Relative Leader-member Exchange and Unethical Pro-leader Behavior: A Cross-level Moderated Mediation

Drawing upon social comparison theory and the social functional view of emotions, we developed and tested a cross-level model to examine how and when relative leader-member exchange (RLMX) may result in employees’ unethical pro-leader behavior (UPLB). Data was collected from a sample of 514 employees in 102 divisional teams in a large retail corporation. Results of the multilevel moderated mediation modeling showed that the experience of envy fully mediated the negative effect of RLMX on UPLB. Furthermore, the indirect relationship was moderated by team-level distributive justice climate. Specifically, employees with low RLMX standings were more likely to experience envy and subsequently engage in UPLB when the distributive justice climate is low. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.