The authors developed and tested a model that depicts interactional justice as a mediator of the effects of managers' influence tactics on subordinates' resistance. Data collected from supervised workers provided evidence of mediated moderation: The use of hard influence tactics was associated with lower resistance when they were used with soft influence tactics. This effect was mediated by the experience of interactional justice. Although the use of rational influence tactics was unrelated to subordinates' resistance, it was associated with greater interactional justice when they were not used with soft influence tactics. Resistance was also related to the content of the influence attempt: Resistance was lower when targets perceived the request to be interesting, important, and unarnbiguous. Implications and directions for future research are briefly discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Ball, G. A.
, Trevino, L. K., & Sims, H. P. (1994). Just and unjust punishment: Influences on subordinate performance and citizenship. Academy of Management Journal, 37, 299-322.
2.
Baron, R. M.
, & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173-1182.
3.
Barry, B.
, & Shapiro, D. L. (1992). Influence tactics in combinations: The interactive effects of soft versus hard tactics and rational exchange. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 22, 1429-1441.
4.
Barry, B.
, & Watson, M. R. (1994). Communication aspects of dyadic social influence: A review and integration of conceptual and empirical developments. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Academy of Management, Dallas, TX.
5.
Bass, B. M.
(1990). Handbook of leadership: Theory, research, and managerial implications. New York: Free Press.
6.
Bies, R. J.
, & Moag, J. (1986). Interactional justice: Communication criteria of fairness. In R. Lewicki, B. Sheppard, & M. Bazerman (Eds.), Research on negotiation in organizations (Vol. 1, pp. 43-55). Greenwich, CT: JAI.
7.
Deluga, R. J.
(1991). The relationship of upward influencing behavior with subordinate impression management characteristics. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 21, 1145-1160.
8.
Falbe, C. M.
, & Yukl, G. (1992). Consequences for managers of using single influence tactics and combinations of tactics. Academy of Management Journal, 35, 638-652.
9.
Greenberg, J.
(1990). Organizational justice: Yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Journal of Management, 16, 399-432.
10.
Hollander, E. P.
, & Offerman, L. R. (1990). Power and leadership in organizations. American Psychologist, 45, 179-189.
11.
Kipnis, D.
, Schmidt, S., Price, K., & Stitt, C. (1981). Why do I like thee: Is it your performance or my orders?Journal of Applied Psychology, 66, 324-328.
12.
Kipnis, D.
, Schmidt, S., & Wilkinson, I. (1980). Intraorganizational influence tactics: Explorations in getting one's way. Journal of Applied Psychology, 65, 440-452.
13.
Manogran, P.
, Stauffer, J., & Conlon, E. J. (1994). Leader-member exchange as a key mediating variable between employees' perceptions of fairness and organizational citizenship behavior. In D. Moore (Ed.), Academy of Management Best Paper Proceedings (pp. 249-253). Dallas, TX: Academy of Management.
14.
Moorman, R. H.
(1991). Relationship between organization justice and organizational citizenship behaviors: Do fairness perceptions influence employee citizenship?Journal of Applied Psychology, 76, 845-855.
15.
Mossholder, K. W.
, Kemery, E. R., & Wesolowski, M. A. (1993, August). Relationships between bases of power and work reactions: The mediational role of procedural justice. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Academy of Management, Atlanta, GA.
16.
Niehoff, B. P.
, & Moorman, R. H. (1993). Justice as a mediator of the relationship between methods of monitoring and organizational citizenship behaviors. Academy of Management Journal, 36, 527-556.
17.
O'Neal, E. C.
, Kipnis, D., Craig, K. M. (1994). Effects on the persuader of employing a coercive influence technique. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 15, 225-238.
18.
Podsakoff, P.
, & Organ, D. (1986). Self-reports in organizational research: Problems and prospects. Journal of Management, 12, 531-544.
19.
Schilit W. K.
, & Locke, E. (1982). A study of upward influence in organizations. Administrative Science Quarterly, 27, 304-316.
20.
Tyler, T. R.
(1989). The psychology of procedural justice: A test of the group value model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 830-838.
21.
Tyler, T. R.
(1994). Psychological models of the justice motive: Antecedents of distributive and procedural justice. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 850-863.
22.
Yukl, G.
(1994). Leadership in organizations. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
23.
Yukl, G.
, Falbe, C. M., & Youn, J. Y. (1993). Patterns of influence behavior for managers. Group & Organization Management, 18, 5-28.
24.
Yukl, G.
, Kim, H., & Falbe, C. M. (1996). Antecedents of influence outcomes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 81, 309-317.
25.
Yukl, G.
, & Tracey, J. B. (1992). Consequences of influence tactics used with subordinates, peers, and the boss. Journal of Applied Psychology, 77, 525-535.
