Leadership & Organization Development Journal

Oh, Seok-Young; Koo, Seonhui

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-10-2020-0458

This study aims to identify the relationship between protean career attitude (PCA) and organisational commitment (OC) in a learning organisation (LO) climate. The study also identified whether negative relationships exist between the structure dimension of LO (SDLO) and PCA, and between PCA and OC, and whether such relationships can be moderated by the people dimension of LO (PDLO).Design/methodology/approachData collected from 305 employees of 26 firms were analysed using the PROCESS macro for SPSS.FindingsThis study found that SDLO had a negative relationship with PCA, whereas PCA was negatively associated with OC. Furthermore, this study found that PDLO moderated these relationships, in that the negative relationships were absent when PDLO activities were stronger, in contrast to when they were weaker.Originality/valueThe study is among the first to identify the negative relationships that exist between SDLO and PCA and between PCA and OC in Korean firms. An important implication for managers or OD professionals is that PDLO plays an important role in not only reducing the negative mediation effects of PCA in the relationships but also making the relationships positive.

Tafvelin, Susanne; Hasson, Henna; Nielsen, Karina; von Thiele Schwarz, Ulrica

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-11-2019-0492

In previous studies, outcomes of leadership training have varied, with some studies suggesting large effects and others small. Although the transfer of training literature suggests a number of factors that influence training outcomes, this knowledge has seldom been used when evaluating the outcomes of leadership training. The purpose of the present study is therefore to examine how factors related to transfer of training influence outcomes of leadership training.Design/methodology/approachIn the present research, follower-rated outcomes of a leadership training program in Denmark (N = 298) was examined from a transfer of training perspective.FindingsUsing Baldwin and Ford's transfer of training model as a framework, analyses revealed that leaders' utility reactions (i.e. perception of usefulness) and learning were linked to transfer of training. In addition, leaders' perceptions of transfer were associated with post-intervention follower-rated transformational leadership and collective self-efficacy.Practical implicationsMaking sure that leaders find the training useful for their everyday activities (i.e. positive utility reactions) and that they have time to learn the training content is important to enable transfer and for leaders to use trained skills back at work.Originality/valueThe findings indicate the importance of understanding how leaders' perception of training content influences leadership training outcomes and that these perceptions need to be a part of the evaluation of leadership training. In addition, the findings suggest that factors predicting transfer of leadership training differ from other types of training.

Pan, Zhenlin

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-08-2020-0351

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between paradoxical leadership and organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB), including the serial mediating role of a paradoxical mindset and personal service orientation, by applying social cognitive theory and planned behaviour theory.Design/methodology/approachThe hypotheses proposed in this study were empirically tested using data from 411 supervisor–subordinate paired samples from six Chinese enterprises at two time points. The bootstrap method was applied using PROCESS macro v 3.3 for SPSS 24.0 software.FindingsThe results demonstrate the following relationships: paradoxical leadership positively affects OCB; paradoxical mindset significantly mediates the relationship between paradoxical leadership and OCB; personal service orientation significantly mediates the relationship between paradoxical leadership and OCB; and paradoxical mindset and personal service orientation play serial mediating roles in the relationship between paradoxical leadership and employees' OCB.Practical implicationsThe results of this study show that managers' paradoxical leadership behaviours can effectively stimulate employees' OCB, which in turn influence employees' attitudes and behavioural intentions towards conflict.Origin/valueThis study enriches the antecedents of OCB and the consequences of paradoxical leadership. From an attitude and behaviour perspective, this study explores the internal transmission path of the impact of paradoxical leadership on employee behaviour and expands existing research on intermediary mechanisms.

Men, Chenghao; Jia, Ruiqian

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-11-2020-0506

Organizations is increasingly depending on team creativity to create a sustainable competitive advantage. The purpose of this study is to examine the relation between knowledge-oriented leadership and team creativity.Design/methodology/approachThe hypotheses were tested with a sample of 89 knowledge worker teams consisting of 412 employees and employers in China.FindingsResults show that knowledge-oriented leadership is positively associated with team creativity, mediated by team learning. Additionally, task interdependence and task complexity can strengthen the positive relation between team learning and team creativity.Originality/valueThe study is the first to explore the relation between knowledge-oriented leadership and team creativity and the moderating role of task interdependence and task complexity in the relation between team learning and team creativity.

