How needs frustration and leader gender influence reactions to uncivil subordinates

Purpose Drawing on self-determination theory and research on incivility, gender and leadership, we investigated whether subordinate incivility impacts leader affect, whether this relationship is mediated by relatedness and competence needs frustration and whether these mediation effects are stronger for females than males. Design/methodology/approach We used a between-subjects (N = 125) experiment to test our predictions. Participants were assigned a leadership role and were randomly assigned to work with a civil or uncivil subordinate on a market research proposal. Findings Results demonstrated that: (1) subordinate incivility caused lower positive affect for both genders and higher negative affect for male leaders only; (2) subordinate incivility impacted leader affect via relatedness need frustration for both genders and (3) subordinate incivility impacted leader affect via competence need frustration for male leaders only. Practical implications Subordinate incivility is not “brushed-off” by leaders but impacts emotions and psychological needs, with patterns dependent on the leader’s gender. Organizations should consider initiatives that educate managers and employees on the impacts of incivility. Originality/value Existing subordinate incivility research is primarily correlational. We provide causal evidence that disrespectful subordinate behaviour impacts leader affect and find evidence for the mediating role of needs frustration, and the moderating role of gender, in understanding mistreatment effects.