SOME EFFECTS OF CLOSE AND PUNITIVE STYLES OF SUPERVISION
Abstract
An experiment based on a two-by-two factorial design was conducted to test hypotheses involving the relationship of four supervisory styles to aggressive feelings and actions of subordinates. As manipulated in the experiment, the supervisory styles can be arrayed on two continua: the close versus general, and the punitive versus nonpunitive. The results show that close as compared with general supervision produced a significant increase in aggressive feelings toward the supervisor, a significant increase in indirect aggression toward the supervisor through lowered productivity, an insignificant increase in verbal aggression toward the supervisor, and finally, an increase of borderline significance in aggressive feelings toward co-workers. The results also indicate that punitive as compared with non-punitive supervision produced a significant increase in aggressive feelings toward the supervisor, a significant increase in indirect aggression through lowered productivity, a significant increase in verbal aggression, but no significant increases in aggression toward coworkers or the task. Furthermore, the results indicate that the relationship between close supervision and aggressive feelings is mediated by self-esteem, a personality characteristic of the subordinate. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 1961
- Accession Number
- AD0264837
Entities
People
- Robert C. Day
- Robert L. Hamblin
Organizations
- Washington University in St. Louis