Search Results (74)

Employee turnover remains a critical challenge for organizations, prompting an examination of how leadership approaches influence employees’ intentions to leave. This study investigates the impact of transformational leadership on turnover intention, focusing on emotional exhaustion and creativity as potential mediators. The study employs a quantitative design grounded in leadership and organizational psychology theory and surveys 182 professionals working in the information technology sector across Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro. Structural equation modeling reveals that transformational leadership reduces turnover intention by alleviating emotional exhaustion, highlighting the importance of psychological well-being in employee retention. While transformational leadership enhances employee creativity, creativity did not significantly mediate turnover intention in this context. These findings suggest that strategies that foster engagement and reduce burnout in knowledge-intensive industries can strengthen organizational commitment and improve retention. This study contributes to the understanding of behavioral mechanisms linking leadership to employee outcomes and offers actionable insights for modern organizations aiming to address turnover through supportive, empowering leadership practices. Additional mediators and contextual variables should be explored in further research. Full article

Due to globalization, companies are exposed to a culturally diversified workforce; therefore, great emphasis is placed on identifying the most effective leadership style that would be able to manage such a workforce. Although numerous studies have attempted to identify successful leadership styles in different cultural settings, none have focused on the perceptions of top managers who work in multinational corporations (MNCs) in culturally diversified surroundings. Thus, our research attempts to identify the most preferred leadership style and characteristics from the perspective of top managers in MNCs in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The 13 leadership characteristics analyzed in this study were generated from the 21 characteristics found by Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) research. The participants, top managers in MNCs, needed to evaluate leadership styles by considering leadership characteristics. To ensure the objectiveness of the study, we analyzed their answers by applying the Fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method. The results indicated that the most preferred leadership characteristics were visionary, inspirational, collaborative team-oriented, and performance-oriented. Moreover, the transformational leadership style emerged as the most preferred leadership style. The study’s findings show that top managers believe that employees in MNCs in the UAE seek a leader with a vision who will inspire, motivate, and help them fulfill their true potential. Full article

In today’s rapidly evolving organizations, talent management plays a critical role in driving sustainable growth. Talents, particularly those exhibiting leadership potential, are often seen as essential assets for organizational development. However, the presence of high employee’s leadership potential can also generate adverse emotional reactions from leaders, potentially leading to behaviors such as leader jealousy and leader ostracism. This study investigates the dark side of employee’s leadership potential by examining the mechanisms through which employee’s leadership potential influences leader ostracism, with leader jealousy acting as a mediator. Drawing on social comparison theory, we propose a theoretical model that includes organizational competitive climate and leader’s core self-evaluation as moderating factors. Using a three-wave survey of 672 leaders in the Chinese construction industry, hierarchical regression analysis was employed to test the hypotheses. The results show that employee’s leadership potential significantly increases both leader jealousy and leader ostracism, with leader jealousy serving as a mediator. Moreover, a high organizational competitive climate strengthens the relationship between employee’s leadership potential and leader jealousy, thereby enhancing the entire mediated effect. In contrast, high leader core self-evaluation weakens the relationship between employee’s leadership potential and leader jealousy, reducing the likelihood of leader ostracism and attenuating the mediated effect. This study provides both theoretical contributions and practical insights for organizations seeking to manage high-leadership potential employees while minimizing the risk of negative leadership behaviors. Full article

In informal economic contexts, migrant entrepreneurs have been extolled as highly resilient and adaptable. This study critically investigates the adverse psychological foundations inherent in such enterprises, focusing on how dark triad personality traits emerge in the leadership orientations of marginal migrant entrepreneurs. Following a qualitative ethnographic approach, this research engaged 10–15 migrant employees through participant observation, field notes, and semi-structured interviews in an informal economic context. Thematic analysis revealed five dominant patterns: narcissistic leadership with entitlement and emotional disrespect; Machiavellian behavior of manipulation and deception; psychopathic detachment in emotional callousness; absence of light triad actions such as empathy, humility, and selflessness; and moral disengagement through rationalizations such as “everyone does it” or system blame. Migrant business owners prefer to rationalize their exploitative acts as being necessary for economic survival, thus legitimizing immoral conduct and suppressing moral self-regulation. The findings indicate that marginality not only drives entrepreneurial innovation, but also has the potential to create exploitative inclinations that are institutionally and morally unchecked. Solving this issue requires not only mere psychological awareness, but also systematic reforms that foster ethical robustness and emotional sensitivity. This study ultimately asserts the need to reframe migrant entrepreneurship discourse, including both ethical and psychological accountability. Full article

