Bases of Power and Subordinates’ Satisfaction with Supervision - The Contingent Effect of Educational Orientation

Abstract

The study seeks to find out the impact of the supervisory power bases on subordinates' satisfaction with supervision in industrial settings. The influence of educational orientations of superiors and subordinates was also examined. The results indicated that referent power, expert power and reward power showed positive relationship with satisfaction with supervision. In terms of rank ordering of bases of power, referent power ranked the highest among other power exercises. This was followed by expert and reward power. The expert power base was also found to be positively related to the superiors' educational orientations rather than the subordinates'. The results also showed that superiors' evaluation of subordinates' competency and ability were based on their education orientations.