Getting it done and getting it right: Leader disciplinary reactions to Followers’ moral transgressions are determined by construal level mindset

Van Houwelingen, G, Van Dijke, M ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9974-5050 and De Cremer, D, 2015. Getting it done and getting it right: Leader disciplinary reactions to Followers’ moral transgressions are determined by construal level mindset. The Leadership Quarterly, 26 (5), pp. 878-891. ISSN 1048-9843

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Abstract

All normative leadership theories suggest that disciplining followers that transgress moral norms is a crucial leadership task. However, leaders sometimes yet fail to do so. Previous research has indicated that leaders may refrain from enacting discipline out of self-interest or from concern for the organization’s interest. We explore another option: leaders may simply be unwilling to enforce moral norms because of a negative attitude towards them. We argue and show that leaders that construe norms on relatively low (i.e. concrete) levels are likely to see norms as annoying obstacles, whereas leaders that construe moral norms on high (i.e. abstract) levels will have a more positive view of norms. In line with this, high construal level leaders are likely to be willing to enforce moral norms through discipline in response to follower moral transgressions. Low construal level leaders, in contrast, actively avoid doing so. We show this effect in different contexts and for different types of leader discipline.

Item Type:	Journal article
Alternative Title:	Getting it done right [running head]
Publication Title:	The Leadership Quarterly
Creators:	Van Houwelingen, G., Van Dijke, M. and De Cremer, D.
Publisher:	Elsevier
Date:	October 2015
Volume:	26
Number:	5
ISSN:	1048-9843
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1016/j.leaqua.2015.06.007 DOI
Divisions:	Schools > Nottingham Business School
Record created by:	Linda Sullivan
Date Added:	04 Nov 2015 12:25
Last Modified:	07 Jun 2019 13:13
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/26147

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