An Examination of the Relationship Between Upward Influence Tactics and Assessments of Promotability

The study investigates the importance of subordinate influence tactics and individual differences on supervisors’ perceptions of promotability. Influence tactics were assessed by supervisors’ perceptions of subordinate use of three influence tactics (ingratiation, reasoning, and assertiveness), as well as subordinates ’self-reports. The four individual difference variables examined were education, organizational tenure, race, and gender. Results indicated the importance of both influence tactics and individual differences on assessments of promotability.