Do leaders' influence tactics relate to members' helping behavior? It depends on the quality of the relationship

By integrating leader member exchange (LMX) theory and the group engagement model, we argue that the relation between leaders' downward influence tactics and members' helping behavior depends on LMX quality. We developed hypotheses for five influence tactics and tested them using 177 dyads. Our results support three of the hypothesized interactions. The study contributes to research on influence tactics and LMX by pointing out how their joint effects may impact member behaviors toward a work group.