The present study explores the predictive role of organisational identification in shaping both positive and negative employee responses and the potential mediating influence of diversity climate and inclusive leadership within this relationship. Specifically, it examines how employees’ organisational identification influences their perceptions of diversity climate and inclusive leadership and how these factors, in turn, mediate their responses to organisational dissatisfaction. This study involved 307 participants from the Italian public administration who were administered a questionnaire to measure organisational identification, inclusive leadership (Inclusive Leadership Scale), the diversity climate within the organisation, and behaviours according to the EVLN model. The results indicate a direct effect of organisational identification on both the positive (Voice and Loyalty) and negative (Exit and Neglect) responses of the EVLN model. Organisational identification has a positive effect on the diversity climate. Moreover, the diversity climate mediates the relationship between organisational identification and loyalty, while inclusive leadership mediates the relationship between organisational identification and both disengagement and the willingness to address issues. These findings underscore the central role of organisational identification in shaping employees’ behavioural responses to dissatisfaction by influencing their perceptions of diversity climate and inclusive leadership. This highlights the importance of strengthening organisational identification to foster constructive behaviours and mitigate negative responses in diverse and inclusive work contexts. Full article

Background: Spirituality has emerged as a potential protective factor that may promote mental well-being and resilience among healthcare workers. Aim: This study aims to examine the relationship between spirituality, stress, and depression among healthcare professionals in Greece. Methods: This cross-sectional study surveyed 412 employees at the Corinth General Hospital in Greece, including medical, nursing, and administrative personnel. The data were collected using the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy—Spiritual Well-Being 12 (FACIT-SP12), the Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ), and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). The statistical analyses included non-parametric tests, correlation coefficients, and multiple regression. Results: The mean spirituality score was 34.6 (±6.83), while the stress and depression scores were 74.6 (±14.87) and 14.7 (±10.20), respectively. Spirituality was significantly and negatively correlated with both stress (r = −0.479, p < 0.001) and depression (r = −0.452, p < 0.001). Gender, years of service, educational level, and marital status were also associated with variations in stress, depression, and spirituality levels. Women and those with lower education reported significantly higher levels of stress and depression. Additionally, some demographic variables such as age and sector of employment did not show significant associations with spirituality or depression. The regression analysis confirmed spirituality as an independent predictor of lower stress levels (B = −1.158, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Spirituality is a significant predictor in mitigating stress and depression among healthcare workers. Promoting a supportive spiritual climate and incorporating elements of spiritual leadership in healthcare settings may enhance employee well-being and resilience. Future research should expand on these findings across diverse institutional and cultural contexts. Full article

Public safety personnel and frontline healthcare professionals are at increased risk of exposure to potentially psychologically traumatic events (PPTEs) and developing post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSIs, e.g., depression, anxiety) by the nature of their work. PTSI is also connected to increased absenteeism, suicidality, and performance decrements, which compromise occupational and public health and safety in trauma-exposed workers. There is limited evidence on the cost effectiveness of proactive “prevention” programs aimed at reducing the risk of PTSIs. The purpose of this meta-analysis is to measure the economic effectiveness of proactive PTSI mitigation programs among occupational groups exposed to frequent occupational PPTEs, focusing on the outcomes related to PTSI symptoms, absenteeism, and psychological wellness. Findings from 15 included studies demonstrate that proactive interventions can yield substantial economic and health benefits, with Return On Investment (ROI) values ranging widely from −20% to 3560%. Shorter interventions (≤6 months) often produced higher returns, while longer interventions (>12 months) showed more moderate or negative returns. Notably, the level at which an intervention is targeted significantly affects outcomes—programs aimed at managers, such as the 4 h RESPECT training course, demonstrated a high ROI and broad organizational impact by enhancing leadership support for employee mental health. Sensitivity analyses highlighted significant variability based on the organizational context, program design, and participant characteristics. The majority of proactive interventions successfully reduced psychological distress and enhanced workplace outcomes, although thoughtful consideration of program design and implementation context is essential. Full article

In the setting of global climate change, employees’ green creativity is of great importance for promoting environmental sustainability. However, existing research remains insufficient in exploring the mechanisms through which environmentally responsible leadership influences employees’ green creativity. Based on social cognitive theory, this study collects multi-temporal questionnaire data from 262 corporate employees through the Credamo platform, analyzed via AMOS and SPSS. This study focuses on the mediating role of green mindfulness and the moderating effect of green human resource management practices. Results show that: first, environmentally responsible leadership has a positive impact on employees’ green creativity, and green mindfulness mediates the relationship between environmental responsible leadership and employees’ green creativity; second, green human resource management practices significantly moderate the relationship between environmentally responsible leadership and green mindfulness, as well as the mediating effect of green mindfulness in the relationship between environmentally responsible leadership and employees’ green creativity. The current results provide a theoretical framework for organizations to understand the potential paths for cultivating employees’ green creativity and offer possible strategic directions for advancing corporate sustainability goals. Full article

