Application of the controllability principle and managerial performance: The role of role perceptions

Autor: Franz Michael Fischer, Michael Burkert, Utz Schäffer
Rok vydání: 2011
Předmět:
Zdroj: Management Accounting Research. 22:143-159
ISSN: 1044-5005
Popis: a b s t r a c t The controllability principle stipulates that the evaluation of a manager should be based only on elements that are under the manager's control. Arguments for and against its appli- cation are theoretically well understood, but empirical evidence based on the evaluation of the perceptions of managers and their implications for managerial performance is scarce. By empirically analyzing the effects on managerial performance, this paper explores man- agers' responses to the application of the controllability principle. We draw on role theory and analyze how role ambiguity and role conflict mediate this basic relationship. Moreover, we test whether application of the controllability principle equally affects role perceptions of top-level managers and those of lower and middle-level managers. Empirical analysis of survey responses from 440 managers reveals that role perceptions completely mediate the effect of application of the controllability principle on managerial performance. This effect is insignificant in the group of top-level managers, who appear to cope with uncontrollable factors more effectively.
Databáze: OpenAIRE