Why some bosses lash out — and feel good about it (temporarily)

INDIANAPOLIS — From a teenager working in a grocery store to a veteran employee at a Fortune 500 company, many workers across sectors and age groups have been on the receiving end of an angry boss. New research from a team of management scholars, including Emily Poulton from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business Indianapolis, suggests that sometimes that boss is losing their temper on purpose.

In the case of the teenager working at the grocery store, for example, the study suggests a supervisor may intentionally engage in abusive behavior, such as yelling or belittling them, to help direct better performance.

“For decades we have seen how these types of behaviors persist in organizations and drive away employees,” said Poulton, an assistant professor of management at the Kelley School and co-author on the study. “For organizations to be sustainable and prevent turnover, we need a better explanation for why leaders continue to engage in this type of behavior, and what the potential short-term benefits might be that allow these behaviors to persist.”

Studying bosses’ abusive behaviors is not a new idea. But Poulton and colleagues wanted to examine the differences between intentional and spontaneous abuse.

The study, “Short-Term Fulfillment: How Supervisors’ Motives for Abusive Behaviors Influence Need Satisfaction and Daily Outcomes,” was published in the Journal of Management. Co-authors are Szu-Han (Joanna) Lin of the University of Georgia, who led the project, and Russell E. Johnson of Michigan State University.

This analysis expands on existing research by exploring short-term benefits for supervisors who intentionally participate in abusive behaviors.

Existing research assumes that supervisors often feel bad after engaging in abusive behavior, Poulton said. However, the new study shows that when the behavior is intentional, it can provide short-term psychological benefits to a boss while harming subordinates. In contrast, when abusive behavior is spontaneous, driven by stress or frustration, for example, it tends to result in negative outcomes for both the boss and subordinates.

“When intentional, bosses often feel they are doing the right thing by asserting dominance or trying to encourage better performance,” Poulton said. “But it is misguided behavior.”

The research is based upon two studies of supervisors from various industries such as manufacturing, education, and healthcare. In the first study, supervisors’ actions were categorized as unintentional/emotionally driven or intentional/goal oriented. Many supervisors acknowledged their primary reason for abusive behavior was intentional and aimed to correct subordinates’ poor performance or disrespectful behavior. This challenges the idea that abusive supervision is always impulsive or emotionally driven.

The second study examined supervisors’ outcomes after engaging in abusive behavior. Supervisors from a variety of industries were asked if they engaged in abusive behavior. If the answer was yes, they were asked about their motivation behind engaging in this type of behavior.

If the behavior was intentional, the researchers found supervisors felt more engaged and capable as leaders the following day. If the behavior was spontaneous, they found it negatively impacted the supervisor and their engagement the following day.

This research recommends workplaces implement anti-harassment and civility training that explicitly addresses the perceived effectiveness of abusive behaviors. It also suggests that employers provide supervisors with de-escalation strategies to avoid spontaneous or intentional outbursts when dealing with subordinates’ difficult behaviors.

“We want leaders to know these behaviors are never acceptable, even if they feel good,” Poulton said. “We hope this research can help explain why these behaviors may continue to occur so we can ultimately stop them from happening.”

Returning to the teenager working at the grocery store, Poulton said a supervisor lashing out may actually be a calculated move — a move the supervisor believes will improve performance or even boost their own sense of control.

It is why reviewing the motivation and outcomes of abusive behaviors matter, she said. It helps workplaces understand not just how abuse happens, but why it continues — and what they can consider doing to stop it.