Exploring the shadows: the impact of abusive supervision differentiation on team creativity

Purpose This study examines how team-level abusive supervision differentiation affects team creativity, why this relationship unfolds through team work engagement, and when the indirect effect becomes stronger under conditions of high task interdependence. Design/methodology/approach A three-wave, multisource survey design was employed using data from 439 team members and 63 leaders in 12 manufacturing companies in China. Team members reported abusive supervision differentiation, team work engagement, and task interdependence, while team leaders evaluated team creativity. Findings The results show that abusive supervision differentiation is negatively related to team creativity and that team work engagement mediates this relationship. In addition, task interdependence strengthens the positive relationship between team work engagement and team creativity, such that the negative indirect effect of abusive supervision differentiation on team creativity via team work engagement becomes stronger under high task interdependence. Originality/value This study extends the abusive supervision differentiation literature by linking differentiated abusive treatment to team creativity, a central team-level innovation outcome. By integrating Conservation of Resources theory and the Job Demands-Resources framework, the study explains how uneven abusive treatment depletes team resources, weakens team work engagement, and undermines collective creativity. It also clarifies the contingent role of task interdependence in shaping when the harmful consequences of abusive supervision differentiation become especially damaging.