Modesty and Career Success 1
Running head: MODESTY AND CAREER SUCCESS
When Modesty Wins: Impression Management through Modesty, Political Skill, and Career
Success: A Two-Study Investigation
Gerhard Blickle, Corinna Diekmann, Paula B. Schneider, Yvonne Kalthöfer
University of Bonn
and
James K. Summers
Bradley University
Blickle, G., Diekmann, C., Schneider, P. B., Kalthöfer, Y., & Summers, J. (2012). When
modesty wins: Impression management through modesty, political skill, and career success:
A two-study investigation. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 21,
899-922. DOI 10.1080/1359432X.2011.603900.
(06-22-11) accepted for publication by
European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology
A previous version of this paper was presented at the Society for Industrial and Organizational Conference 2010, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The authors would like to express their gratitude to Gerald R. Ferris for his thorough and insightful comments on a previous draft of this paper and to the German Research Foundation (DFG) which supported this research (Az: Bl 385, 6-2). Correspondence concerning this article should be directed to: Gerhard Blickle, Arbeits-, Organisations- und Wirtschaftspsychologie, Institut fuer Psychologie, Universitaet Bonn, Kaiser-Karl-Ring 9, 53111 Bonn, Fon: +49 228 734375, Fax: +49 228 734670, E-mail: [email protected]
Modesty and Career Success 2
Abstract
The purpose of this research is to investigate the effect of employees’ upward self-
presentation through modesty and political skill on their subsequent career success. Study 1
used a predictive design over a three year period with 141 employees, controlling for age,
gender, and self-esteem. Political skill positively moderated the relationship between
employees’ upward modesty and career success (attained position, career satisfaction) after
three years. Study 2 (n = 132 employees) provided construct validation, demonstrating high
discriminant validity of the impression management through modesty scale used in Study 1
with a trait-modesty scale, thus attenuating rival explanations of the findings in Study 1.
Implications, limitations, and future directions for research are discussed.
Key words: Self-presentation, Modesty, Political Skill, Career Success
Modesty and Career Success 3
When Modesty Wins: Impression Management through Modesty, Political Skill, and Career
Success: A Two-Study Investigation
Modesty has been researched as a norm varying between collectivistic and
individualistic cultures (Chen, Bond, Chan, Tang, & Buchtel, 2009), as a personality trait
(Costa & McCrae, 1992) represented in the trait word lexicon of ordinary language (Ashton
et al., 2004), and as a self-presentational tactic to create favourable social images (Cialdini &
De Nicholas, 1989; Tetlock, 1980; Wosinska, Dabul, Whetstone-Dion, & Cialdini, 1996).
However, the present research focuses on the acquisitive impression management perspective
of modesty. Defined as “the underrepresentation of one’s positive traits, contributions,
expectations, or accomplishments,” (Cialdini & De Nicholas, 1989, p. 626), modesty is based
on cultural norms and stereotypes (Chen et al., 2009; Tetlock, 1980; Wosinska et al., 1996),
and is aimed at creating favourable social images and a positive reputation (Hogan, 1996;
Hogan & Shelton, 1998).
Acquisitive impression management through modesty potentially contributes to early
career employees ability to avoid interpersonal conflict with established organizational
members, by not appearing arrogant, self-satisfied, or conceited (Cialdini & De Nicholas,
1989). For early career employees, acquisitive impression management through modesty also
stimulates help and support from more experienced employees, as acting modestly causes
early career employees to appear more personable and likable (Wosinska et al., 1996). This
enhances the development of early career employees’ work related skills and their perceived
contextual performance (Van Scotter & Motowidlo, 1996). Thus, over several years, the
cumulated effects of acquisitive impression management through modesty can result in
higher career success for early career employees.
However, unlike other self-presentational tactics, such as self-promotion and
ingratiation (Bolino & Turnley, 1999; Jones & Pittman, 1982), self-presentation through
Modesty and Career Success 4
modesty has received little attention in organizational psychology. As with other self-
presentation tactics, the effectiveness of these tactics and the achievement of goals also
depend on actors’ social skill (Harris, Kacmar, Zivnuska, & Shaw, 2007; Hogan & Shelton,
1998; Kolodinsky, Treadway, & Ferris, 2007; Treadway, Ferris, Duke, Adams, & Thatcher,
2007; Turnley & Bolino, 2001). Therefore, we investigate the enhancing role of social skill
on the effects of self-presentation through modesty.
Furthermore, previous research (e.g., Cialdini & De Nicholas, 1989; Tetlock, 1980;
Tice, Butler, Muraven, & Stillwell, 1995; Wosinska et al., 1996) utilized college samples and
written vignettes to investigate self-presentation through modesty in the workplace (cf. for
one exception, Blickle, Schneider, Perrewé, Blass, & Ferris, 2008). However, college
students may not share the same perceptions as managers and co-workers in a workplace
setting (Wosinska et al., 1996), a concern that can be addressed in field studies. Next,
previous studies only have examined the immediate effects of modesty on impression
formation (i.e., ratings of competence and likeability; Tetlock, 1980) and willingness to
support others (Wosinska et al., 1996) in laboratory settings. Only one study has examined
the effects of impression management through modesty on helping behaviours and support in
actual organizational settings (Blickle et al., 2008). However, no research to date examines
the long-term effects of self-presentation through modesty on career success in real
organizational settings.
