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The Effects of Positive and Negative Feedback on Subordinates’ Commitment and Satisfaction with Growth: The Mediating Role of Trust in Supervisors

SHIGEMASU Eri(Aoyama Gakuin University)

This study examines the effects of supervisors’ positive feedback (PF) and negative feedback (NF) frequencies on their subordinates,focusing on the mediating effects of trust in the supervisors. A survey study was conducted with 475 employees from 4 companies responding as subordinates. Results from analyses based on structural equation modeling showed that (1) PF frequencies were positively related to the subordinates’ evaluation of their supervisors’ three components of trustworthiness: ability,integrity,and benevolence,whereas NF frequencies were only related to trustworthiness in ability; (2) subordinates’ evaluations for the three components of trustworthiness were all related to trust in their supervisors and,in turn,trust was related to the affective component of organizational commitment and job satisfaction regarding their own growth. These results elucidate the findings of previous studies,explaining why and how the effect of PF on subordinates is stronger than that of NF,and that even NF,which may threaten the self-image of subordinates,has positive effects.

Keyword : feedback, trustworthiness, trust, commitment, job satisfaction

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