Search Results (162)

Transformational leadership (TL) remains a dominant framework in educational leadership, yet its effectiveness appears inconsistent across institutional contexts, including higher education (HE). This study develops a contingent explanation of TL using the Motivation–Ability–Opportunity (MAO) lens. Drawing on an integrative review of 19 empirical studies, the analysis examines how TL practices interact with organisational conditions to produce transformational or symbolic outcomes. The findings indicate that TL operates through three interdependent mechanisms: motivational alignment, capability development, and structural empowerment. However, these mechanisms are fragile and contingent upon contextual factors including governance autonomy, resource infrastructure, organisational culture, leadership-system maturity, and strategic orientation. When these conditions are aligned, TL fosters sustained engagement, innovation, and institutional learning. When they are misaligned, TL can devolve into rhetorical or symbolic practice, generating cynicism and inertia. The study contributes to the theory and practice of leadership in HE by reconceptualising TL as a conditional system rather than a universally effective leadership style, highlighting the importance of organisational context in enabling or constraining leadership impact. Full article

School leadership plays a key role in shaping school organization and professional practices, yet limited attention has been paid to how leadership styles vary across school contexts. Differences between rural and urban schools remain underexplored in the Spanish context. This study examines differences in leadership styles between rural and urban schools, focusing on transformational, transactional, and passive-avoidant leadership. Data were collected from 400 teachers across 31 schools (20 rural and 11 urban) who evaluated the leadership exercised by their school management teams using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ5X). Non-parametric analyses were conducted to compare leadership styles and examine relationships, as well as assess the influence of school size. The results indicate significant contextual differences: rural schools reported higher levels of transformational and transactional leadership, whereas urban schools exhibited higher levels of passive-avoidant leadership. Transformational and transactional leadership were positively correlated in both contexts, while passive-avoidant leadership was negatively associated with the other styles only in urban schools. Regression analyses showed that school size significantly predicted leadership styles, with smaller schools fostering more proactive leadership practices. These findings underscore the importance of context in shaping leadership dynamics and suggest that relational features of rural leadership may inform leadership development in urban school settings. Full article

Background/Objective: Leadership in nursing has been conceptualized as a multidimensional construct influencing organisational functioning and professional practice. Within the Full Range Leadership Model, leadership comprises transformational, transactional, and passive–avoidant dimensions that may coexist within individuals. This study aimed to examine how leadership dimensions coexist and interact among nurses and to explore their associations with professional characteristics within the FRLM framework. Methods: A cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted between November and December 2024 among 141 Portuguese nurses affiliated with a professional association dedicated to nursing leadership. Leadership behaviours were assessed using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. A non-probability convenience sampling strategy was used. Descriptive and inferential analyses were performed using SPSS. Results: Transformational leadership emerged as the predominant behavioural pattern (M = 3.17, SD = 0.38), followed by transactional leadership (M = 2.51, SD = 0.46), with minimal laissez-faire behaviours (M = 0.83, SD = 0.50). Managers demonstrated significantly higher transformational scores (mean difference = 0.16, p = 0.018) and lower laissez-faire scores (mean difference = −0.27, p = 0.01) than specialists. Transformational leadership was positively correlated with transactional leadership (r = 0.309, p < 0.01) and negatively correlated with laissez-faire behaviours (r = −0.339, p < 0.01). Conclusions: The findings indicate a predominant transformational leadership profile among nurses, accompanied by complementary transactional behaviours and low passive–avoidant tendencies. The observed correlations support a dimensional interpretation of leadership consistent with the Full Range Leadership Model. These findings provide descriptive insight into leadership patterns within this nursing sample and may inform leadership development initiatives in comparable healthcare contexts. Full article

This study explores how school leadership styles are perceived to relate to teacher resilience during crises in Arab schools in Israel. Drawing on twenty semi-structured interviews with principals and vice-principals, findings show that transformational and participative leadership, characterized by emotional support, accessibility, active listening, and shared decision-making, are perceived to foster teachers’ sense of security, self-efficacy, and collective resilience. In contrast, authoritarian and rigid approaches are described as contributing to increased stress, reduced motivation, and diminished coping capacity. The study highlights the significance of socio-cultural and political contexts, indicating that effective leadership in crises involves not only professional guidance but also cultural awareness, flexibility, and responsiveness to staff needs. These findings underscore the value of integrative leadership approaches and targeted professional development to support teacher well-being and organizational resilience in crisis-prone settings. By focusing on leaders’ perspectives, the study contributes to understanding how culturally sensitive and adaptive leadership practices may support educational stability under conditions of uncertainty. Full article

