University at Buffalo School of Management

22 Buffalo Business Autumn 2021 Why leaders should focus on resolving negativity —through humility A leader who displays humble behaviors can boost team performance by reducing negative relationships in the group, according to new School of Management research. Published in Human Relations, the study found that while negative relation- ships in groups are rarer than positive ones, the negative is far more influ- ential on team effective- ness and performance. "A dilemma for lead- ers with limited time and bandwidth is where to focus: building posi- tive relationships or resolving negative ones," says Paul Tesluk, professor and dean. "Human beings are attuned to and more influenced by the negative." The researchers conducted two surveys with work teams consisting of 120 formal leaders and nearly 500 members. The first survey asked team members to assess the humility of their managers and the social networks within their teams. Five months later, they surveyed the teams a second time to have leaders eval- uate team performance and team members report their assessment of team-helping norms. Their results show that humble leaders have fewer negative relation- ships on their teams and more positive ones, which results in members helping each other more—making them more effective and more likely to remain on the team in the long term. "Studies have shown the harmful impact a few 'bad apples' can bring to work groups," says Prasad Balkundi, associate professor and chair of organization and human resources. "Humble leaders are more self-aware, show more appreciation toward others, engage in more listening and model a culture of learning by accepting mistakes. They also serve as role models, allowing team members to become more positive and forgiving." The researchers recommend several ways to improve managers' humility levels, including fostering a learning organization culture, selecting leaders who can be good role models and promoting this learning through training. Tesluk and Balkundi collaborated on the study with School of Management graduate and lead author Chia-Yen (Chad) Chiu, PhD '14, associate director of the Centre for Workplace Excellence at the University of South Australia, and Bradley Owens, associate professor in the Brigham Young University Marriott School of Business. Tesluk Balkundi When meat-eaters feel guilty, they choose healthier meat dishes—not veggies "Meat eating is thoroughly ingrained in most cultures. Research shows that when our moral standards and self-serving desires come into conflict, our self-interest often wins." —Sunyee Yoon, assistant professor of marketing, on her research showing that when most people are confronted with the moral issue of animal suffering, they pick a meat dish that's prepared in a healthier way over an unhealthy meat option—or a vegetable-based dish—to reduce their sense of guilt. The study was published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology. Read more at bit.ly/yoon-study. Yoon

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