Sex and need for power as predictors of reactions to disobedience

Participants played the role of managers in a simulated leadership task that required them to deliver instructions to a subordinate (confederate). The subordinate obeyed or disobeyed the manager's orders. Males reported lower feelings of belongingness and control in response to disobedience, which in turn predicted higher levels of negative affect. Males high (compared to low) in the need for power also reported less positive affect and more anger following disobedience. We suggest that workplace disobedience reflects lack of respect for one's authority, and that for males (but not females) this signals the ineffectiveness of direct influence strategies and a reduced potential for social acceptance. Males with strong needs for power expect deference and hence react most adversely to being disobeyed. We thank Chak Wong and Chun Leung for serving as confederates in this study. This research was supported by a National Science Foundation collaborative grant (#0744972) awarded to Martin Bourgeois and Kristin ...