Follower Resistance.
When follower wants and needs are routinely ignored by leadership, eventually follower will start setting boundaries and creating agendas of their own, i.e. follower resistance. (The newest trend of quiet quitting is an excellent example of follower resistance.) Problems arise when those follower-set boundaries and agendas are perceived by leadership as aggressively clashing with the organization’s goals.
The Vicious Cycle of Follower Resistance
In their study on the effect of follower resistance in the workplace Güntner, Klasmeier, Klonek and Kauffeld (2021) proposed “that the relationship between follower resistance and destructive leader behavior is moderated by leaders’ Theory X schema,” a proposal that was later validated in the results of the study.
*See previous blog post “X or Y” which explains how McGregor’s Theory X addressed the common belief (or misconception) of the inherently unmotivated worker.
Over the course of the experiment, the study’s authors reported that the more followers resisted, the more negative and destructive leader behavior became (Güntner et al., 2021).
One important thing to note about resistance is that generally, employers cannot discern the difference between constructive and dysfunctional resistance, so they are unable to recognize if “resistance is well-intentioned and serves to improve organizational activities or if resistance only serves to release followers’ anger,” (Güntner et al., 2021).
Unfortunately for many employees, Güntner et al. (2021) also discovered that any type of resistance against leadership is also likely to be viewed as a direct threat to the leader’s ego.
Productivity Fallout
Güntner et al.’s (2021) findings would imply that if an employer attempting to exert their will over employees based on authority alone encounters active resistance, it could trigger destructive behavior on the part of the employer. This would only further a self-feeding loop of follower resistance and increasingly negative employer behavior which seriously harms the organization in the process.
Primarily due to lack of organizational leadership training, flawed interpretation of resistance on the part of employers discourages employees from voicing their wants and needs. Over time, as the discouragement continues, their voices fall completely silent.
With no other way to resist, many turn to quiet quitting. Whether employers realize it or not, the inability to recognize well-intentioned resistance or dissent from employees will inadvertently and, perhaps inevitably, contribute to a decrease in their own bottom line.
-The Penguins
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