I've seen this happen over and over again in American culture. One of my most common pieces of feedback to managers centers on this, in fact. Time and time again I see managers who _think_ they are able to give feedback as "one of the team" and that they aren't "the boss" or giving people orders... but when you speak to their reports, they are interpreting it as orders from the boss. Even if you produce documents declaring your workplace to have a "flat" structure, people tend to treat any feedback from the person who signs off on their paycheques as commands.