Therefore, the purpose of the present research is to analyze the moderating role of
social skill on the upward self-presentation through modesty (i.e., modesty shown toward
superiors)—career success relationship. Study 1 is a three year predictive field study. Study 2
tests the construct validity of the self-presentation through modesty scale used in Study 1,
thereby examining alternative interpretations of the findings in Study 1 (i.e., trait-modesty
versus impression management through modesty).
Modesty and Career Success 5
Theoretical Background and Hypotheses Development
Career Success
Previous research (Inkson, 2004; Perlmutter & Hall, 1992) has characterized a career
as a person’s upward occupational moves through a series of positions that require greater
mastery and responsibility, and that provide increasing financial return (see Inkson, 2004 for
a comprehensive discussion of recent career concepts). Career success, then, can be defined
as the real or perceived achievements individuals have accumulated as a result of their work
experiences (Judge, Higgins, Thoresen, & Barrick, 1999). These authors partitioned career
success into extrinsic (e.g., pay, attainment of high status) and intrinsic (e.g., career or job
satisfaction) components.
Careers can be studied through the lens of impression management (Inkson, 2004).
Impression management through self-promotion (e.g. exaggerating the degree of one’s
success or attributing one’s success to internal factors, such as ability or effort) and acting
modestly appear to be opposed. Previous studies on impression management in organizations
have shown that self-promotion tactics do not contribute to an enhanced reputation for
competence, but instead damage interpersonal relationships (Chen et al., 2009; Higgins,
Judge, & Ferris, 2003). Thus, impression management through self-promotion does not
contribute to career success, because it negatively impacts reputation and interpersonal
relationships. Self-presentation though modesty, however, appears to be another viable
impression management lens for which career success can be investigated.
Self-Presentation through modesty
Employees wishing to overcome the self-presentational problems associated with self-
promotion can use modesty tactics of self-presentation (Cialdini & De Nicholas, 1989, p.
626): “By slightly understating one’s positive characteristics one can manage one’s image in
an adroit fashion that increases liking, preserves high levels of perceived competence, and
Modesty and Career Success 6
does no damage to attributions of honesty.” Tetlock (1980) experimentally demonstrated that
teachers who denied taking credit for their pupils’ good performance were rated more
competent and more likeable by college students than teachers who accepted responsibility
for their pupils’ good performance. Further, Wosinska et al. (1996) found that successful
employees received more willing support from others (i.e., as rated by college students) when
those successful employees responded modestly, rather than boastfully, to achievement. If
these effects also hold in natural settings, the competent use of modesty as an impression
management tactic should increase an employees’ reputation for likeability and competence,
and should elicit support from others.
Previous research (Judge & Bretz, 1994; Wayne, Liden, Graf, & Ferris, 1997) in
human resource management has demonstrated that liking and trusting of target persons
increases benevolence and generosity toward these persons, and results in higher levels of
career success of the target persons. However, self-presentation through modesty is a tricky
business. Cialdini and De Nicholas (1989) suggested that one must be modest only about a
strength or success, because accepting responsibility for poor performance leads to reduced
liking and lowered perceptions of competence and self-confidence (Tetlock, 1980).
Self presentation through modesty only has a positive effect for target persons if the
positive characteristics or positive qualities of target persons are easily verifiable (Jones &
Pitman, 1982). The appropriate level of modesty also depends on gender stereotypes and
interpersonal power relations (Wosinka et al., 1996). Furthermore, empirical findings show
that high levels of modest self-presentation can backfire. Individuals easily can be
categorized by observers as perfunctory or shallow, while false modesty often generates a
sense of ulterior motives (Chen et al., 2009; Tetlock, 1980; Wosinka et al., 1996). Thus,
successful self-presentation through modesty requires high social skill.
Modesty and Career Success 7
Social Skill in Organizations
Hogan and Shelton (1998) convincingly argued that interpersonal intentions need
social skill or effectiveness to be successful. As with other self-presentation tactics, the
achievement of goals depends on the audience, apt timing, the correct language-style, and the
appropriate non-verbal execution. Empirical research has supported the idea that socially
skilled individuals are better able to choose appropriate facial expressions, hand gestures,
body postures, voice textures, and other paralinguistic cues (Gangestad & Snyder, 2000;
Klein, De Rouin, & Salas, 2006). Thus, the intention of appearing modest is not sufficient.
One also has to possess the respective social skill to effectively execute the behaviour as
intended.
The political skill construct refers to social skill at the workplace (Ferris, Treadway et
al., 2005). It combines social understanding with the ability to adjust behaviour to the
demands of the situation in ways that inspire trust, confidence, and support, appear genuine,
and effectively influence others (Ferris, Treadway et al., 2007). Political skill has been shown
to facilitate the effectiveness of influence tactics on performance outcomes (e.g., Harris et al.,
2007; Treadway et al., 2007), to moderate the relationship between the motives to get along
and ahead and job performance ratings (Blickle et al., 2008, 2011; Witt & Ferris, 2003), and
to serve as an antidote to the strain reactions from stressors (e.g., Perrewé et al., 2004).
