Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Top executive leaders’ compassionate actions: An integrative framework of compassion incorporating a confucian perspective

  • Published:
Asia Pacific Journal of Management Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper sets out to develop a theoretical framework for understanding compassion. It contributes to the research of compassion from an indigenous theory perspective to complement the Western theory of this important topic. We do this by adopting self-cultivation, a Confucian indigenous theoretical perspective based on xin (mind-heart) to guide our grounded study and thus develop an integrative framework. With an analysis based on extensive interviews with top executive leaders in Chinese enterprises, we thus show that (1) integrating compassion and self-cultivation enriches our understanding of the moral growth of compassion; (2) compassion affects performance outcomes at the individual, relational, and organizational levels; and (3) self-cultivation and compassion have an ultimate interaction effect on organizational performance outcomes.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Ahlstrom, D., & Bruton, G. D. 2002. An institutional perspective on the role of culture in shaping strategic actions by technology-focused entrepreneurial firms in China. Entrepreneurship: Theory and Practice, 26(4): 53–70.

    Google Scholar 

  • Atkins, P., & Parker, S. 2012. Understanding individual compassion in organizations: The role of appraisals and psychological flexibility. Academy of Management Review, 37(4): 524–546.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barsade, S. G., & Gibson, D. E. 2007. Why does affect matter in organizations?. Academy of Management Perspectives, 21(1): 36–59.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boyatzis, R. E., Smith, M. L., & Blaize, N. 2006. Developing sustainable leaders through coaching and compassion. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 5(1): 8–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brief, A. P., & Motowidlo, S. J. 1986. Prosocial organizational behaviors. Academy of Management Review, 11(4): 710–725.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cameron, K. S. 2012. Positive leadership: Strategies for extraordinary performance. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.

  • Cameron, K. S., Dutton, J. E., & Quinn, R. E. 2003. An introduction to positive organizational scholarship. In K. S. Cameron, J. E. Dutton, & R. E. Quinn (Eds.). Positive organizational scholarship: Foundations of a new discipline: 3–13. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.

  • Carlsen, A., & Dutton, J. E. 2011. Research alive: Exploring generative moments in doing qualitative research, Vol. 27. Copenhagen: Copenhagen Business School Press DK.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chan, W.-T. 1955. The evolution of the Confucian concept Jen. Philosophy East and West, 4(4): 295–319.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, X.-P., & Chen, C. C. 2004. On the intricacies of the Chinese guanxi: A process model of guanxi development. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 21(3): 305–324.

  • Cheng, C. Y. 2004. A theory of Confucian selfhood: Self-cultivation and free will in Confucian philosophy. In K. Shun & D. B. Wong (Eds.). Confucian ethics: A comparative study of self, autonomy, and community: 124–142. London: Cambridge University Press.

  • Cheng, B.-S., Chou, L.-F., Wu, T.-Y., Huang, M.-P., & Farh, J.-L. 2004. Paternalistic leadership and subordinate responses: Establishing a leadership model in Chinese organizations. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 7(1): 89–117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Corbin, J., & Strauss, A. 2008. Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory. Los Angeles: Sage.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Dewey, J. 1960. Theory of the moral life. New York: Holt, Rinehafi, & Winston.

  • Dutton, J. E., Frost, P. J., Worline, M. C., Lilius, J. M., & Kanov, J. M. 2002. Leading in times of trauma. Harvard Business Review, 80(1): 54–61.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dutton, J. E., & Workman, K. M. 2011. Compassion as a generative force. Journal of Management Inquiry, 20(4): 402–406.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dutton, J. E., Worline, M. C., Frost, P. J., & Lilius, J. 2006. Explaining compassion organizing. Administrative Science Quarterly, 51(1): 59–96.

    Google Scholar 

  • Farh, J. L., & Cheng, B. S. 2000. A cultural analysis of paternalistic leadership in Chinese organizations. In J. T. Li, A. S. Tsui, & E. Weldon (Eds.). Management and organizations in the Chinese context: 4–127. London: Macmillan Press Ltd.