This study aimed to investigate how innovative performance is influenced by leadership styles (transformational, entrepreneurial, participative, and empowering), knowledge sharing, and organizational agility. Additionally, it examined knowledge sharing and organizational agility as mediators between these leadership styles and innovative performance in tourism and hospitality businesses, utilizing Social Exchange Theory (SET) as the theoretical framework. A PLS-SEM analysis was performed on 1896 valid responses from employees of category (A) travel agencies and five-star hotels in Egypt using WarpPLS 7.0. The results revealed that transformational, entrepreneurial, participative, and empowering leadership styles positively impact innovative performance, knowledge sharing, and organizational agility. Additionally, the study highlighted the beneficial effects of knowledge sharing and organizational agility on innovative performance. It was also found that knowledge sharing and organizational agility partially mediate the relationship between these leadership styles and innovative performance. The study discusses both theoretical and practical implications for developing leadership skills and enhancing innovative capabilities. It adds to the existing literature on leadership, knowledge management, organizational agility, and innovation performance, particularly in service-oriented industries. Full article

This paper examines how employees in Croatian hotels relate their direct supervisors’ leadership behaviors to job satisfaction. Survey data were collected from 153 hotel employees across departments and hotels of different sizes. Leadership was assessed through five styles (autocratic, laissez-faire, democratic, transformational, and transactional), while job satisfaction was measured across six dimensions. The hypothesized relationships were tested using competitive regression models in which all leadership styles were entered simultaneously, complemented by a moderation test and relative-importance analysis. The results show a differentiated pattern. Transformational leadership is positively related to staff development and management satisfaction and also shows a positive association with salary satisfaction. Transactional leadership is most strongly linked to salary satisfaction, while it relates negatively to staff development satisfaction when other styles are controlled. Democratic leadership is positively associated with management satisfaction, but its unique association with staff development satisfaction is contingent on hotel size: it is negative in small hotels and attenuates to non-significance in medium-sized and large hotels. Autocratic leadership is generally associated with lower satisfaction in key domains, whereas laissez-faire leadership does not show meaningful unique effects in the competitive models. These findings provide evidence from the Croatian hotel sector and suggest that leadership development and HR support systems should be aligned with the specific satisfaction domains hotels seek to improve. Full article

As organizations attempt to retain a competitive advantage, it is becoming more important to understand how employees perform with respect to leadership styles. This paper examines the mediating effect of technical self-efficacy in the relationship between digital leadership and the employee performance of Egyptian service firms. The paper adopts a quantitative research approach, wherein 442 respondents were surveyed from two major Egyptian cities (Cairo and Alexandria). The study employed a purposive sampling technique to select respondents who were assumed to be familiar with the variables under study, like digital leadership practices. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling was used for the data analysis with the aid of SMART PLS software version 4. The findings reveal that there is a direct positive and statistically significant impact of adaptive leadership on employee performance. Similarly, there is also a positive and significant direct effect of innovative digital leadership on employee performance. This result validates the hypothesis that technical self-efficacy mediates the relationship between innovative digital leadership and employee performance, though partially. The study concludes that technical self-efficacy is one of the main psychological mechanisms that explain how digital-oriented leadership can be translated to better performance, and emphasizes the importance of the confidence and competence of employees in the usage of digital technologies. However, the absence of a significant mediation effect from technical self-efficacy between adaptive leadership and employee performance also shows that adaptive leadership has a direct behavioral and motivational channel of action, instead of an indirect channel of action like technology-based confidence. Thus, the study makes a clear contribution to the literature by advancing a comprehensive model that links digital leadership, employee performance, and technical self-efficacy. In conceptual terms, it builds on the digital leadership discourse by proposing technical self-efficacy as a mediating construct that explains the difference in how different employees respond to digital transformation initiatives. Organizations should, therefore, adopt an integrated leadership development approach that improves adaptive leadership competencies as well as digital leadership practices that facilitate technical self-efficacy to achieve improved long-term employee performance. Full article

