A Contingency View of Impression Management: Heterogeneous Investor Responses to CEO Positive Portrayal of Mergers and Acquisitions
研究CEO在并购中积极描绘如何影响投资者反应，发现效果取决于CEO是否兼任董事长、并购是否提前预告以及投资者类型，对理解印象管理有效性有参考价值。
Abstract Existing research has suggested seemingly contradictory conclusions about the efficacy of impression management (IM) tactics. While a growing body of research highlights the potential benefits of IM, other studies imply that the effectiveness of these tactics in shaping stakeholder perceptions may be limited. Our study advances theory on IM by drawing upon expectancy violations theory to develop a contingency theory of IM efficacy. Concentrating on CEOs’ positive portrayal of merger and acquisition (M&A) activity, we hypothesize that the effectiveness of this IM tactic hinges on factors related to the communicator (CEO duality), context (acquisition foreshadowing), and audience (investor type). Our results indicate that investor reactions to CEOs’ positive portrayal are more favourable when M&A activity has been foreshadowed or when the institutional investor is transient. Conversely, reactions are less favourable for CEOs also serving as board chair. Our findings provide novel insights into IM theory, suggesting that potential expectancy violations associated with IM tactics could be shaped by the attributes of communicator, context, and audience.