On-work or off-work relationship? An engagement model of how and when leader-member exchange and leader-member guanxi promote voice behavior

Purpose - Drawing on engagement theory, this study aims to examine how leader-member relationships, including on-work relationship (leader-member exchange [LMX]) and off-work relationship (leader-member guanxi [LMG]), influence employees' promotive and prohibitive voice. Furthermore, the study uses procedural justice as the moderator to distinguish the effects of LMG and LMX on employees' psychological states and voice through a mediated moderation model. Design/methodology/approach - The authors use a sample from a private and local company in Southern China to test their theoretical model. Findings - The study finds that both LMG and LMX have positive effects on employees' voice behavior through employees' psychological states (psychological meaningfulness and psychological safety). Research limitations/implications - In a Chinese context, leaders have a more direct and powerful influence on employees than their counterparts in the Western society. Thus, the findings of LMX and LMG may not be generalizable to a Western context. A possible extension is to examine and compare the effects of social context (e.g., off-work leader-member relationship) on voice between the East and the West. Practical implications - One important implication is that off-work relationship should be used by managers to encourage employee voice. Originality/value - This study enriches the antecedents of voice with a new dimension of leader-member relationship, namely, LMG.