Seeking feedback but unable to improve work performance? Qualified feedback from trusted supervisors matters

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the boundary conditions in the relationship between feedback-seeking behavior (FSB) and work performance. The authors hypothesized that the positive influence of employees’ FSB on their work performance is influenced by perceived quality of feedback. The authors also expected that employees’ trust in their supervisors moderated the interaction between their FSB and perceived feedback quality. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from 202 employees in South Korea. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis was performed to test the hypothesis. Findings – The results showed that while employees’ FSB was positively related to work performance, the influence was stronger for employees who perceived they were receiving high quality of feedback from supervisors. The authors also found that the moderating effect of feedback quality on the relationship between FSB and work performance was stronger when employees had high levels of trust in their supervisors. Practical implications – The findings suggest that if managers wish to encourage employees to achieve work goal and desirable performance levels by actively engaging in FSB, they should pay more attention to providing high quality of feedback and building trust with employees. Originality/value – This study contributes to expand the understanding of FSB-work performance relationship by verifying the boundary conditions, which suggests the importance of examining the moderating factors in the FSB mechanism.