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June 28, 2026International Journal of Organization Theory and Behavior

A joke a day: Supervisor humor as a buffer against coercive power

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Authors

KZKaiqi ZhangSDScott B. DustSMSharmeen Merchant

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Overview

Randomized trial shows supervisor humor influences employee engagement and task performance, suggesting new insights into leadership dynamics.

Key Points

  • This study aims to investigate how a leader’s humor impacts subordinates' responses to coercive power.
  • Data collected through a two-wave survey of 154 full-time employees.
  • Moderated mediation analyses tested the indirect effects of coercive power on employee outcomes through LMX, contingent on supervisor humor.
  • Supervisor coercive power negatively affected LMX, which in turn decreased employee engagement and task performance.
  • When supervisors used humor, the negative effects of coercive power on LMX were lessened, making coercive power more acceptable to subordinates.

Cite This Study

Zhang et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a40bae361bb0a67205c6aa3https://doi.org/10.1108/ijotb-11-2025-0360
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Also Consider

Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context:

  1. 1When humor masks abuse: employee responses to abusive supervision through the lens of relational energy2024
  2. 2Was that Zinger Supposed to Sting? The Interaction Between Humor Use and Abusive Supervision2025
  3. 3Does leader humor style matter employee knowledge sharing? From the lens of emotional contagion process2024 · 12 citations
  4. 4Leader humor and organizational citizenship behavior: the role of perceived interpersonal justice2025
  5. 5Supervisor Humor as a Predictor of Employee Voice and Intention to Quit2025