The moderating role of perceived supervisor and colleague support in face culture and creativity relationship

Abstract

Creativity is admitted being the lifeblood of the majority of the most successful organizations, and highlighted as the key ingredient for long-term organizational sustainable development. The latest research in the field reveals that creativity includes two stages: idea generation and idea implementation. On the other hand, the applicability of the creative ideas could be significantly limited because of the effect of face culture. This is because members in face culture avoid creativity-related activities, such as "rocking the boat" and risking failure in the public. This paper focuses on a new perspective regarding the moderator role of perceived supervisor support (PSS) and perceived colleague support (PCS) in mitigating and facilitating the effect of face on creativity through two studies applying both quantitative and qualitative methods. Through the quantitative Study 1, the authors find out that while PSS mitigates the effect of face culture on creativity, PCS facilitates the influence. While the former is consistent with predicted hypothesis, the latter is against the forecast. The causes are explained in Study 2 and can be summed up into two main categories: Supervisors are less affected by face culture, thus, give honest and constructive feedback for idea implementation. Meanwhile, colleagues obtain higher levels of face and tend to save other’s social image by harmonious comments. In addition to the theoretical contribution, the paper also suggests implications to create an environment for creativity by emphasizing the perception of supervisor’s support on both task and relationship-oriented aspects, creating a cooperative atmosphere among coworkers, and considering workers’ positions while promoting creativity.