“I’m a high flyer – what’s my return?” - How perceived overperformance decreases trust and job satisfaction in virtual teams

Romeike P, Nienaber A, Schewe G

Abstract
Employees frequently engage in social comparison processes and have a tendency to perceive theirown performance as superior compared to that of their peers. We expect this to be particularly salientin virtual teams where employees receive few cues upon which the comparison with their teammembers can be based. With reliance on social exchange theory, we propose that such ‘perceivedoverperformance' has negative effects on individual job satisfaction which are mediated by individualtrust in team. We confirm this with a sample of field-service employees (753 employees, 57 virtualteams) using structural equation modelling and hierarchical regressions. Our findings imply the needfor performance indicators that are easily communicated to and comprehended by employees tomaintain trust and satisfaction.