  • Fox, S., & Amichai-Hamburger, Y. 2001. The power of emotional appeals in promoting organizational change programs. Academy of Management Executive, 15(4): 84–94.

  • Frost, P. J. 1999. Why compassion counts!. Journal of Management Inquiry, 8(2): 127–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frost, P. J. 2003. Toxic emotions at work. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

  • Frost, P. J., Dutton, J. E., Maitlis, S., Lilius, J. M., Kanov, J. M., & Worline, M. C. 2006. Seeing organizations differently: Three lenses on compassion. In S. R. Clegg, C. Hardy, T. B. Lawrence, & W. R. Nords (Eds.). The Sage handbook of organization studies: 843–866. London: Sage.

  • George, J. M. 2014. Compassion and capitalism: Implications for organizational studies. Journal of Management, 40(1): 5–15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gioia, D. A., Corley, K. G., & Hamilton, A. L. 2013. Seeking qualitative rigor in inductive research notes on the Gioia methodology. Organizational Research Methods, 16(1): 15–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glaser, B., & Strauss, A. 1967. The discovery of grounded theory. London: Weidenfield & Nicolson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grant, A. M., Dutton, J. E., & Rosso, B. D. 2008. Giving commitment: Employee support programs and the prosocial sensemaking process. Academy of Management Journal, 51(5): 898–918.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenberg, J. 1990. Employee theft as a reaction to underpayment inequity: The hidden cost of pay cuts. Journal of Applied Psychology, 75(5): 561–568.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hannah, S. T., Avolio, B. J., & May, D. R. 2011. Moral maturation and moral conation: A capacity approach to explaining moral thought and action. Academy of Management Review, 36(4): 663–685.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ho, D. Y. 1995. Selfhood and identity in Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, and Hinduism: Contrasts with the West. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 25(2): 115–139.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hwang, K. K. 1999. Filial piety and loyalty: Two types of social identification in Confucianism. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 2: 163–183.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hwang, K. K. 2011. The Mandala model of self. Psychological Studies, 56(4): 329–334.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hwang, K. K. 2012. Foundations of Chinese psychology: Confucian social relations. New York: Springer.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Hwang, K. K. 2015a. Culture-inclusive theories of self and social interaction: The approach of multiple philosophical paradigms. Journal for the Theory of Social Behavior, 45(1): 39–62.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hwang, K. K. 2015b. Cultural system vs. pan-cultural dimensions: Philosophical reflection on approaches for indigenous psychology. Journal for the Theory of Social Behavior, 45(1): 1–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hwang, K. K., & Chang, J. 2009. Self-cultivation culturally sensitive psychotherapies in Confucian societies. Counseling Psychologist, 37(7): 1010–1032.

  • Ip, P. K. 2009. Is Confucianism good for business ethics in China?. Journal of Business Ethics, 88(3): 463–476.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kanov, J. M., Maitlis, S., Worline, M. C., Dutton, J. E., Frost, P. J., & Lilius, J. M. 2004. Compassion in organizational life. American Behavioral Scientist, 47(6): 808–827.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Khanna, T. 2011. Billions of entrepreneurs: How China and India are reshaping their futures and yours. Boston: Harvard Business Review Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kirkbride, P. S., Tang, S. F., & Westwood, R. I. 1991. Chinese conflict preferences and negotiating behaviour: Cultural and psychological influences. Organization Studies, 12(3): 365–386.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lau, D. C. 1995. Mencius says. Singapore: Federal Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lawrence, T. B., & Maitlis, S. 2012. Care and possibility: Enacting an ethic of care through narrative practice. Academy of Management Review, 37(4): 641–663.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lawrence, T., Suddaby, R., & Leca, B. 2011. Institutional work: Refocusing institutional studies of organization. Journal of Management Inquiry, 20(1): 52–58.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li, C. 1994. The Confucian concept of jen and the feminist ethics of care: A comparative study. Hypatia, 9(1): 70–89.