Politically skilled persons enhance their personal and/or organizational goals through
their understanding and influence of others via social interactions at work (Jawahar, Meurs,
Ferris, & Hochwarter, 2008). The social astuteness of politically skilled individuals provides
them with a keen awareness of both self and others, which gives them the capacity to
calibrate and adjust their behaviour to different and changing contexts. This astuteness and
contextual adaptability allow politically skilled individuals to wield a great deal of
interpersonal influence, because their influence attempts are not perceived as such. Instead,
Modesty and Career Success 8
they appear to possess high levels of genuineness and integrity (Ferris, Treadway et al.,
2007), which help them to gain the trust and confidence of those with whom they interact.
This set of mutually reinforcing competencies allows politically skilled individuals to
develop positive images and reputation.
Based upon this reasoning and empirical findings, it is postulated that individuals with
high political skill present themselves more effectively through modesty than individuals
with low political skill, and subsequently will have more career success. Specifically, for
persons high on political skill, higher levels of self presentation through modesty are
associated with higher hierarchical position (i.e. higher organizational rank) and higher career
satisfaction. For persons low on political skill, higher levels of self presentation through
modesty will be associated with lower hierarchical position and lower career satisfaction,
because they tend to appear as perfunctory, shallow, or incompetent.
Hypothesis 1: There will be a positive interaction between employee’s impression
management through modesty and political skill on subsequent career success. For
employees high in political skill, increases in impression management through
modesty will be associated with higher subsequent hierarchical position. For
employees with low political skill, increases in impression management through
modesty will be associated with lower subsequent hierarchical position.
Hypothesis 2: There will be a positive interaction between employee’s impression
management through modesty and political skill on subsequent career satisfaction.
For employees high in political skill, increases in impression management through
modesty will be associated with higher subsequent career satisfaction. For employees
with low political skill, increases in impression management through modesty will be
associated with lower subsequent career satisfaction.
Modesty and Career Success 9
Plan of the Research
Two studies were conducted. In order to test the hypotheses, Study 1 was a predictive
study with a three year time interval. Study 2 was a validation study, which was conducted to
mitigate rival explanations (i.e., trait-modesty versus impression management through
modesty) for the hypotheses in Study 1.
Study 1: Method
Plan of the Research
The data in Study 1 were collected as part of a larger longitudinal study on career
development of employees in managerial jobs (Blickle et al., 2008), with a time span of three
years including three waves of data collection. Wave 2 was collected two years after wave 1,
and wave 3 was collected three years after wave 1. Participating employees were asked how
often they use impression management through modesty in self-presentation toward
supervisors and managers. At the time of the first wave, a validated German translation of the
Political Skill Inventory (PSI; Ferris, Treadway et al., 2005) was not yet available. As we
planned the study with a three year perspective, we decided to translate and validate the PSI,
and employ it in the second wave. This validation of the German PSI was successful (Blickle
et al., 2008), so we used it in the second wave, while measuring career success in the third
wave.
Sample and Procedure
With the help of the alumni networks from different business schools in Germany, the
authors contacted former Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) or Masters of Business
Administration (MBA) students who had graduated at least three years earlier. The former
students were sent questionnaires and prepaid return envelopes. Due to moves and address
changes, involuntary unemployment caused by the economic recession, and voluntary
Modesty and Career Success 10
unemployment caused by the birth of children, it was impossible to calculate the return rate
among employees.
We had complete data sets (i.e., all three waves) from 37 female and 104 male
employees. Mean age was 33.3 years (SD = 5.11 years). The attrition rate from the first
through the third wave of data collection was 62%. However, the sample in the third wave
did not differ (t-tests) from the sample in wave 1 with respect to age, position, or gender
proportion (χ²-test).
Measures
Impression Management through Modesty. Because previous studies on the effects of
self-presentation through modesty have experimentally manipulated modesty, no self-
presentation through modesty scale was available. In addition, self-presentation through
modesty is not a personality trait for which measures would have been available (Costa &
McCrae, 1992; Asthon & Lee, 2005). Therefore, Blickle et al. (2008) developed and
validated a self-presentation through modesty scale, which has substantial self-other
correlations and acceptable test-retest reliability (r = .63) over two years. The test-retest
reliability is acceptable, because it is in line with theoretical expectations. It indicates that it is
a stable tactic, but at the same time, reliability is not as high as one would expect it to be if it
was a stable personality trait. The scale comprised four items, namely “I act very modestly”,
“I blow my horn” (reverse scored), “I make no big fuss about my performance,” and “I
refrain from self-praise.” The instructions asked to describe how the employees acted toward
senior managers. The Likert-type response format ranged from “never” (0) to “always” (8).
In the first wave, the Cronbach’s Alpha value was α = .62.
Political skill. Political skill was measured with the German translation (Blickle et al.,
2008) of the Political Skill Inventory (PSI; Ferris, Treadway et al., 2005). It is comprised of
18 items. Sample items are: “At work, I know a lot of important people and am well
Modesty and Career Success 11
connected,” “I understand people very well”, “I am able to communicate easily and
effectively with others,” and “I try to show a genuine interest in other people.” Items were
responded on a 7-point Likert-type agreement scale. In the present study, Cronbach’s alpha
(α) for the PSI was .91.
