Catching up with brown-nosers in teams: Why and when an ingratiation climate leads to unethical pro-supervisor behavior?

Purpose It is not uncommon in the workplace for employees to adopt ingratiation to enhance relationships with their supervisors. However, to date little is known about between-group differences in ingratiation and their effects on individual unethical behaviors. Based on the literature on organizational climate, this study proposed the concept of team ingratiation climate and developed its measurement scale. Drawing upon the conservation of resources theory, this study examined how and when team ingratiation climate as a source of impression management pressure induces individual unethical pro-supervisor behavior. Design/methodology/approach This study collected data from many industries through a two-wave survey of Chinese work groups (N = 90, n = 446). The data were analyzed using multi-level structural equation modeling. Findings This study reveals a positive relationship between team ingratiation climate and unethical pro-supervisor behavior via fear of supervisors' negative evaluations and moral disengagement. Furthermore, such mechanisms were weakened when team psychological safety was high. Research limitations/implications This study is limited by its cross-sectional design and focus on Chinese teams, restricting causal inference and cultural generalizability. It is based on the conservation of resources theory, overlooking alternative frameworks. Future research should use mixed methods, explore individualistic cultures and examine how team ingratiation climates affect power dynamics, supervisor perceptions and team outcomes. Originality/value This study makes three contributions to the existing literature. First, this study extends the individual-level ingratiation research to a higher team level. Based on organizational climate research, this study conceptualizes and measures ingratiation climate as a team-level construct, advancing our understanding of group dynamics of ingratiation. Second, this study builds a cross-level model that offers insight into the emotional (i.e. fear of supervisors' negative evaluations) and cognitive (i.e. moral disengagement) mechanisms that mediate the impact of team ingratiation climate on unethical pro-supervisor behavior. Third, we introduced a moderator (i.e. team psychological safety) that buffers the ethical risks caused by the team ingratiation climate.