Dissertation
Stars in your ears: the countervailing implications of star voice on manager response and endorsement
University of Iowa
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of Iowa
Spring 2026
DOI: 10.25820/etd.008357
Abstract
Stars—employees recognized for their exceptional performance, visibility, and influence—are valuable assets in the organization. Due to their outstanding excellence, input from stars may be regarded as high-quality, valuable, and deserve managerial attention. Yet, high expectations on the value of star input and the importance of retaining stars may lead managers to experience endorsement pressure wherein they feel compelled to support employee voice. In turn, managers may diverge in how they respond to star employee depending on their appraisals of its associated benefits and burdens. Despite the positive gains star employee may offer, its implied criticism of leadership within voice may elicit diverging reactions from managers. That is, managers may feel threatened by star employee as the critique originates from star employees who are especially trusted and respected in the organization. This dissertation examines managers’ reactions to star employee and their subsequent support for star input. Drawing on categorization theory, I argue that star employee provides both opportunities to improve the leader image by highlighting managers as deliverers of valuable employee input, while also imposing threats to the leader image through putative disapprovals. These positive and negative reactions to star employee may further determine managers’ subsequent voice endorsement decisions. I also examine a boundary condition in which the organizational focus of star voice moderates the managerial experience of endorsement pressure. I investigate managerial outcomes of star employee in a field study with 124 managers and 1,054 employees in hospital and college settings. This dissertation contributes to the voice literature by examining the input of stars and the implications of star employee as both an opportunity and threat to managers, as well as extends the star performer literature by examining the implications of stars on managerial responses and outcomes.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Stars in your ears: the countervailing implications of star voice on manager response and endorsement
- Creators
- Ah Jung Kim
- Contributors
- Daniel Newton (Advisor)Amy Colbert (Committee Member)Jennifer Nahrgang (Committee Member)Eean Crawford (Committee Member)
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Degree Awarded
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of Iowa
- Degree in
- Business Administration (Management)
- Date degree season
- Spring 2026
- DOI
- 10.25820/etd.008357
- Publisher
- University of Iowa
- Number of pages
- ix, 101 pages
- Copyright
- Copyright 2026 Ah Jung Kim
- Language
- English
- Date submitted
- 04/24/2026
- Description illustrations
- illustrations, tables, graphs
- Description bibliographic
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 74-86).
- Public Abstract (ETD)
Star performers who demonstrate high performance over a long period with abundant resources are a pivotal social capital across industries. Drawing from star employees’ job knowledge and access to work-related information, stars likely make contributions to the workplace through speaking up. My dissertation thus examines star employees’ voice behavior—employee communication of ideas or concerns—and its impact on managers.
As star employees speak up, managers are likely to feel pressure to accept star input positively because of a widely held belief in the value of stars. This research explores whether managers view a star employee as an opportunity to enhance their leadership image or as a threat to it, while feeling pressure in the decision-making process, using categorization theory, which examines managers’ appraisal of the benefits and burdens associated with an issue at work.
My study also examines how the level of pressure managers experience during the endorsement process can be reduced when star employees speak up with an idea that supports organizational improvement and aligns with work goals.
The analysis is based on data from a rehabilitation hospital and a community college in South Korea, yielding a final sample of 124 managers and 1,054 employees. This research provides valuable insights into the interaction between star employees and managers, shedding light on the countervailing implications of stars on manager outcomes. My work aims to offer guidance on fostering and acting on star employees' contributions to benefit employees, managers, and the organization.
- Academic Unit
- Tippie College of Business
- Record Identifier
- 9985176870702771
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