The Influence of Perceived Authenticity and Honor on Interpersonal Relations in Organizational Life.

Abstract

While facial expressions have been commonly studied from the expresser’s perspective, less work has examined how expressions are interpreted, and how interpretation influences interpersonal interactions. I draw from multiple areas of research—social judgments from facial expressions, expression authenticity, cultural influences on interpersonal judgments, and the influence of social judgments on interpersonal outcomes—to address four questions. First, how does authenticity influence the interpretation of expressions in business relationships? Second, what are the consequences of interpretation for evaluating or deciding how to structure business agreements with others, even in initial interactions? Third, how might cultural influences—especially those that might prompt individuals to attend more v. less carefully to subtle cues of authenticity, like honor—shed light on interpretation differences? Fourth, what organizational conditions might help facilitate authenticity, and is authenticity beneficial? In Chapter 2 I develop my foundational theoretical argument for linking authenticity and honor and the relevance of both for organizational life. In Chapter 3 I test how individuals’ sensitivity to honor concerns influences their judgments of and reactions to (in)authentic others. Across three experiments and an interview-based study, I find that those from honor cultures, shown previously to be more sensitive to interpersonal cues, and those from honor-conducive work environments more positively(negatively) evaluate and react to (in)authentic others than those less influenced by honor. In Chapter 4 I examine authenticity in organizational life more broadly, and test the relationship between group size and group-level authenticity. Across three survey-based studies I find that group size is negatively related to group-level authenticity, at both organizational and team levels, such that smaller(larger) groups are characterized by more(less) authenticity. Further, authenticity is positively associated with the beneficial group-level characteristic of psychological safety. Overall, this work demonstrates that, first, the influence of authenticity on individuals’ judgments is strengthened when honor concerns are made salient, either through cultural or organizational factors. Second, authenticity can be facilitated by certain organizational conditions, and has positive effects on employees. Together, this research demonstrates the importance of authenticity and honor for interpersonal interactions in organizational contexts, and suggests many promising avenues for continued research.