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Preference For Managerial Boundary Setting In Relation To Empowerment: Adding Clarity To The Role Of Boundaries, Edward R. Kemery, W. Alan Randolph, Lisa T. Stickney

Organization Management Journal

This study explores the role of manager and employee preference for managerial boundary setting in empowerment. Research has shown a clear relationship between managers’ empowerment practices and employee psychological empowerment, but confusion persists in the empowerment literature about the role played by boundaries in creating empowerment. We add clarity to the role of boundary setting by considering how the individual difference variable of manager and employee preference for managerial boundary setting impacts empowerment. Results indicate that higher preference for managerial boundary setting was associated with greater utilization of empowerment practices by managers and with greater psychological empowerment of employees. For …