Navigating uneven terrain : the roles of political skill and LMX differentiation in prediction of work relationship quality and work outcomes.

By O. Epitropaki, I. Kapoutsis, B. P. Ellen, Gerald R. Ferris, Konstantinos Drivas, Anastasia Ntotsi. 2016

87 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Drawing from social/political influence, leader–member exchange (LMX), and social comparison theories, the present two-study investigation examines three levels of LMX differentiation (i.e., individual-level, meso-level, and group-level LMX differentiation) and further tests a model of the joint effects of political skill and LMX differentiation on LMX, relative LMX, and employee work outcomes. In Study 1, we used data from 231 employees and found support for the interactive effect of political skill and individual perceptions of LMX differentiation on LMX quality. We also found partial support for the moderating role of individual-level LMX differentiation on the indirect effects of political skill on self-rated task performance and job satisfaction via LMX. In Study 2, we used data from 185 supervisor–subordinate dyads and examined both meso-level and group-level LMX differentiation via a multilevel moderated mediation model. Results supported the moderating role of group-level LMX differentiation and group mean LMX on the indirect effects of political skill on supervisor-rated task performance and contextual performance/citizenship behavior as well as job satisfaction via relative LMX. Overall, the results suggest that politically skilled employees reap the benefits of LMX differentiation, as they enjoy higher absolute LMX and relative (i.e., to their peers) LMX quality.

Subfields: Gender Studies, Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management, Sociology and Political Science

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/c351306898fa639c3efab352c2005d9e820491b8

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Gender Studies

1. R. Lord
2. O. Epitropaki
3. Robin Martin
4. G. Thomas
5. R. Kark
6. C. Mainemelis
7. A. Legood
8. Silvia Russo

In Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management

1. O. Epitropaki
2. R. Kark
3. C. Mainemelis
4. R. Lord
5. Robin Martin
6. A. Legood
7. G. Thomas
8. Silvia Russo

In Sociology and Political Science

1. O. Epitropaki
2. G. Thomas
3. A. Legood
4. Silvia Russo
5. R. Lord
6. Myriam Chiniara
7. Kathleen Bentein
8. Robin Martin

Citations in the corpus

• The servant leadership advantage: When perceiving low differentiation in leader-member relationship quality influences team cohesion, team task performance and service OCB (2017, background): “Research on LMX differentiation has mainly focused on its direct and moderating effects on followers' individual-level outcomes (e.g., Epitropaki et al., 2016; Hooper &Martin, 2008); much less attention has been paid to the direct effects of LMX differentiation on group-level outcomes (e.g., Le…”
• Leadership and followership identity processes: A multilevel review ☆ (2017, background): “They may, thus, disproportionally differentiate among followers and develop highly differentiated LMX relationships (e.g., Erdogan & Bauer, 2010; Epitropaki et al., 2016).”
• Leader–member exchange (LMX) differentiation and work outcomes: conceptual clarification and critical review (2018, background): “Indeed, positive relationships with outcomes such as performance and OCB have been reported (e.g., Epitropaki et al., 2016; Henderson et al., 2008; Hu & Liden, 2013; Tse, Ashkanasy, & Dasborough, 2012), and negative relationships with actual turnover have been shown (Ferris, 1985; Graen, Liden, &…”