Career success. To measure hierarchical position, based on Ferris et. al. (2008),
employees were asked to report their current hierarchical position (100% = “top”, 0% =
“bottom”) within their present company three years after measuring self-presentation through
modesty. Career satisfaction also was assessed three years after measuring self-presentation
through modesty. We used a scale by Weymann (2001) with one global and 13 specific
items, which included: satisfaction with job content, fit between job content and education,
rank attained, current income, working conditions, promotion prospects, professional
training, job security, amount of time spent working, the degree of participation, work-
family-balance, social climate in the job, and technical support in the job. The response
format of the items ranged from 1 = “very unsatisfied” to 5 = “very satisfied.” Coefficient
alpha of the career satisfaction scale was α = .84
Control variables. Gender and age were used as control variables, because of gender-
and age-role cultural stereotypes related to modesty (Chen et al., 2009). Because aspects of
the political skill scale involve the possession of a favourable self-view (Ferris et al., 2007;
Perrewé et al., 2004), we also controlled for self-esteem. We used a validated German
translation of the Rosenberg Self-esteem scale (Rosenberg, 1965; Ferring & Filipp, 1996).
The scale comprises 10 items, and range from 0 = not at all true to 3 = completely true.
Coefficient alpha of the self-esteem scale was α = .62. The data on gender and age were
collected in wave 1, while the data of the self-esteem scale were collected in wave 2.
Statistical Analyses
Hierarchical moderated multiple regression analyses (Cohen, Cohen, West & Aiken,
Modesty and Career Success 12
2003) were conducted to examine the moderating role of political skill on the modesty –
career success relationships. The predictor (i.e., modesty) and moderator (i.e., political skill)
variables were centered. Gender, age, and self-esteem were entered in the first step of the
regression analyses. In the second step, modesty and political skill were entered, thereby
extracting common method variance from the cross-product term in the next step (Cohen et
al., 2003). In the last step, the cross-product terms of modesty and political skill were entered.
Study 1: Results
Zero-Order Correlations
The means, standard deviations, and correlations of the study variables are presented
in Table 1. Modesty was not correlated with hierarchical position or career satisfaction, while
political skill, hierarchical position, and career satisfaction were positively related. Self-
esteem associated positively with political skill and hierarchical position.
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Insert Table 1 about here
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Test of Hypotheses
Tables 2 and 3 illustrate the hierarchical moderated regression results for the modesty
x political skill interaction. After all variables were entered on the first two regression steps,
the modesty x political skill interaction term demonstrated significant positive beta-weights
in predicting hierarchical position ( = .17, p < .05, ∆ R² = .028) and career satisfaction ( =
.18, p < .05, ∆ R² = .03). Consequently, these results provided support for the hypotheses 1
and 2.
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Insert Table 2 and 3 about here
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The modesty x political skill interaction term was graphically illustrated according to
the procedure proposed by Cohen et al. (2003). The regression analyses were calculated at
Modesty and Career Success 13
three points of political skill: at one standard deviation below the mean, at the mean, and at
one standard deviation above the mean. For individuals high on political skill, higher levels
of impression management through modesty were associated with higher levels of
hierarchical position. Mean level of political skill were associated with no increase in
hierarchical position. Low levels of political skill were associated with lower levels of
hierarchical position. As can be seen from Figure 1, employees high on impression
management through modesty, but low on political skill, had a hierarchical position that is
about 1.01 SD (i.e., 23%) less than employees high on both modesty and political skill.
Figure 2 represents the significant modesty x political skill interaction effect on career
satisfaction. For individuals high on political skill, higher levels of impression management
through modesty were associated with higher levels of career satisfaction. Whereas the mean
level of political skill was associated with no increase in career satisfaction, low levels of
political skill were associated with lower levels of career satisfaction. As can be seen from
Figure 2, employees high on impression management through modesty, but low on political
skill, demonstrated career satisfaction that is 0.77 SD (44%) less than employees high on both
impression management through modesty and political skill.
To test for common method variance, we conducted Harman's single factor test of the
study variables (Spector, 1994). A single factor (principal components analysis) explained
26.4% of the variance of the study variables. Three eigenvalues greater than one emerged
from the principle component analysis, and three orthogonal factors explained 58.1% of the
variance of the study variables. These findings mitigate the concerns for a common method
effect in the present data.
Neither gender nor age had effects on hierarchical position or career satisfaction after
three years. Self-esteem had a marginal positive effect (p < .10) both on hierarchical position
after three years and career satisfaction after three years. We also tested the modesty x self-
Modesty and Career Success 14
esteem-interaction effect on hierarchical position and career satisfaction after three years.
Neither interaction was significant, which mitigate rival explanations for our results.
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Insert Figure 1 and 2 about here
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Study 1: Discussion
For the first time, this investigation has tested the effect of the self-presentation tactic
of upward modesty on subsequent extrinsic and intrinsic career success after three years. As
expected, this relationship was moderated by employees’ political skill. Employees with high
impression management through modesty and high political skill had a hierarchical position
that was 23% higher than those with high modesty and low political skill, and their career
satisfaction was 0.77 SD higher than those with high modesty and low political skill.
In Study 1, we had controlled for age, gender, and self-esteem, thereby excluding rival
explanations for the findings. However, we were not yet able to rule out the possibility that
the impression management through modesty scale used in Study 1 actually measured trait-
modesty as opposed to impression management through modesty. Therefore, we conducted
Study 2 to assess the construct validity of the impression management through modesty scale
used in Study 1 compared to a trait-modesty scale.
