Incivility and Beyond at the Top Management Team Level

ABSTRACT Although incivility has been gaining increasing attention in the literature as well as in the industry, academic studies have not examined the effects on top management team (TMT) members. TMT members are different from employees at other levels because they are officers of their organizations who are held to a much higher level of responsibility than those in lower echelons. They are crucial in setting the norms of an organization and have far-reaching influence. This article seeks to uncover the mechanisms that explain what happens when TMT members are targets of uncivil leadership behavior. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 15 TMT members. Findings suggest that TMT members tended to be analytical in their reactions, influencing their responses. This study contributes to the literature on incivility and leadership, filling the gap of addressing such behavior at the TMT level.