Demotivational Mechanism of Supervisor Close Monitoring: Exacerbating Effect of Supervisor Task Performance and Subordinate Social Comparison Orientation

Abstract

Performance monitoring is a fundamental component of effective supervision yet excessive monitoring referred to as supervisor close monitoring can have unintended negative consequences. Integrating social cognitive theory, we examine how supervisor close monitoring undermines subordinate general self-efficacy, thereby impairing subordinate task performance. Using dyadic supervisor-subordinate data from 160 South Korean supervisors working across diverse firms, we find that supervisor close monitoring is indirectly related to lower task performance via reduced general self-efficacy only under certain boundary conditions. Specifically, we identify two boundary conditions that shape this effect. The negative impact of close monitoring on general self-efficacy was salient when supervisors were perceived as high performers, consistent with the notion that credible evaluators heighten social persuasion. Contrary to expectations, the detrimental effect was also salient among subordinates low in social comparison orientation, for whom close monitoring may serve as the only salient evaluative cue. These findings underscore the relational dynamics through which close monitoring operates and offer practical implications for managing its unintended effects.