The trickle-down effects of perceived trustworthiness on subordinate performance

De Cremer, D, Van Dijke, M ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9974-5050, Schminke, M, De Schutter, L and Stouten, J, 2018. The trickle-down effects of perceived trustworthiness on subordinate performance. Journal of Applied Psychology. ISSN 0021-9010

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Abstract

We study when and why perceptions of trustworthiness trickle down the organizational hierarchy to influence the performance of subordinates. Building on social learning theory, we argue that when supervisors perceive their managers as trustworthy, subordinates are more likely to also perceive their supervisor as trustworthy, which in turn enhances subordinate performance. We further argue that this trickle-down effect of trustworthiness perceptions emerges especially when the manager invites the supervisor to participate in decision-making. Finally, we propose that social learning processes that lead to supervisors exhibiting more trusting behavior toward their subordinates mediate this trickle-down effect. We find support for our predictions across one multisource field study (Study 1) and two experiments (Studies 2 and 3) that both employ a yoked design. This research represents the first attempt to examine trickle-down effects related to trustworthiness, its impact on performance, and the mediating mechanisms by which those effects emerge. This research also provides the first empirical evidence about the role that social learning processes play in explaining trickle-down processes.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Journal of Applied Psychology
Creators:	De Cremer, D., Van Dijke, M., Schminke, M., De Schutter, L. and Stouten, J.
Publisher:	American Psychological Association
Date:	30 July 2018
ISSN:	0021-9010
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1037/apl0000339 DOI 2018-36938-001 Publisher Item Identifier
Divisions:	Schools > Nottingham Business School
Record created by:	Jonathan Gallacher
Date Added:	13 Aug 2018 10:05
Last Modified:	29 Aug 2018 08:45
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/34313

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