The current study draws on attachment theory (Bowlby, 1982) to examine how attachment (a relationship-based trait disposition), and the interaction between attachment and emotion regulation, relate to LMX quality. Data were collected from subordinates and supervisors in a variety of work settings. Attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance negatively predicted LMX quality. Moderator effects were found between attachment and emotion regulation.
There is a voluminous and compelling literature underscoring the importance of reliable and supportive parental care during early childhood to the development of “relationship scripts”. Relationship scripts underlie the propensity to initiate and build trusting, enduring and enriching relationships (Kahn and Kram, 1994 and Keller, 2003). Much of this research has evolved from Bowlby's (1982) attachment theory, which has been the basis for several studies of workplace relationships (Harms, 2011). Given the parallels in the power differential in parent–child and leader–follower relationships, attachment theory may offer insights into the processes underlying leader–member exchange (LMX) (Harms, 2011 and Martin et al., 2010). Surprisingly then, there are no studies of LMX that have drawn from attachment theory.
Attachment theory posits that people are born with an innate tendency to seek proximity to others (Bowlby, 1973, Bowlby, 1980 and Bowlby, 1982). Individuals who, in early childhood, received consistent parental support develop secure attachment styles (and a positive view of self and others); while those who received inconsistent support develop anxious attachment styles (and a negative view of self); and persons who consistently received a lack of parental support develop avoidant attachment styles (and a negative view of others). Individuals with higher attachment anxiety tend to be especially anxious to retain the support and acceptance of their relationship partner, expressed as insecurity, lack of trust, and high dependency. People high in avoidant attachment typically suppress desire for affiliation and avoid close relationships altogether. As these styles are fairly stable throughout adulthood ( Mikulincer & Shaver, 2005) they could adversely affect the propensity to initiate, develop and sustain high quality LMX.
This study contributes to the LMX literature in several ways. First, using the dyad as the unit of analysis, we offer the first assessment of the relationship between attachment style and LMX quality. Second, our measure of attachment aligns with the original dimensional conceptualization of attachment style (Richards & Schat, 2011), as opposed to typographical approaches to its measurement (e.g. Hazan & Shaver, 1987). Third, we test for the moderating influence of emotion regulation (ER). ER refers to the process by which individuals attempt to influence their own emotions; when they experience them, and how they express them behaviorally ( Gross, 1998a). We present theory supportive of the notion that ER strategies (i.e., reappraisal and/or suppression) interact with attachment style (of leader and subordinate) to influence LMX quality.