Abi Aad, Amine; Andrews, Martha C.; Maalouf, Jamal T.; Kacmar, K. Michele; Valle, Matthew

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-02-2021-0066

Abusive supervision research has clearly demonstrated its many negative effects. The present study uses social learning theory to shed light on mechanisms that could potentially alter the negative effect of abusive supervision.Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of 162 full-time employees, we identify and test two potential variables that we believe may moderate, or soften, the trickle-down negative effects of abusive supervision.FindingsResults demonstrates that coworker support moderates the positive relationship between abusive supervision and coworker incivility such that this relationship is weaker when coworker support is high. In addition, we found that work engagement moderates the positive relationship between coworker incivility and turnover intentions such that this relationship is weaker when engagement is high. Next, we found that coworker incivility mediates the positive relationship between abusive supervision and turnover intentions and that this indirect effect is moderated by both coworker support and work engagement.Originality/valueWe combined three theoretical explanations, social learning theory, contagion effect and the trickle-down perspective, to theoretically argue not only how (through coworker incivility) but when (when coworker support and work engagement are low) abusive supervision impacts turnover intentions. In addition, we extended the research on work engagement by positioning it as a boundary condition. We found that when individuals are engaged in their work, the environment in which they work matters less (because the work matters more).

Kalpokas, Neringa; Radivojevic, Ivana

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-11-2020-0514

The purpose of this paper is to expand understanding of how leaders can use their power to reshape macro-level structures to foster individuals' freedoms and build more democratic workplaces. The importance of freedom in work and life can hardly be argued with, yet current democracy scores are the lowest that have ever been recorded (Economist Intelligence Unit, 2019).Design/methodology/approachThe authors analyzed two cases of successful democratization, Spain and Lithuania, where they conducted a total of 65 semi-structured interviews with different actors including the top leaders themselves. A combined inductive-deductive analysis of the in-depth qualitative data highlighted how using different dimensions of power (French and Raven, 1959) related to distributing power to others.FindingsThese findings extend understanding of how leaders can use their power to effectively distribute power to others and reach a democracy that fosters freedom. Information and referent power were crucial for aligning the different stakeholder groups, expert power emerged as key for building and empowering a network of support and legitimate power was essential for fostering peaceful and long-lasting changes toward democracy.Originality/valueWhile previous research has recognized the importance of leadership and politics for instigating macro-level changes, this study specifies how leaders can utilize their different sources of power to bring greater power and freedom to individuals by unpacking the unique impacts of each type of power. This study thus provides practical insights for leaders seeking to establish more democratic workplaces.

Khan, Muhammad Mumtaz; Mubarik, Muhammad Shujaat; Ahmed, Syed Saad; Islam, Tahir; Khan, Essa; Rehman, Asif; Sohail, Farhan

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-08-2020-0320

The purpose of the study is to ascertain the mediating role of meaning between servant leadership and work engagement. The study also explores the relationship between servant leadership and work engagement.Design/methodology/approachThe data were collected from 704 service sector employees working in Pakistan through survey design. The data analysis was done through structural equation modeling using PLS-Smart and hierarchical regression using SPSS.FindingsThe results revealed that servant leadership was related to meaning and work engagement. Moreover, meaning was found to be related to work engagement. Finally, meaning was found to mediate the relationship between servant leadership and work engagement.Originality/valueThe research has ascertained the previously unexplored mediating role of meaning between servant leadership and work engagement.

Ruben, Brent D.; Gigliotti, Ralph A.