Study 2: Plan of the Research
Study 2 proceeded in three steps. First, based on the theoretical concept of acquisitive
impression management through modesty by Cialdini and De Nicholas (1989), we developed
an item pool for impression management through modesty. Second, eight experts from social
and organizational psychology were provided with written descriptions of impression
management through modesty and trait-modesty. They were asked to independently classify
impression management through modesty items, trait-modesty items, and unrelated items into
different categories, and rate the respective category fit of each item. Third, job beginners, in
Modesty and Career Success 15
their first five years of working, were surveyed and asked to provide self-reports as to how
they behaved towards others in their work place. They were provided with the impression
management through modesty scale used in Study 1, the newly generated impression
management through modesty scale, a trait-modesty scale, and unrelated scales (i.e., self-
esteem, openness to fantasy). We expected to find convergent and discriminant validity
(Campbell & Fiske, 1959) of the impression management through modesty scale used in
Study 1 (i.e., a high positive relationship of the impression management through modesty
scale used in Study 1 and the newly minted impression management through modesty scale, a
low positive relationship between the impression management through modesty scale used in
Study 1 and the trait-modesty scale, and no significant relationships with the conceptually
unrelated scales).
Study 2: Expert validation of new impression management through modesty items
In order to ensure construct validity of the newly developed impression management
through modesty scale, an expert study was conducted (Sireci, 2003). From an impression
management perspective, modesty is characterized by “the underrepresentation of one‘s
positive traits, contributions, expectations, or accomplishments” (Cialdini & De Nicholas,
1989, p. 626), and is aimed at creating favorable images (Baumeister, 1982). Based on this
definition, the relevant literature, and existing measures of trait-modesty (e.g. Costa &
McCrae, 1992; Lee & Ashton, 2004), we developed 12 items designed to represent both the
actual modest behavior and the underlying intention of winning favour. Another seven items
were created to measure opposing concepts mirroring low impression management through
modesty. Finally, eight items measuring trait-modesty (Costa & McCrae, 1992), and 16 items
measuring the NEO-PI-R (Costa & McCrae, 1992) facets of openness to activity and
openness to fantasy were added to the item pool to assess discriminant validity (Campbell &
Fiske, 1959).
Modesty and Career Success 16
Eight experts were provided with written instructions, including definitions of
impression management through modesty (IMM) and trait-modesty (TM). They were asked to
independently classify each of the items into one of five categories and rate the item’s
appropriateness for this category: ‘IMM positive’, ‘IMM negative’, ‘TM positive’, ‘TM
negative’, or ‘Other’. For each item, we calculated the proportion of experts who categorized
the item as expected and the mean category appropriateness score. The IMM items that were
correctly categorized by at least five of the experts were retained for the IMM scale. These
items, the proportion of experts who categorized the item as intended, and the mean
appropriateness scores are presented in Table 4.
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Insert Table 4 about here
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As can been seen from Table 4, 19 newly minted impression management through
modesty items were categorized by at least 63% of the experts as belonging to the impression
management through modesty category, along with ratings of the category fit being above
average (M = 2.5).
Study 2: Method
Sample and Procedure
Early career employees (n = 219), in their first five years after graduating from
college, were personally contacted to take part in the study. Participation was voluntary and
participants received no financial reimbursement. One hundred and thirty two returned the
paper-and pencil questionnaire, which is a return rate of 61%, with a mean age of 28.7 years
(SD = 3.15 years). Of the participants, 45% were females. Participants worked in a broad
variety of jobs, with a mean gross income of 27,121 Euro (SD = 3,149 Euro).
Measures
Modesty and Career Success 17
Participants provided self-assessments using the impression management through
modesty scale from Study 1 (IM-modesty 4), the newly minted 19-item impression
management through modesty scale (IM-modesty 19), the Political Skill Inventory (PSI,
Ferris et al., 2005), and the Rosenberg self-esteem scale (Collani, G. & Herzberg, 2003).
Trait-modesty was measured with the 8-items scale from the HEXACO personality inventory
(German translation, Marcus, Lee & Ashton, 2007). The items ranged from 1 = strongly
disagree to 5 = strongly agree. Openness to fantasy was measured with the 8-items scale
from the revised NEO-PI-personality inventory by Costa and McCrae (1992; German
translation Ostendorf & Angleitner, 2004). The items ranged from 0 = strongly disagree to 4
= strongly agree.
Statistical Analyses
If the IM-modesty 4 scale measures modesty validly, it should correlate positively
both with the IM-modesty 19 scale and with the trait-modesty scale. If the IM-modesty 4
scale validly measures impression management through modesty, it should more strongly
correlate with the IM-modesty 19 scale than with the trait-modesty scale. Finally, if the IM-
modesty 4 scale validly measured impression management through modesty, it should not be
associated with self-esteem and openness to fantasy, which are unrelated to impression
management through modesty and to trait-modesty.
Study 2: Results
The means, standard deviations, and correlations of the study variables are presented
in Table 5. As can be seen from Table 5, both impression management scales (i.e., IM-
modesty 4, IM-modesty 19) had Cronbach’s alpha values above α ≥ .80. As expected the IM-
modesty 4 scale correlated positively both with IM-modesty 19 (r = .62, p < .01) and the
trait-modesty scale (r = .32, p < .01), and the positive difference between the two correlations
was highly significant (z = 3.14, p < .01). Additionally, IM-modesty 4 scale had non-
Modesty and Career Success 18
significant correlations with both self-esteem (r = -.11) and openness to fantasy (r = 12).
