Nonverbal communication and relational identification with the supervisor

Abstract

Purpose – Nonverbal communication comprises a core element of the interactions between leader and follower. Nevertheless, there is limited empirical attention regarding the impact of nonverbal cues on followers’ attitudinal outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to this gap by linking a salient form of nonverbal communication, kinesics, to an under-researched leader-follower relationship outcome, that is relational identification (RI) with the supervisor. In doing so, the authors also highlight the mediating role of leader-member exchange (LMX) in the aforementioned relationship. Design/methodology/approach – The authors conducted two studies in different countries. Moreover, the authors examined the hypotheses using hierarchical regression and bootstrap analysis. Findings – As hypothesized, the present results showed that kinesics have both a direct and an indirect effect, through LMX, on RI with the supervisor. Originality/value – To the best of authors’ knowledge this is the first study that links a form of nonverbal communication to both LMX and RI.