In the digital economy, social media has become a critical channel through which corporate executives communicate with investors, thereby influencing market expectations and price dynamics. This study examines how CEO social media behavior affects stock price volatility from an information-theoretic perspective combined with deep learning methods. Using Lei Jun (Xiaomi) and Elon Musk (Tesla) as contrasting cases, we analyze executive communication under transactional and transformational leadership styles. Emotional tone, thematic alignment, and diffusion intensity are extracted using BERT and LDA, and incorporated into a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) model to forecast short-term stock price movements. To interpret the mechanism behind the predictive results, we introduce a novel metric: Semantic Resonance Dissipation Entropy (SRE). Derived from Kullback–Leibler divergence, this indicator measures the informational friction between executive semantic output and market attention. The empirical analysis shows that incorporating these high-dimensional semantic features significantly improves volatility prediction. Moreover, leadership style is closely associated with distinct entropic regimes: Transactional leadership corresponds to relatively stable semantic patterns and low entropy, whereas transformational leadership is associated with higher entropy and greater semantic dispersion. Following Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, the previously unstable information environment evolved into a persistent structural factor priced by the market. These findings suggest that the economic impact of digital leadership depends on limiting information dissipation to ensure signal clarity in financial markets. Full article

The present study examines the relationships between transformational leadership styles (i.e., transformational coaching and transformational parenting), basic psychological needs (BPN) satisfaction and thwarting, and burnout within sports and family settings among a sample of adolescents. Participants were 540 basketball players (184 girls) between 11 and 18 years old, representing five clubs in the province of Valencia, Spain. A non-experimental cross-sectional study was conducted, and structural equation modeling was used to examine the relationships among the study variables. Both coaches’ and mothers’ transformational leadership styles were positively associated with BPN satisfaction and negatively associated with BPN thwarting. Fathers’ transformational parenting was negatively associated with BPN thwarting. BPN satisfaction and thwarting emerge as an indirect mediator between mothers’ transformational parenting and burnout. A direct association of transformational coaching with players’ burnout was supported, as well as being indirectly associated through BPN thwarting. This study suggests that BPN satisfaction and thwarting are the main mechanisms for understanding the development of player burnout. Coaches, within sports settings, and mothers in the family setting, emerge as fundamental figures for understanding the mechanisms of the relationships between transformational coaching and parenting with regard to player burnout. Full article

Ongoing global disruptions, including pandemics, geopolitical tensions, and climate-driven events, have exposed vulnerabilities in healthcare supply chains (HSCs). This study examines how artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping HSCs to improve agility, resilience, and sustainable performance. Using a systematic literature review with PRISMA-style screening across Scopus and Web of Science, the study is complemented by bibliometric analysis and latent Dirichlet allocation topic modeling to analyze peer-reviewed articles. The results indicate an exponential increase in AI-enabled HSC research, concentrated in a small number of journals and spanning a globally diverse author community. Three dominant thematic clusters emerged: (1) sustainability-oriented supply chain design, (2) disruption and resilience management, and (3) healthcare-focused digital transformation. Across these themes, AI, digital twins, Internet of Things, and simulation are evolving from efficiency tools to strategic enablers of decision intelligence, supporting real-time sensing, scenario analysis, and proactive risk mitigation. The study highlights a convergence of “triple transformation” in which digitalization, resilience, and sustainability are increasingly co-dependent capabilities in HSCs. However, persistent barriers exist, including data quality issues, legacy systems, workforce skill gaps, limited model interpretability, and incomplete governance frameworks, which constrain large-scale adoption. The findings indicate a need for longitudinal and multi-method studies on human–AI collaboration, trust calibration, and leadership in AI-enabled HSCs. This study provides practical guidance for healthcare organizations looking to leverage AI in developing agile, resilient, and sustainable supply chain ecosystems. Full article

The advent of generative AI (GenAI) and its growing use in education has sparked a renewed wave of school digital transformation. School principals are pivotal in advancing and shaping school digital transformation, yet little is known about how they understand and lead digital transformation in the age of GenAI, particularly within China’s complex educational system. This study employed Q methodology to identify the perceptions and leadership styles of Chinese K–12 school principals toward school digital transformation in the age of GenAI. An analysis of a 30-item Q set with a P sample of 23 principals revealed four leadership types: Cautious Observation–Technological Gatekeeping Leadership, Moderate Ambition–Culturally Transformative Leadership, Moderate Ambition–Emotionally Empowering Leadership, and High Aspiration–Strategy-Driven Leadership. Overall, principals’ stances on GenAI formed a continuum, ranging from cautious observation and skeptical optimism to active embrace. These perceptions and leadership styles were shaped by Confucian cultural values, a flexible central–local governance arrangement, and parents’ high expectations for students’ academic achievement. Furthermore, structural constraints in resource provision further heightened principals’ reliance on maintaining guanxi-based relationships. This study enhances the understanding of the diversity of principals’ leadership practices worldwide and offers actionable insights for governments and principals to more effectively advance AI-enabled school digital transformation. Full article

