The Journal zyxwvut ojSocinl Psycholog.v, zyxwv 1998, 138(5), zyxw 624-636 zyxw Empowerment in the Manager-Employee Relationship in Hong Kong: Interdependence and Controversy DEAN TJOSVOLD Department of Management Lingnan College, Hong zyxwv Kong CHUN HUI KENNETH S. LAW Department of Management zyxw of Organizations Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ABSTRACT. M. Deutsch’s (1949) theory of cooperation and competition may be useful- ly extended to the study of effective, empowering, managerial leadership in Chinese set- tings. Results of structural equation modeling and other analyses on data collected from interviews of Chinese managers and employees in Hong Kong indicated that cooperative goals contributed to constructive discussion between managers and employees and that such discussions, in turn, resulted in productive work and stronger work relationships. Cooperative goals and constructive controversy also predicted democratic leadership and the power of employees and managers. The results suggest that Chinese and North Amer- ican managers may operationalize goals and controversy differently. MANAGERS ARE INCREASINGLY EXPECTED to empower employees in areas where power is expandable and can be shared by the leader and the fol- lower (Bennis & Nanus, 1985; Kanter, 1979). However, because ways to share power and the meaning of empowerment have not been systematically articulat- ed (Hui, 1994), managers are uncertain how they can empower employees with- out diminishing their own power. We suggest that the theory of cooperation (Deutsch, 1949, 1973, 1980) can help both researchers and practitioners under- stand how power can be expanded and shared by leaders and followers. Cooperation theory proposes that people’s beliefs about how their goals are related affect the courses and outcomes of their interactions (Johnson & Johnson, 1989; Tjosvold, 1986). In cooperative environments, individuals use a common Address correspondence to Dean Tjosvold, Department of Management, Lingnun College, Tuen Mun, Hong Kong; e-mail: tjosvold@ln.edu.hk. 624 Downloaded By: [National University Of Singapore] At: 06:17 15 June 2011