Finally, the trait-modesty scale did not significantly correlate with any other scale. These
findings support both the reliability and the convergent and discriminant validities of the
impression management through modesty scale (IM-modesty 4) used in Study 1 as compared
to the trait-modesty scale.
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Insert Table 5 about here
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Study 2: Discussion
The purpose of Study 2 was to validate the impression management through modesty
scale used in Study 1 (IM-modesty 4), and to mitigate rival explanations for the hypotheses in
Study 1. The findings in Study 2 clearly demonstrated convergent and discriminant validity
of the impression management through modesty scale used in Study 1, as well as the trait-
modesty scale from the HEXACO personality inventory. These findings rule out the
explanation that the construct measured by the impression management through modesty
scale used in Study 1 (IM-modesty 4) actually was trait-modesty and not impression
management through modesty. Study 2 also mitigated reliability concerns with the IM-
modesty 4 scale, which reported a very solid Cronbach’s alpha reliability score, i.e. α > .80.
General Discussion
In this paper we tested the hypothesis that acquisitive self-presentation through
modesty will have positive consequences on early employees’ career success over several
years, if skilfully executed. In a three year predictive study, we found that the more
employees presented themselves modestly toward their superiors and the more politically
skilled they were, the higher their reported hierarchical position and career satisfaction. We
found that political skill, which represents social skill at the work place (Ferris, Treadway et
al., 2005), positively moderated the self-presentation through modesty ─ career success
Modesty and Career Success 19
relationship. For employees high in political skill, increases in impression management
through modesty were associated with higher hierarchical position and higher career
satisfaction. For employees with low political skill, increases in impression management
through modesty were associated with lower hierarchical position and lower career
satisfaction.
The study variables were analysed with a principle component analysis to test for
common method variance (Harman's single factor test, Spector, 1994). Instead of one, three
orthogonal factors emerged. Thus, a common method effect does not explain the findings in
Study 1. In order to further exclude rival explanations of the effects in Study 1, we controlled
for age, gender, and individual self-esteem. Additionally, we tested in Study 1 whether self-
esteem also moderated the impression management through modesty ─ career success
relationship, which we did not find support. Thus, we can conclude that the self-report
political skill scale was not measuring a similar construct domain as self-esteem.
As Study 1 raised the concern that the IM-modesty 4 scale was in fact measuring trait-
modesty instead of impression management through modesty, we conducted Study 2 to test
the construct validity of this scale. First, based on expert ratings, a 19-item scale of
acquisitive impression management through modesty at the work place was developed. Then,
early career employees provided self-reports on the two impression management through
modesty scales, a trait-modesty scale, and conceptually unrelated scales. The findings in
Study 2 strongly supported the construct validity of the impression management through
modesty scale used in Study 1 versus the trait-modesty scale, thus mitigating the concerns
about the construct validity of the modesty measure in Study 1.
The present research contributes to extant literature in several ways. First, the
enhancing role of political skill on the effects of self-presentation through modesty was
established. Second, instead of college students, the present study utilized actual employees.
Modesty and Career Success 20
Third, the implications of laboratory-based findings were established in natural settings.
Fourth, the implications of short-term immediate laboratory effects on long-term career
consequences were verified. Fifth, a comprehensive self presentation through modesty scale
at the work place was developed and validated. Finally, alternative explanations of the effects
in Study 1 based on age, gender, self-esteem, and trait-modesty were ruled out.
Theoretical Implications
The present study expands upon previous experimental research with college samples,
which had studied the immediate effects of self-presentation through modesty on perceived
competence, likeability, and willingness to provide support to a target person (Cialdini & De
Nicholas, 1989; Tetlock, 1980; Wosinska et al., 1996). In a predictive study, we combined
these findings on the effects of self-presentation through modesty with socioanalytic theory
(Hogan, 1991; Hogan & Shelton, 1998), which posits that self-presentation goals require
effective social skill in order to be successful for developing one’s reputation. In addition, we
drew upon psycho-lexical research, which conjectures that being perceived as a modest
person corresponds to being perceived as sincere and fair, as opposed to sly, greedy, and
pretentious, thus building a positive reputation (Ashton et al., 2004).
Unlike other self-presentational tactics, acquisitive modesty has received little
empirical attention. The present findings strongly corroborate Cialdini and De Nicholas’s
(1989) theoretical claim that self-presentation through modesty can be an effective
impression management tactic, by promoting the perception that an individual is competent,
likeable, and honest in real-world work settings, outside of laboratory contexts. The present
study adds external validity to the existing literature on acquisitive impression management
through modesty. It demonstrated that modesty can have positive long-term career
consequences (i.e., as opposed to immediate effects on perceptions and intentions) for
Modesty and Career Success 21
employees (i.e., as opposed to college students) in real work settings (i.e., as opposed to
laboratory settings), if the modesty tactic is used with high social skill.
The results also are in line with previous studies on political skill. Political skill is one
of the social skill constructs (e.g., self-monitoring) that combines social understanding with
the ability to adjust behaviour to the demands of the situation in ways that inspire trust,
confidence, and support, appear genuine, and effectively influence others (Ferris, Treadway
et al., 2005, 2007). However, while the self-monitoring scale (Gangestad & Snyder, 2000)
was not designed specifically as a scale of social skill at the work place, the political skill
scale was designed specifically for this purpose (Ferris, Treadway et al., 2005).