This mixed-methods study investigates the strategic management of digital transformation in Bulgarian schools by analysing principals’ self-reported leadership practices and styles. Using data from a nationally representative sample (N = 349) gathered through the SELFIE tool, complemented by 30 in-depth interviews, the research examines how school leaders understand and enact their roles as digital leaders within a context of fragmented policies and uneven digital capacity. Quantitative results reveal a central paradox: although 89.7% of principals claim to actively support teachers’ digital innovation, only about half report having a formalised digital strategy. This imbalance between strong operational support and weak institutionalisation reflects the dominant approach to school digitalisation in Bulgaria. Qualitative cluster analysis identifies three leadership profiles: (1) a strategic–collaborative profile, characterised by long-term planning, partnerships, and data-driven decisions; (2) a supportive–collaborative profile focused on teacher communities and context-specific professional development but lacking strategic vision; and (3) a balanced–pragmatic profile oriented toward measurable improvements and adaptive responses. Triangulation with national assessment data shows that leadership styles align with institutional contexts: high-performing schools tend to apply strategic–collaborative leadership, while lower-performing schools adopt pragmatic, adaptive approaches. The study argues that digital transformation requires context-sensitive frameworks recognising multiple developmental trajectories, highlighting the need for differentiated policies that support strategic institutionalisation of existing digital innovations while addressing structural inequalities. Full article

This research focuses on the effects of leadership styles on the implementation of Green Human Resource Management (Green HRM) initiatives in hotels in Greece by staff members, and it recognizes the lack of sustainability research in the Mediterranean hospitality sector. Employing the Full-Range Leadership Model, we explore the impact of transformational, transactional, and passive leadership on the implementation of environmental HR practices. The data for this study were obtained from 216 employees in 29 hotels in Greece, who completed the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ-5x) and a Green HRM instrument. Several regression analyses showed that transformational leadership was the most robust positive predictor of Green HRM practices, followed by leadership outcomes and transactional leadership. On the other hand, passive leadership was significantly inversely associated with Green HRM implementation. Demographic variables, such as gender, age, and experience, had a substantial impact on both perceptions of leadership and involvement in Green HRM as well. The results offer significant theoretical implications and practical directions for improving environmental performance in hospitality organizations through the strategic use of leadership development and human resource management intervention. Full article

The hospitality sector is an environment where leadership quality significantly impacts organizational performance and employees’ well-being. However, research on leadership styles in the Greek hotel industry remains limited. Using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ), this research explores the connections between transformational, transactional, and passive leadership styles, as well as the employees’ outcome (extra effort, effectiveness, satisfaction). The survey was conducted among 211 hotel employees from the major Greek tourism areas. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) supported the MLQ structure, and multiple regression analyses were used to examine the hypothesized relationships. The findings indicate that transformational leadership is the primary factor positively associated with all three employee outcomes, with idealized influence and individualized consideration being the strongest predictors. Contingent reward (transactional leadership) is positively associated with several employee outcomes. Laissez-faire leadership has significant negative associations with extra effort, effectiveness, and satisfaction, while passive management-by-exception demonstrates some positive associations, making the situation difficult to interpret. These results verify the Full Range Leadership Model (FRLM) as a viable theoretical framework in the Greek hotel sector and offer a plethora of research-based guidelines to leadership program schedulers. Full article

This research examines the impact of five crucial factors underlying human resource management (HRM), namely, compensation, transformational leadership, motivation, and job satisfaction on sustainable employees’ performance in Lebanese family companies. The research is founded on Social Exchange Theory, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, and Transformational Leadership Theory. Based on a cross-sectional design and quantitative approach, data were collected from 511 full-time employees working for family-owned businesses in Lebanon via structured questionnaires. Structural equation modeling (SEM) using SmartPLS-4 was used to analyze the relationships among the variables. The results point out that job satisfaction, motivation, and the transformational leadership style meaningfully impact employees’ performance. Compensation had a slight yet statistically significant effect. Furthermore, the work environment was found to have both a direct influence on performance and a moderating effect on the relationships between job satisfaction, transformational leadership style, and employees’ outcomes. These outcomes provide theoretical contributions to the literature on HRM in family-owned enterprises and deliver practical insights for improving employees’ performance through targeted HR strategies in emerging economies. The present study concludes by highlighting the role of a supportive environment at work and participative leadership in enhancing performance outcomes, mostly in culturally complex and intergenerational business settings. Full article