees' work attitudes and behaviors. 38,45 Different Types of SSR and AC At present, different types of SSR can be divided into LMX and SSG. Both LMX and SSG are based on social exchange theory, emphasizing the quality of the relationship between supervisors and subordinates.…”

“…16 This conclusion has also been verified in the study of Gao and Liu. 38 Robert and Vandenberghe 19 suggest that LMX can positively affect AC. This conclusion has also been verified in the study of Gara et al 18 Chinese culture pays more attention to human sentiment.…”

“…Based on COR theory, high-quality LMX and SSG can be regarded as important information/resources obtained by employees while PS can be regarded as a kind of interpersonal resource. 38 Different resources do not exist independently, while interact with each other like a moving "caravan". 70 Therefore, different types of SSR should interact with PS to affect employee AC.…”

“…71 They will relax, pleasant, speak freely, 72 and do not worry about negative interpersonal consequences. At this time, PS resources will enable employees not to be distracted from dealing with interpersonal relationships, so as to better protect existing resources, avoid resource loss, and continuously obtain new resources, 38 which should enhance employees' sense of belonging and loyalty to their organization. On the contrary, person with fewer resources is more susceptible to resource loss and have lower ability to acquire new resources.…”

“…Furthermore, numerous studies have shown that a variable can play a mediating and moderating role at the same time. 36 , 37 Gao and Liu 38 also pointed out that PS is an important factor to evaluate the effect of leaders on employee work attitudes. Hence, based on conservation of resources(COR) theory, this paper regards PS as a kind of interpersonal resource, 38 and believes that different resources will not exist independently, but will interact and influence each other.…”