Voice climate in organizations: A group-level examination of antecedents and performance outcomes

Abstract

Scope and Method of Study: The purpose of this study was to examine the antecedents and performance outcomes associated with voice climate. Specifically, involvement climate was cast as an antecedent to voice climate, while supervisor undermining was hypothesized to moderate the involvement climate - voice climate relationship. Voice climate was then hypothesized to influence both group voice behavior and group performance. The participants in this study were 374 employees and supervisors from a large building facilities and maintenance organization located in the Midwestern United States.

Findings and Conclusions: Results indicated that involvement climate did influence voice climate. Additionally, the involvement climate - voice climate relationship was moderated by supervisor undermining such that the relationship was stronger when supervisor undermining was low. Voice climate was found to have a positive and significant relationship with group voice behavior and group performance. Overall, these results indicate that voice climate in work groups impacts important work outcomes and that the organization and supervisors can influence the development of a voice climate. Practical implications and suggestions for future research are also discussed.