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Linking abusive supervision to service sabotage: Evidence from Indian hospitality sector on the roles of moral disengagement and psychological contract violation

Vikram Singh Chouhan

Tourism and Hospitality Research2026https://doi.org/10.1177/14673584261415854article
ABDC B
Weight
0.50

What the paper says

This study examines how abusive supervision influences service sabotage behavior (SSB) among hospitality employees through a dual-mediating mechanism: moral disengagement and psychological contract violation. Drawing on Moral Conation Theory, Psychological Contract Theory, and Frustration–Aggression Theory, we propose that frustration and anger from abusive supervision are displaced onto customers, increasing SSB. Data were collected in a three-phase, time-lagged design from 358 employees in the Indian hospitality sector. Results show that abusive supervision simultaneously fosters high moral disengagement and perceptions of psychological contract violation, which sequentially increase engagement in SSB. The study highlights the detrimental consequences of abusive supervision and provides novel empirical evidence of the dual mediating mechanisms linking leadership behavior to employee misconduct in service contexts. By integrating three theoretical perspectives, this research contributes to leadership and organizational studies and extends understanding of the psychological processes underlying SSB in the hospitality sector.

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/14673584261415854

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@article{vikram2026,
  title        = {{Linking abusive supervision to service sabotage: Evidence from Indian hospitality sector on the roles of moral disengagement and psychological contract violation}},
  author       = {Vikram Singh Chouhan},
  journal      = {Tourism and Hospitality Research},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/14673584261415854},
}

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Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.