Workplace inequities disproportionately affect African American professionals, with 41% reporting discrimination in hiring, salary negotiations, and promotions due to their racial or ethnic identity. These challenges are further accentuated by gender disparities, as 48% of Black men and 36% of Black women acknowledge experiencing workplace discrimination. Comparatively, smaller proportions of Asian (25%), Hispanic (20%), and White (8%) employees report similar treatment, underscoring the systemic barriers that shape the professional trajectories of marginalized workers in the United States. Addressing these pervasive inequities necessitates a transformative framework rooted in allyship, particularly among White male leaders who occupy positions of significant power and influence. Allyship, a dynamic and relational process, requires intentional advocacy, empathy, and accountability to dismantle exclusionary practices and foster inclusion. This research employs human geography as a metaphor to explore the challenges faced by minority employees in navigating workplaces that often resemble hostile terrains characterized by bias, limited representation, and a lack of psychological safety. The climb to senior leadership for minorities parallels traversing rugged landscapes, requiring resilience and access to critical pathways such as mentorship, sponsorship, and equitable opportunities. As inclusive planners, White male allies can address these systemic barriers by leveraging their privilege to create equitable and supportive environments. Aligning allyship with principles of human geography highlights its potential to address workplace inequities and contributes to broader societal cohesion. This study underscores a pivotal lacuna in the discourse on organizational equity: the insufficient exploration of allyship as a transformative paradigm, particularly when championed by White male leaders who occupy positions of substantial authority and influence. Full article

This study examines the influence of leaders’ artificial intelligence symbolization on job-crafting behaviors, highlighting both positive and negative consequences in Chinese small and medium-sized firms. This research utilizes signaling theory to investigate the impact of leaders’ visible adoption of AI on employees’ readiness for change, perceived threats, and job-crafting behaviors. This study examines the moderating influence of organizational support to understand its amplifying and decreasing effects. This work utilizes Python-based statistical tools to provide a novel approach for evaluating behavioral data in social science research. The results reveal that leaders’ AI symbolization significantly improves employees’ readiness for change and promotes proactive job crafting. Conversely, symbolic actions may exacerbate perceived risks, adversely affecting job-crafting behaviors. Organizational support is essential to enhancing the beneficial impacts of AI symbolization on change readiness while alleviating its adverse consequences on perceived threats. These results show how crucial symbolic leadership is for getting people to use new technology and making staff more flexible in SMEs that use AI. By offering organizational training and resources, leaders may optimize favorable results and mitigate adverse effects. This study highlights its significance regarding change readiness, perceived threats, and job crafting. Furthermore, it underscores Python’s (3.9) potential as a groundbreaking tool for enhancing behavioral research in the age of AI. Full article

(1) Background: Workplace procrastination leads to missed deadlines and financial losses, necessitating a deeper understanding of its risk factors and inhibitors for effective interventions. This study aims to bridge the significant gap in the literature regarding the effects of Authentic Leadership (AL) on workplace procrastination behaviors, including soldiering and cyberslacking. AL, as a positive leadership style, is proposed as a key factor in mitigating procrastination by fostering a supportive work environment. Specifically, this research examines how AL impacts procrastination through two psychosocial risk factors—lack of supervisor support and lack of workgroup support—which are hypothesized to mediate this relationship. (2) Methods: Data were collected from 738 employees (62.9% women) who completed a survey. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was conducted to explore the direct relationship between AL and procrastination, and indirect relationships through support. (3) Results: The findings indicate that AL negatively impacts procrastination behaviors, with stronger effects on soldiering compared to cyberslacking. AL is also negatively associated with perceptions of a lack of support from both leaders and workgroups, with a stronger influence on leader support. Both lack of leader and workgroup support significantly predict soldiering but not cyberslacking. (4) Conclusions: This study highlights AL’s potential to mitigate workplace procrastination by reducing perceptions of insufficient support. Organizations should focus on AL training to promote leader authenticity and supportiveness while fostering strong support networks within workgroups to enhance productivity and reduce procrastination behaviors. These findings also contribute to understanding AL’s role in addressing workplace counterproductive behaviors. Full article

While leadership influence has been linked to organizational performance, the mechanism through which leadership development can foster sustainable innovation in SMEs with distinctive cultural contexts, including individualism/collectivism, is still not well understood. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role that democratic leadership plays in increasing employee innovative behavior (EIB) when organizations are working in situations that are characterized by high levels of hierarchical and collectivist cultures. This study fills a gap in the literature by investigating the ways in which leadership influences innovation in small- and medium-sized textile enterprises (SMEs) in Pakistan, including psychological safety and creative potential. This study discloses that participative leadership practices effectively drive sustained innovation especially in countries that embrace hierarchy and collectivism. The participants in this study comprised 389 employees from the textile industry, who completed validated self-report surveys of democratic leadership, psychological safety, creative potential, and EIB. This study used Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to examine the direct and indirect effects of the variables using Smart PLS 4.1.0.8 software. The findings reveal that democratic leadership positively and significantly impacts EIB. Psychological safety mediates this relationship by creating a supportive environment for idea sharing, while creative potential acts as a stronger mediator, enabling employees to generate and implement novel ideas. These results highlight the critical role of democratic leadership in driving innovation through safe and creative organizational climates. This study extends leadership and innovation research by demonstrating the mechanisms through which democratic leadership fosters EIB. This study contributes to the understanding of leadership effectiveness in non-Western hierarchical cultures, providing actionable insights for managers and policymakers to promote sustainable innovation in SMEs. Full article

