The Impact of the Fit Between Expected and Actual Feedback on Employees’ Subsequent Voice Behavior

Background: Employee voice, as a bottom-up proactive behavior, is crucial for organizational development. However, sustaining employee voice over time remains a shared challenge for both practice and research. Among various influencing factors, supervisor feedback, due to its central role in organizational interactions, serves as a key source of decision-making information affecting employees’ subsequent voice intention. Nevertheless, existing research predominantly focuses on the unidirectional effects of supervisor feedback, often overlooking the bidirectional nature of leader–subordinate interactions. In reality, the effectiveness of supervisor feedback ultimately depends on its congruence with the subordinate’s psychological expectations. Methods: This study integrates person–environment fit theory and role identity theory to investigate how the congruence between subordinates’ expected feedback and supervisors’ actual feedback influences subsequent voice behavior. Through two studies—a scenario-based experiment with 201 participants and a retrospective questionnaire survey with 212 participants—we employed polynomial regression and response surface analysis to examine four feedback congruence patterns. Results: In congruent situations, the “expected positive–actual positive” combination promotes subsequent voice behavior more effectively than the “expected negative–actual negative” combination. In incongruent situations, the “expected negative–actual positive” combination is more effective in promoting subsequent voice than the “expected positive–actual negative” combination. Furthermore, voice role identity mediates the relationship between feedback congruence and subsequent voice behavior, revealing a key psychological mechanism. Implications: This study moves beyond a direct antecedent framework by focusing on the congruence between feedback expectations and reality, thereby deepening the theoretical understanding of the dynamics of voice. By empirically demonstrating how congruent and positive feedback strengthens employees’ internal identity as contributors, it provides practical insights for organizations aiming to foster a sustainable voice climate.