Team-member exchange, voice behavior, and creative work involvement

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize the links among team-member exchange (TMX), voice behavior, and creative work involvement. Design/methodology/approach: A total of 260 employees were participants in this study. All were alumni of a Business School in Indonesia. Data were gathered at two time points four months apart. Hierarchical regression and bootstrapping analyses were conducted to find the effects of TMX on voice behavior and creative work involvement. Findings: Results from the analyses showed positive effects of TMX on both voice behavior and creative work involvement. A positive effect of voice behavior on creative work involvement was found. The results also exhibited a partial mediating effect of voice behavior on the relationship between TMX and creative work involvement. Practical implications: The findings point to the importance of maintaining TMX quality in work teams for enhancing employee voice and creativity. Organizations may need to develop members’ reciprocal relationship skill in teams and maintain the roles of team leaders to develop the quality of TMX. It is also suggested that the practice of self-management teams may enhance the quality of TMX and voice behavior of employees. Originality/value: This paper offers new insight on how levels of TMX may impact on members’ voice behavior and creative work involvement. Longitudinal data may provide a more accurate prediction of the links among TMX, voice behavior, and creative work involvement.