Based on the work by Arthur and Rousseau (1996) and Hall (2002), Fugate, Kinicki,
and Ashforth (2004) convincingly argued that in today’s economy, individuals’
employability depends on four individual assets: career identity, personal adaptability, human
capital, and social capital. In line with Ferris, Treadway et al. (2005), and based on the
present findings, we should like to add political skill. Taken together, these findings and
arguments strongly indicate that political skill affects the way self-presentation tactics are
perceived and interpreted by others. Thus, political skill plays a critical role in the dynamics
of self-presentation tactics, as they are demonstrated and interpreted in the workplace.
Strengths and Limitations
This paper exhibits a number of strengths, which increase confidence in the validity of
the findings. First, Study 1 had a strong theoretical foundation, connecting the socioanalytic
perspective on self-presentation with the impression management research on modesty.
Second, the predictor and criterion variables were separated by three years. This mitigates
consistency bias impacts. Third, control variables (i.e., age, gender, self-esteem) were used to
exclude rival explanations for hypotheses. Fourth, the implications of laboratory-based
findings were confirmed in natural work settings, and demonstrated long-term effects,
Modesty and Career Success 22
thereby connecting basic and applied social psychology. Fifth, Study 2 confirmed construct
validity of the impression management scale through modesty used in Study 1.
One limitation of this study was the self-reported nature of the variables of interest,
specifically hierarchical position. However, self-reports have been shown to correlate highly
with archival company records (Judge, Cable, Boudreau, & Bretz, 1995; Turban &
Dougherty, 1994). In a recent study on the success of car salespersons (Blickle, Wendel, &
Ferris, 2010), car salespersons and their supervisors were asked to report the number of cars
salespersons had sold in the previous year. The average number of self-reported individually
sold cars was 81.93 (SD = 25.51) cars, while supervisors reported 82.73 (SD = 28.597) cars
sold by the respective salespersons (t = -.22, df = 14, p > .80). Additionally, self-reports of
cars sold and supervisory reports correlated at r = .87 (p < .01). These findings support the
reliability and validity of self-report data. In addition, all data stem from the same source,
potentially subject to common methods variance. However, Harman's single factor test only
explained 45% of the variance explained by three orthogonal factors. This mitigates the
concerns about a common method bias.
Another limitation is the relatively low alpha (.62) for the impression management
through modesty variable in Study 1. One of the implications of the low alpha of impression
management through modesty scale is that the reliability of the interaction term impression
management through modesty x political skill decreased (Aguinis & Stone-Romero, 1997;
Dunlap & Kemery, 1988). By this, the statistical power to detect the moderating effects
decreased equally. However, as the interaction effects nevertheless attained the level of
significance, we have strong evidence to assume that these moderating effects, in reality,
were much stronger, but were underestimated in the present study (Aguinis & Stone-Romero,
1997). Additionally, the reliability for the IM-modesty 4 scale had a good reliability (i.e. α =
.80) in Study 2.Another limitation is that the employees in our sample were active in
Modesty and Career Success 23
administrative and managerial jobs. Thus, the present findings may not generalize to other
fields, such as the academia, social jobs, or realistic jobs (Holland, 1996). Finally, this study
incorporated a German sample of working adults, which may not generalize to western
nations (i.e., Europe and North America), as the possibility exists that cultural effects also
could influence this relationship.
Future Research Directions
There are several directions for future empirical inquiry. First, future research should
empirically analyse the relationships of acquisitive impression management through modesty
with related constructs such as politeness, pride, arrogance, and self-efficacy. Second, self
presentation through modesty can fail and backfire, as these impression management attempts
can be construed as low skill or incompetence. We expect that this should be the case with
persons who have low social skill. Third, Gibson and Sachau (2000) elaborated that
understating one’s abilities also can serve to reduce performance pressure, and to lower the
evaluation baseline being applied. This could be defined as defensive impression management
through modesty. Future research should integrate acquisitive and defensive self presentation
through modesty in one comprehensive theory. Fourth, through a predictive design, future
research should competitively test political skill as moderator of impression management
through modesty and trait-modesty in the prediction of career success. In addition, future
research also should analyse the interplay between trait-modesty, impression management
through modesty, and political skill on reputation, perceived job performance, and career
success.
Conclusion
The present research demonstrated that self-presentation through modesty can be a
powerful tactic in the workplace, if it is executed skilfully. Modesty, and employees’ ability
to present it well, will establish a positive reputation, which subsequently, contributes to an
Modesty and Career Success 24
employees’ career success. Hopefully, the present results will increase interest in topics of
self presentation through modesty in organizations.
Modesty and Career Success 25
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Table 1 Means, Standard Deviations, Coefficient Alpha Reliabilities, and Correlations of the Variables in Study 1
Variables M SD 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1. Gender 1.26 0.44 (-)
2. Age 33.30 5.11 -.09 (-)
3. Self-esteem 2.48 0.27 -.05 .05 (.62)
4. Impression Management
through Modesty 5.60 1.11 -.08 -.05 -.14 (.61)
5. Political Skill 5.13 0.75 -.09 -.15 .34** -.21* (.91)
6. Hierarchical Position T3 67.22 22.91 -.15 .10 .17* -.01 .32** (-)
7. Career Satisfaction T3 3.80 0.57 .03 .01 .15 -.06 .23** .32** (.84) Note. N = 141; Gender: 1 = male, 2 = female; *p < .05, **p < .01; Age in T1, T3 = wave after three years.