This study explores the impact of artificial intelligence (AI)-based technologies on leadership-based organizational communication and employee performance within contemporary workplaces. While prior research has acknowledged AI’s potential in optimizing communication processes, significant gaps remain in understanding its specific influence on core communication dimensions and organizational outcomes. This study addresses these gaps by examining six key communication elements—informing, message reception, feedback, acceptance, persuasion, and reaction—to assess whether AI technologies significantly enhance employee performance by improving internal communication efficiency and reducing transmission errors, which are crucial for productive interactions. Using a quantitative approach, data were collected via a self-administered questionnaire from 203 employees of a major Romanian food industry company operating globally, including leaders and employees from three Eastern European countries. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyze the relationships between communication dimensions and performance. The findings revealed that informing, receiving, and accepting messages, along with reaction-provoking, had strong positive effects on performance, while feedback and persuasion showed moderate impacts. These results emphasize the transformative role of AI in communication processes, optimizing message flow and positively influencing employee behavior, thereby enhancing productivity and organizational efficiency. This research contributes to the growing body of literature by situating AI-driven communication within the broader organizational context, offering actionable insights for managers aiming to integrate AI ethically and effectively. Additionally, it offers a set of recommendations for employees and managers to lead communication process according to the new actual era of digitization, which is offering real benefits for both parts. It also provides a robust foundation for future research, encouraging longitudinal and cross-cultural studies to further investigate AI’s implications for organizational diversity, innovation, and employee well-being. Full article

Building employee loyalty is a prerequisite for a company to achieve a competitive advantage, high organizational performance, and sustainability. The lack of voluntary leaves does not result in recruitment costs or reduced efficiency during the adaptation period of a new employee. It helps retain knowledge and experience within the organization. The article aims to explore employees’ loyalty in terms of voluntary employment continuity during the pandemic slowdown of COVID-19, when employee loyalty was put to an exceptional test, and identify the factors that have had the most significant impact. This empirical study was carried out for Germany, mainly due to the strength and position of the German economy in Europe and the availability of a large, detailed micro dataset necessary for in-depth econometric analyses. The dataset used in the survey is the fifth wave of the German Linked Personnel Panel—LPP in 2020/21 (N = 7397). A multinomial logit model was used as a research tool. Loyalty appears as an explained variable in four ordered logit models that differ in the set of explanatory variables. The explanatory variables include demographics, job title, working conditions, compensation and rewards, job content, training and career development, teamwork, and relationships with colleagues and superiors. The results confirm the influence of extra-organizational factors, such as age and living in a four- or five-person household, on employee loyalty. However, age seems to be a factor of decreasing importance. Too much complexity of work, manifested by great task variety, working in multiple teams, and the requirement to perform work remotely, harmed employee loyalty during the pandemic. Findings justify building loyalty based on sustainable human resource policies to increase income satisfaction, reasonable workload, competence development, and greater autonomy at work. It is also clear that leadership issues (fairness in contact with superiors and recognition for work) mattered during this challenging time and have a high potential to improve employee loyalty in the future. Full article

This study examines municipalities’ challenges in digital transformation, focusing on an Icelandic municipality. It aims to determine whether these challenges align with those reported in academic literature, particularly in public service delivery and the sustainability of digital initiatives from an operational perspective. A mixed-methods approach, including interviews with municipal employees and a survey, was used to analyze the municipality’s experiences. An evaluation framework introduced by Lafioune et al. guided the analysis. Key findings highlight the importance of senior management support, adequate funding, staff collaboration, and effective data management for making successful and digital transformation sustainable in the long run. Resistance to change, especially among staff, emerged as a significant obstacle to long-term sustainability. The study reveals that the challenges Icelandic municipalities face are consistent with broader research on digital transformation in public administration. The research emphasizes the need for a comprehensive approach integrating technological, organizational, and cultural changes to ensure a sustainable result from these initiatives. It also underscores the potential of digitalization to enhance public service accessibility and efficiency, promoting social cohesion, equity, and long-term sustainability. Practical recommendations include fostering strong leadership, securing strategic funding, and promoting a collaborative culture to ensure the success of digital initiatives in public services. Full article