Building a relationship with the supervisor: An exploratory study

Abstract

There is little knowledge regarding how the relationship between supervisors and subordinates is built. This study focuses on that process, according to the subordinates’ perspective – cognitions, behaviours and emotions. We conducted a qualitative study, gathering data from 12 subordinates using the Critical Incident Technique. Results show there are four types of supervisors’ behaviours that influence the process of building a relationship with the subordinate, including caregiving and fight (the two most stressed). The supervisors’ caregiving behaviour is associated with the subordinates’ positive emotion and careseeking behaviour. On the other hand, supervisor’s fight behaviours are associated with negative emotions and the activation of the subordinate’s self defence system. Consistently, we see that the first event that impacted the relationship were events where the supervisor had a caregiving or fight behaviour. It’s important that supervisors understand the impact of their dominant behaviours particularly at the early stages of the relationship.