Modesty and Career Success 32
Table 2 Hierarchical Regression Analysis on Hierarchical Position in Study 1 Criterion Variable = Hierarchical Position in T3
Predictors Β ∆R2 R2 Block
1 Gender -.14
Age .08
Self-esteem .16†
.056* .056*
2 Impression Management through Modesty .06
Political Skill .33**
.087** .143**
3 Modesty x Political Skill .17*
.028* .170** Note. N = 141; †p < .10, *p < .05, **p < .01; Gender: 1 = male, 2 = female; Age in T1; T3 = wave after three years.
Modesty and Career Success 33
Table 3 Hierarchical Regression Analysis on Career Satisfaction in Study 1 Criterion Variable = Career Satisfaction in T3
Predictors Β ∆R2 R2 Block
1 Gender .03
Age .00
Self-esteem .15†
.022 .022
2 Impression Management through Modesty .00
Political Skill .21*
.038† .060
3 Modesty x Political Skill .18*
.030* .090* Note. N = 141; †p < .10, *p < .05, **p < .01; Gender: 1 = male, 2 = female; Age in T1; T3 = wave after three years.
Modesty and Career Success 34
Table 4 Expert Categorizations and Ratings of the Acquisitive Impression Management through
modesty Scale (IM-modesty 19) in Study 2
Items POE MAS
1 In certain situations I intentionally play down my strengths in order to make a good impression.
100% 3.88
2 My motto is: do well and talk about it! Because otherwise other people would not take notice of how good my achievements are. (R)
63% 3.00
3 When others praise me I make it a point to not react in a self-satisfied manner. 75% 3.50 4 I make no secret of my abilities even if I think in a certain situation that perhaps that might
be better received. (R) 75% 3.50
5 So as to make a personable impression I occasionally appear to be more modest than I actually am.
100% 3.75
6 When I have done something well it is important to me that others learn about it from me. (R)
63% 3.00
7 I sometimes play down good qualities or successes in front of others but I also do not do it too much.
100% 3.50
8 In order to not provoke envy in others I somewhat play down my good achievements in front of them occasionally.
100% 3.13
9 Even if I have done something very well I do not brag about it so as to not appear off-putting.
88% 3.86
10 I behave modestly when my strengths are acknowledged by others so as to not appear conceited.
100% 3.75
11 When I am pleased with a success I do not pay attention to whether others could consider me conceited. (R)
63% 3.00
12 Even if it is my turn I sometimes give precedence to others so as to appear personable. 885% 3.00 13 I behave modestly when it is obvious to others that I have done something well so as to
appear personable. 100% 3.88
14 Sometimes I consciously show myself to be modest so as to appear personable. 100% 3.88 15 I think: if a person does something very well and despite this behaves very modestly others
will probably think that it was nothing special at all. (R) 75% 2.67
16 When I feel superior to other people I do not let others notice it so as to not be considered arrogant.
100% 3.50
17 In order to make others envious I occasionally lay great stress upon my successes and strengths. (R)
635% 2.80
18 I talk about my strengths and positive accomplishments even if I occasionally make myself a little unpopular by doing so. (R)
75% 3.00
19 Even if I am very proud of an achievement I behave modestly so as to not appear arrogant. 100% 3.63
Note. (R) indicates reversed scoring; POE = proportion of experts who categorized the item as conceptually intended; MAS = mean appropriateness score (1 = “somewhat appropriate” to 4 = “completely appropriate”).
Modesty and Career Success 35
Table 5 Means, Standard Deviations, Coefficient Alpha Reliabilities, and Correlations in Study 2
M SD 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 1. Age 28.71 3.15 (-) 2. Gender 0.45 0.50 -.06 (-) 3. Political Skill 4.87 0.67 -.07 .21* (.89) 4. IM-modesty 19 5.76 0.87 -.03 -.20* -.11 (.85) 5. IM-modesty 4 6.14 1.31 -.03 -.13 -.14 .62** (.80) 6. Trait-modesty 3.81 0.57 -.12 .13 -.17 .09 .32** (.75) 7. Self-esteem 2.33 0.50 .02 .00 .36** -.11 -.11 -.03 (.87) 8. Openness to Fantasy 2.21 0.59 .09 .08 .10 .13 .12 .04 -.01 (.73) Note. N = 132; Gender: 0 = male, 1 = female; *p < .05, **p < .01. Political Skill = Political Skill Inventory (Ferris et al., 2005); IM-modesty 4 = impression management through modesty scale with four items used in Study 1; IM-modesty 19 = impression management through modesty scale with 19 items newly minted in Study 2; Trait-modesty (HEXACO, Lee & Ashton, 2004); Self-esteem (Rosenberg, 1965); Openness to Fantasy (NEO-PI-R, Costa & McCrae, 1992).
Modesty and Career Success 36
Figure 1
Interaction of Impression management through modesty and Political Skill on Hierarchical Position in Study 1
Note. N = 141, T1 = wave one, T3 = wave after three years.
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