Upward leader-member exchange social comparison and organizational citizenship behaviour: the mediating role of interpersonal justice and moderating role of competitive climate

Our research aims to extend the understanding of how and when leader–member exchange social comparison (LMXSC) influences followers’ work behaviour. Although previous research has highlighted the positive effects of downward LMXSC (i.e. comparisons with co-workers who have poorer LMX relationships), much less is known about upward LMXSC (i.e. comparisons with co-workers who have higher LMX). To address this gap, the present study explores the effects of upward LMXSC on follower organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) beyond downward LMXSC. Across two multisource (i.e. leaders and followers) and multi-wave studies, we observed a negative, indirect relationship between upward LMXSC and leader-rated OCB through perceived interpersonal justice. This relationship was found controlling for downward LMXSC, suggesting that upward LMXSC has unique effects on employee behaviour via feelings of interpersonal (in)justice. Furthermore, the negative relationship between upward LMXSC and interpersonal justice was accentuated by employee-perceived competitive climate in both studies. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.