Understanding the relationship of supervisory communication, leader-member exchange, and organizational citizenship behavior: A United States-Taiwan comparison

This cross-cultural study explores the extent to which four types of supervisory communication (specifically, positive relationship communication, job-relevant communication, upward openness communication, and negative relationship communication) relate to the relationship quality between supervisors and employees (LMX) as well as the extent to which these four types of supervisory communication relate to employees organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Further, the study tests how supervisory communication mediates the linkage between LMX and employee OCB. In total, 520 working professionals from the United States and 228 working professionals from Taiwan participated in the study. In the U.S. sample, positive relationship communication and upward openness communication were positively related to LMX and employee OCB whereas negative relationship communication was negatively related to LMX and employee OCB. Moreover, job-relevant communication was positively related to LMX, but not to employee OCB. By contrast, in the Taiwanese sample, job-relevant communication and upward openness communication were positively related to LMX and employee OCB. Moreover, positive relationship communication was positively related to LMX but negative relationship communication was unrelated both to LMX and employee OCB. The impact of national culture on the predicted supervisor-subordinate communication patterns and the mediating effects of these communication practices on the relation between LMX and employee OCB are discussed. Practical implications for managers working in cross-cultural environment are also provided.