Abstract:

Voice-taking is originated from the ancient time and it’s crucial for the growth and success of an organization. This paper dealt with a detailed review on the concept, antecedents and outcomes of voice-taking. It found that existing studies paid less attention to the connotation of voice-taking and focused on discussing the antecedents of voice-taking, which were not conducive to in-depth understanding of the connotation and effects of voice-taking. Voice-taking is a deliberate cognitive process. Meanwhile, as a conscious behavior, it’s also a goal-directed behavior driven by motivation. From the perspective of motivation of voice-taking, this paper systematically explores the connotation of voice-taking and its effect mechanisms based on the regulatory focus theory. Specifically, according to motivation perspective and regulatory focus theory, voice-taking may include two sub-dimensions: promotive voice-taking and preventive voice-taking. At the individual level, promotive voice-taking and preventive voice-taking have different effect mechanisms on promotive voice and prohibitive voice. Promotive voice-taking has a positive effect on employees’ promotive voice by stimulating their felt responsibility for constructive change, while preventive voice-taking has a positive effect on employees’ prohibitive voice by enhancing their psychological safety. Meanwhile, according to regulatory fit theory, employees’ regulatory focus trait is an important factor that affects the relationship between promotive voice-taking and felt responsibility for constructive change, and the relationship between preventive voice-taking and psychological safety. When employees’ promotion focus trait matches the promotive voice-taking environment, their felt responsibility for constructive change will be strengthened and consequently more promotive voice behavior will be performed. When employees’ prevention focus trait matches the preventive voice-taking environment, their psychological safety will be enhanced, thereby more prohibitive voice behavior will be performed. At the team level, the effect mechanisms of promotive voice-taking and preventive voice-taking on team innovation are different. Promotive voice-taking is conductive to the formation of collective promotion focus, thus facilitating team exploration orientation. The flexible way of thinking and willingness to take risks for team exploration orientation are benefit to team innovation. Preventive voice-taking is conductive to the formation of collective prevention focus, then promotes team reflexivity, thus helping to team innovation. Although both promotive voice-taking and preventive voice-taking can promote team innovation through different effect paths, promotive voice-taking has a stronger effect on team innovation through the chain mediating effect of collective promotion focus and team exploration orientation.
Moreover, according to regulatory fit theory, regulatory focus organizational context is an important factor that affects the relationship between promotive voice-taking and collective promotion focus, and the relationship between preventive voice-taking and collective prevention focus. When organizational context emphasizes development opportunities and growth (i.e., promotion-focused organizational context), employees will have a sense of matching between leader promotive voice-taking and promotion-focused organizational context. Then they can perceive correctness and effectiveness of leader promotive voice-taking in the organizational context, thus strengthening collective promotion focus. When organizational context emphasizes avoiding losses, mistakes and risks (i.e., prevention-focused organizational context), employees will have a sense of matching between leader preventive voice-taking and prevention-focused organizational context. Then they can perceive correctness and effectiveness of leader preventive voice-taking in the organizational context, thus strengthening collective prevention focus. The present study expands the research perspective and theoretical basis of leader voice-taking and provides a new direction for future study of leader voice-taking.

Key words: promotive voice-taking, preventive voice-taking, regulatory focus, voice behavior, team innovation