SUPERIOR‐SUBORDINATE RELATIONSHIPS AND PERFORMANCE¹

Abstract

THIS study is concerned with the proposition that the nature of superior-subordinate relationships in an organization, as perceived or evaluated by subordinates, affects the job performance of subordinates, whether the latter are considered as a group or as individuals. This rather widely accepted proposition was tested using four more specific hypotheses which were derived from it, and which involve certain aspects of superiorsubordinate interaction, as specified in the paper. The objectives were to test the hypothesized relationships between these variables and subordinate performance, and to examine the generality of these relationships. The ProblemImplicit in the managerial practices and training programs of many firms is the belief that high performance will accompany the application of certain "good" human relations principles. This belief appears to be held as a very general proposition applicable to all organizations, to all sub-units within an organization, to individuals within an organization, and to all important aspects of performance. The belief is encouraged by many research findings showing that some variables representative of "good" human relations practice are in fact positively and significantly related to performance. A This work has received financial support from three sources: The Faculty Research Fund of the Rackham School of Graduate Studies, The University of Michigan; the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, The University of Michigan and Wayne State University; and the firm which collaborated in the study. 'The senior author is now at Rutgers-The State University. 357 358 PERSONNEL PSYCHOLOGY

The Impact of Organizational Structure and Supervisory Listening Indicators on Subordinate Support, Trust, Intrinsic Motivation, and Performance

“…Similarly, increasing trust can increase the accuracy of the information received by the superior by decreasing the withholding of information (Redding, 1972). This is likely to have an impact on performance measures, because supervisor openness and receptivity have been linked to improved performance and improved decision making (Argyris, 1966;Burke & Wilcox, 1969;Indik, Georgopoulos & Seashore, 1961;Pincus, 1986;Sanborn, 1961;Willits, 1967).…”

“…As one component of a superior's ability to gain and convey accurate information, establishing trust may impact the superior's overall performance. It has been found that trust influences employee openness, which can lead to improved performance and decision making (Argyris, 1966;Indik, Georgopoulos, & Seashore, 1961;Pincus, 1986;Redding, 1972). Thus, hypothesis two suggested that H 2 Employees' perceptions of supervisory trustworthiness will be positively related to employees' perceptions of the quality of supervisory listening indicators.…”

Remote Leadership, Communication Effectiveness and Leader Performance

“…Individual and group productivity have been positively correlated with ease and freedom of communication between superiors and followers (Indik et al 1961;Jain 1973;Hoegl and Gemuenden 2001). Effective communication between leader and followers can leave employees with a positive impression of the leader and improve perceptions of leader performance (Conger and Kanungo 1998;Gardner and Martinko 1988;Rao et al 1995).…”

Behavior Styles and Performance Effectiveness

“…Power of supervisor and subordinate. Indik et al (1961) found higher performance effectiveness when subordinates felt that they and their superiors had an influence over local organizational operations. The relative distribution of power between the supervisor and the subordinate was studied by Blake (1960) and Horwitz (1960, pp.…”