Should the Squeaky Wheel Get the Grease? The Organizational Impact of Rewarding Entitled or Proactive Employees

Abstract

Two studies were conducted to understand the role of rewards in workplace entitlement and employee proactivity. In Study 1, contrary to expectations, rewards did not affect counterproductive work behaviour or organizational citizenship behaviour, although it is likely that the manipulation was not strong enough. However, in general, entitled people were more likely to report negative and positive organizational behaviours. In Study 2, managers were more likely to reward proactive employees with a desirable project but some also rewarded entitled employees as a way to reduce conflict. Further research is needed to understand how to administer rewards without encouraging entitled behaviour.