Efficacy beliefs and employee voice: the role of perceived influence and manager openness

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore how and when an employee's belief in their voice self-efficacy leads to promotive and prohibitive voice behavior. By banking on social cognitive theory, this study examines perceived influence at work as a mediator and managerial openness as a moderator in the link between voice self-efficacy and the two forms of voice.

Design/methodology/approach

This study's data come from 285 Indian information technology (IT) employees by adopting a cross-sectional survey design. The effect of moderator and mediator is examined by employing structural equation modeling in AMOS 22.

Findings

The results reveal that perceived influence at work partially mediates the positive link between voice self-efficacy and the two forms of voice behaviors. The test of moderation also exposes that prohibitive voice is more contingent on managerial openness as compared to promotive voice.

Originality/value

This is one of the initial studies to explore perceived influence at work as a mediator in the association between voice self-efficacy and employee voice behavior. The treatment of voice as a bidimensional construct in this study discloses the difference between the two forms, contributing to the voice literature and inviting further research.

Citation

Prince, R. and Rao, M.K. (2022), "Efficacy beliefs and employee voice: the role of perceived influence and manager openness", International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Vol. 71 No. 8, pp. 3331-3347. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPPM-05-2020-0266