Moderators of the influence of supervisor–subordinate similarity on subordinate outcomes.

Abstract

Gender, racial, and ethnic similarity were examined for 2,883 subordinate-supervisor dyads in a military setting. All forms of demographic similarity were weakly associated with satisfaction with one's supervisor and continued membership in the Army. White subordinates under the supervision of non-Whites expressed the lowest level of satisfaction with supervision. Two moderators were examined: supervisory support of equal opportunity and the length of time worked with a supervisor. Results underscore the value of fine-grained analyses in the area of relational demography and the value of studying temporal dynamics associated with relational demography.