The Effect of Perceived Supervisor–Subordinate Congruence in Honesty on Emotional Exhaustion: A Polynomial Regression Analysis

Do subordinates unequivocally prefer honest superv =isors? This study investigates whether congruence in supervisor–subordinate honesty has a positive effect on lowering the emotional exhaustion experienced by subordinates. For the research data, a two-part survey with a one-month time interval was conducted among office workers, and 409 responses were collected. These were empirically analyzed using polynomial regression analysis and response surface analysis, instead of the common methodology based on difference values used in past studies on the fit between a person and their environment. The analysis results confirmed that supervisor–subordinate congruence in honesty has a negative relationship with subordinates’ emotional exhaustion and supervisor–subordinate congruence at higher levels of honesty will have stronger negative relationships with emotional exhaustion. This study expands the intrapersonal context of the existing research on supervisors’ honesty to the interpersonal context and empirically demonstrates the effect of honesty congruence. It also discusses its theoretical and practical implications as well as limitations, and it provides suggestions for future studies.