Diversity at work: how relational demography and influence tactics impact the effectiveness of leaders
by Thomas D'Angelo; Marco Lam; Heidi Dent; Martin Kissler; Julia Goldsmith
International Journal of Behavioural Accounting and Finance (IJBAF), Vol. 7, No. 1, 2023

Abstract: The aim of this paper is to explore the joint effect of relational demography and influence tactics on the effectiveness of leaders. To meet this objective, we use an experimental design to examine the role gender and ethnicity play on superiors' attempts to persuade subordinates to create budgetary slack, thereby violating company policy. We manipulate the superior's gender and ethnicity by presenting participants with randomly selected photographs of their superiors. Our findings suggest that gender and ethnicity alone do not impact the effectiveness of managers. However, relational demography, interpretation of a superior's message and influence tactic used, does affect the quality of superior-subordinate relationships. This in turn affects the willingness of subordinates to comply with their superior's wishes. This holds true even in cases where the subordinate acknowledges their action violates company policy. We conclude that relationships matter more in inspiring action than the gender or ethnicity of either party.

Online publication date: Wed, 21-Jun-2023

The full text of this article is only available to individual subscribers or to users at subscribing institutions.

 
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.

Pay per view:
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.

Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Behavioural Accounting and Finance (IJBAF):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:

Username:        Password:          Forgotten your password?

Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.

If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com