Reactions to Impression Management Behavior: Effects of Situational Strength and Attributions

Although impression management research has yielded great insights, there are a number of discrepancies in prior research. It is likely that these discrepancies are due, in part, to a lack of an explicit consideration of the context in which impression management behavior occurs. This study seeks to advance impression management theory and research by examining the effects of context on the consequences of impression management behavior. Specifically, based on an integration of attribution theory and research on situational strength, we propose that the context in which impression management occurs has implications for how others perceive an individual’s impression management use; thereby affecting important outcomes (e.g., evaluations of the individual). As predicted, we find that strong situations (characterized by high evaluative potential) are more likely to prompt external attributions for ingratiatory behaviors. Further, the attributions observers make for workplace behavior relate to evaluations of the ingratiator. Altogether, this research helps reconcile discrepancies in past research and offers a more nuanced understanding of the consequences of impression management behaviors in the workplace.