  • Lilius, J. M., Worline, M. C., Maitlis, S., Kanov, J., Dutton, J. E., & Frost, P. 2008. The contours and consequences of compassion at work. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 29(2): 193–218.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maxwell, J. A. 2012. Qualitative research design: An interactive approach. Thousand Oaks: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, T. L., Grimes, M. G., McMullen, J. S., & Vogus, T. J. 2012. Venturing for others with heart and head: How compassion encourages social entrepreneurship. Academy of Management Review, 37(4): 616–640.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rest, J., Narvaez, D., Bebeau, M., & Thoma, S. 1999. A neo-Kohlbergian approach: The DIT and schema theory. Educational Psychology Review, 11(4): 291–324.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rousseau, D. M. 1985. Issues of level in organizational research: Multi-level and cross-level perspectives. Research in Organizational Behavior, 7(1): 1–37.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rynes, S., Bartunek, J., Dutton, J., & Margolis, J. 2012. Care and compassion through an organizational lens: Opening up new possibilities. Academy of Management Review, 37(4): 503–524.

    Google Scholar 

  • Settoon, R. P., & Mossholder, K. W. 2002. Relationship quality and relationship context as antecedents of person-and task-focused interpersonal citizenship behavior. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(2): 255–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shepherd, D. A., & Cardon, M. S. 2009. Negative emotional reactions to project failure and the self-compassion to learn from the experience. Journal of Management Studies, 46(6): 923–949.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, A. V., Clegg, S., & Pitsis, T. 2014. “I used to care but things have changed”: A genealogy of compassion in organizational theory. Journal of Management Inquiry, 23(4): 347–359.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Solomon, R. C. 1998. The moral psychology of business: Care and compassion in the corporation. Business Ethics Quarterly, 8(3): 515–533.

  • Tu, W. 1968. The creative tension between Jen and Li. Philosophy East and West, 18(1/2): 29–39.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tu, W. 1985. Confucian thought: Selfhood as creative transformation. Albany: State University of New York Press.

  • Tu, W. 2012. Confucian spirituality in contemporary China. In F. Yang & J. B. Tamney (Eds.). Confucianism and spiritual traditions in modern China and beyond: 75–96. Leide: Brill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wei, H., & Li, S. 2011. Confucian nurturing doctrine of xin (heart-mind) its enlightenment to organization research. Journal of Management Development, 30(7/8): 753–765.

  • Yang, G. 2007. Zhongguo daolu: Sanshi nian yu liushi nian [China’s road: Thirty years and sixty years]. Dushu, 6: 3–13.

  • Zhu, Y. 2009. Confucian ethics exhibited in the discourse of Chinese marketing communication. Journal of Business Ethics, 88(3): 517–528.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhu, Y. 2011. Practical Confucian wisdom for entrepreneurship development and training in China. Philosophy of Management, 10(1): 95–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhu, Y. 2015. The role of qing (positive emotions) and li (rationality) in Chinese entrepreneurial decision-making: A Confucian ren-yi wisdom perspective. Journal of Business Ethics, 126(4): 613–630.

  • Zhu, Y., & Zhang, A. M. 2007. Understanding “guanxi” (connections) from business leaders’ perspectives. Business Communication Quarterly, 70(3): 385–389.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, 10900 Euclid Ave, Peter B. Lewis Bldg #429, Cleveland, OH, 44106-7235, USA

    Hongguo Wei

  2. Business School, Faculty of Business, Economics and Law, University of Queensland, St Lucia Campus, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia

    Yunxia Zhu

  3. College of Education, Health & Society, Department of Educational Leadership, Miami University, 304 McGuffey Hall, 201 E. Spring Street, Oxford, OH, 45056-3493, USA

    Shaobing Li

Authors
  1. Hongguo Wei
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Yunxia Zhu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Shaobing Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hongguo Wei.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Wei, H., Zhu, Y. & Li, S. Top executive leaders’ compassionate actions: An integrative framework of compassion incorporating a confucian perspective. Asia Pac J Manag 33, 767–787 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-016-9463-2

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-016-9463-2

Keywords

Search

Navigation