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-02-2021-0072

Leadership scholars, practitioners and educators find themselves at a very opportune time, when their subject matter-expertise is of increasing interest across sectors, settings and levels of analysis, as leadership is hailed as both a pressing problem and a promising solution. It is also a challenging time for leadership study—a point in time when incongruities between leadership theories and the observed dynamics and outcomes of leadership in practice have been difficult to ignore. In this article we identify and discuss several problematic incongruities, explore possible reasons for these gaps and outline an integrated view of theories of resonance, communication and systems to address these discontinuities and advance our understanding of leadership theory and practice.Design/methodology/approachBuilding upon the intersection of theories of resonance, communication and systems in this conceptual article, we advance a line of renewed macro-level thinking on the topic of leadership as social influence, resulting in what we describe as leadership resonance theory.FindingsThis article advances an explanation of leadership as a phenomenon that is co-constructed through the communicative connections established between leaders and followers. These connections are mutually-defining, mutually-reinforcing and mutually-causal. Resonance, activation and cultivation are central concepts in the proposed framework, introduced to help explain dynamics and outcomes that seem unpredictable or unexplainable when focusing attention solely on a leader or followers in isolation of one another at a single moment in time.Originality/valueThis framework offers an original, nuanced and integrated way of thinking about leadership in terms of communication, social influence and systems theory, and it helps to explain gaps between the guidance provided by leadership theory and observed leadership outcomes in practice. The proposed framework can help to explain observed leader–follower behaviors, dynamics and outcomes, irrespective of whether they are seen as desirable or comfortable, whether they are necessarily aligned with extant theories or guidance on preferred practices and whether or not they align with traditional values in a personal, organizational or societal context.

Kim, Su Min; Kim, Moon Jung; Jo, Sung Jun

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-09-2020-0402

This study aimed to investigate the relationships between individual team member's perception of team psychological safety (TPS), individual team member's perception of transactive memory system (TMS), individual team member's perception of team learning behavior (TLB) and individual team member's perception of team performance (TP).Design/methodology/approachThis cross-sectional study used a paper-based questionnaire that was distributed to 500 employees in travel-related industries and responses were received from 467 employees. Finally, 394 surveys were used after excluding insincere responses. Using SPSS & AMOS version 25.0, factor analysis, correlation, path analysis and mediation analysis were performed.FindingsThe findings reveal that there is a significant association between TPS, TMS, TLB and TP, except for the specialization subdimension of TMS and reflective communication and knowledge codification subdimensions of TLB. There was no mediation role of TLB; however, credibility and task coordination subdimensions of TMS showed partial mediating effects between TPS and TP.Originality/valueThis study offers suggestions for management, emphasizing the importance of TPS. Recent and rapid organizational changes have dramatically increased employees' job insecurity, which can affect their psychological safety. Therefore, organizations should actively support employees to feel psychologically stable to improve performance by utilizing TMS and TLB among individual team members.

Kim, Dongkyu; Vandenberghe, Christian

2021 Leadership & Organization Development Journal

doi: 10.1108/lodj-11-2020-0479

Given recent prominent ethical scandals (e.g. Tesla, Uber) and the increasing demand for ethical management, the importance of business ethics has recently surged. One area that needs further research regards how ethical leaders can foster followers’ organizational commitment. Drawing upon social exchange theory, the current research proposes that ethical leadership relates to follower affective and normative commitment through perceived organizational support (POS). Moreover, based on self-determination theory, we expected follower psychological empowerment to positively moderate the relationship between ethical leadership and commitment components.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using a three-wave study among employees from multiple organizations (N = 297) in Canada. Structural equations modeling and bootstrapping analyses were applied to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe results showed that ethical leadership was positively related to follower affective and normative commitment through POS. Furthermore, the relationship between ethical leadership and POS was stronger at high levels of empowerment. This moderating effect extended to the indirect relationship between ethical leadership and commitment components.Originality/valueThis study counts among the few investigations that have examined the mechanisms linking ethical leadership to followers’ organizational commitment and boundary conditions associated with this relationship. Moreover, our findings were obtained while controlling for transformational leadership, which highlights the incremental validity of ethical leadership.