2187: Am I the Only One Angry? How Collective Anger Shapes the Effect of Abusive Supervision on Voice (17081)

Prior studies suggest that anger towards an unfavorable work situation may serve as a catalyst for employees to speak up to improve the workplace. However, other studies have shown that individuals who experience anger in the workplace may reduce voice behavior, deliberately withholding valuable input that could benefit the organization. That is, the relationship between anger and voice behavior remains inconclusive in the current literature. To reconcile these mixed findings, we draw from the literature on collection emotions and voice and present collective anger as a key moderator in the relationship between anger arising from abusive supervision and employee voice behavior. Utilizing multi-level and multi-wave data collected from 165 employees and 47 supervisors in a large department store, we theorize and find support that collective anger plays an important role in shaping the effects of abusive supervision on employee voice behavior. Results show that collective anger strengthens the positive relationship between abusive supervision and anger, while mitigating the relationship between anger and voice behavior at the same time. Specifically, we find that anger towards abusive supervisor is positively (negatively) associated with voice behavior only when collective anger is lower (higher). Collectively, our findings provide insights into the role of collective anger on the relationship between abusive supervision and employee voice behavior.

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