Searing Sentiment Or Cold Calculation? The Effects Of Leader Emotional Displays On Team Performance Depend On Follower Epistemic Motivation

Abstract

We examined how leader emotional displays affect team performance. We developed and tested the idea that effects of leader displays of anger versus happiness depend on followers' epistemic motivation, which is the desire to develop a thorough understanding of a situation. Experimental data on fourperson teams engaged in an interdependent team task showed that teams with higher epistemic motivation performed better when their leaders displayed anger (mediated by team members' performance inferences), whereas teams with lower epistemic motivation performed better when the leaders expressed happiness (mediated by team members' affective reactions). Theoretical contributions and managerial ramifications are discussed.