Authentic leadership, psychological capital, job satisfaction and intention to leave in state-owned enterprises

Is adding resources always beneficial? Multiplicative impact of psychological capital and goal-oriented climate on Spanish public worker satisfaction and engagement

Introduction

The motivation process from personal resources to commitment of administrative employees is still little studied. This article uses the Job Demands-Resources model to investigate how the multiplicative effect of personal resources and a goal-oriented climate among public employees influences their satisfaction and engagement at work. Specifically, it proposes a model where the influence of psychological capital on engagement is mediated by job satisfaction and moderated by the goal orientation climate.

Method

A total of 326 employees of the administrative staff of a Spanish Public Administration answered a self-reported survey. Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) approach was used to evaluate the validity and reliability of the data, as well as, to test the hypotheses formulated.

Results

The SEM results show the positive impact of psychological capital on employee engagement, and the mediating role of job satisfaction in this relationship. Furthermore, the existence of a goal-oriented climate negatively moderated the relationship between Psychological Capital and Job Satisfaction, reducing the mediation effect.

Discussion

These findings open new doors for future research in the necessary adaptation of human resource policies to improve the motivation process in the public administration context.

The Comprehensive Meta-Analyses of the Nomological Network of Psychological Capital (PsyCap)

This paper presents the most rigorous meta-analysis undertaken to date of empirical literature examining antecedents and outcomes related to psychological capital (PsyCap), and moderators of these relationships. We investigated seven leadership styles as antecedents of PsyCap (authentic, ethical, servant, empowering, transactional, transformational, and abusive leadership), five outcomes (burnout, turnover intentions, work engagement, performance, and satisfaction), and the impact of four moderators (country of sample origin, cultural characteristics, industry type, and research design). Our analysis of PsyCap research (2007–2020) examined 244 studies (254 independent samples and over 96000 participants), which is over twice as large as previous PsyCap meta-analyses. To optimize the quality and reliability of findings, we corrected for artefacts and included heterogeneity, sensitivity, and publication bias analyses. Our results provide several new findings beyond previous PsyCap meta-analyses. We found that empowering, servant, transformational, and transactional leadership were all positively associated with PsyCap, with empowering and transformational leadership being the strongest antecedents of PsyCap and abusive and transactional leadership being the weakest. The findings demonstrated PsyCap was positively associated with work engagement, and negatively associated with burnout. Country of sample origin moderated all the relationships, except for servant and transactional leadership. Additionally, cultural characteristics (e.g., power distance, masculinity, long-term orientation, and uncertainty avoidance) moderated several conceptual relationships. Study design was also found to moderate the PsyCap—work engagement relationship. Collectively, these findings offer new and extended insights into the antecedents, outcomes, and moderators related to PsyCap, beyond previous meta-analyses. The theoretical and practical implications of these new findings are also discussed.

Authentic Leadership and Taking Charge Behavior: A Moderated Mediation Model of Psychological Capital and Occupational Calling

To achieve sustainable development goals, it is necessary to establish a positive organization so that employees can pay attention to their strengths and talents and engage in more proactive behaviors, such as taking charge behavior. Taking charge behavior involves the voluntary and constructive effort of employees to make organizationally functional change, which may consume more scarce resources of employees. Previous studies have shown that support from leaders can promote employees' taking charge behavior, but most of them are from the perspective of social exchange. By drawing on the conservation of resources theory, we develop a theoretical model in which authentic leadership can provide employees with more positive resources and guide them into gain spiral of resources. We conducted two-wave questionnaire surveys to collect data from 199 employees and their supervisors at 16 companies in China. The results showed that authentic leadership was positively associated with employee taking charge via the mediation role of psychological capital. Furthermore, the direct and indirect relationship between authentic leadership and employee taking charge was demonstrated to be stronger when employees have a higher stage of occupational calling. This study provides a new explanation for the mechanism of authentic leadership and clarifies the boundary conditions of authentic leadership effectiveness.

Nurses' turnover intention, hope and career identity: the mediating role of job satisfaction

Background

A high turnover rate has become a critical issue in the field of nursing and how to tackle the problem of nursing turnover has received increased attention worldwide. Hope, career identity, job satisfaction may be useful for reducing turnover. The aim of this study is to explore the relationships among career identity, hope, job satisfaction, and the turnover intention of nurses, and to test the mediating role of job satisfaction on the associations of hope and career identity with turnover intention.

Methods

A descriptive cross-sectional design was used. A total of 500 nurses were recruited from five comprehensive tertiary hospitals using convenience sampling. The questionnaire included items about sociodemographic information as well as the Adult Dispositional Hope Scale, Nursing Career Identity Scale, Job Satisfaction Index Scale, and Nurse Turnover Intention Scale. Pearson’s correlation, multiple linear regression, and structural equation modeling were used to analyze the data. We describe the study in accordance with the STROBE statement.

Results

Hope (r = − 0.227, p < 0.001) and career identity (r = − 0.342, p < 0.001) were negatively correlated with turnover intention. Job satisfaction played a completely mediating role on the associations of hope and career identity with turnover intention (β₁ = − 0.09, β₂ = − 0.33).

Conclusions

Job satisfaction mediated the associations of career identity and hope with turnover intention. Thus, effective measures can be taken to enhance nurses’ hope and career identity in order to improve their job satisfaction and thereby reduce their turnover intention. Providing nurses with more support, helping them find a spiritual foundation, and holding mindful activities that stimulate positive emotions are helpful. In addition, colleges should pay more attention to instilling nursing students with career identity and nursing values.

Investigating the effect of authentic leadership and employees' psychological capital on work engagement: evidence from Indonesia

This study aims at investigating the positive effect of Authentic Leadership on Work Engagement and the mediating role of Psychological Capital (PsyCap). This study employed the Jobs Demands Resource (JD-R) model theory to explain the contribution of Authentic Leadership and PsyCap on Work Engagement. Also, the direct effect of Authentic Leadership on employees' PsyCap was examined. This study randomly selected participants from 1,120 employees in one of the largest public service offices in Indonesia. 192 employees (male = 120 or 62.5%) fully participated in a three-wave data collection. By using a Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) technique, this study confirmed that the proposed theoretical model (χ2/df = 2, p < .05, RMSEA = .07, SRMR = .07, CFI = .95) showed a better fit than the alternative model (χ 2/df = 3, p < .05, RMSEA = .09, SRMR = .09, CFI = .85). The results also confirmed that Authentic Leadership and PsyCap directly predicted Work Engagement. Furthermore, the indirect effect of Authentic Leadership on Work Engagement was positively mediated by employees' PsyCap. Authentic Leadership in Indonesian public organizations may provide a tremendous impact on employees' PsyCap and Work Engagement. This study has provided new insight into the application of the JD-R model in Indonesian public organizations. Discussion, implications, limitations, and future research directions are included.

Role of leader and followers' well-being, engagement and the moderating role of psychological capital

Purpose

The present study had two objectives, first objective was to examine the impact of authentic leadership on followers' well-being and work engagement. The second objective was to examine the moderating role of authentic leadership and followers' outcomes. Despite an immense amount of research on authentic leadership, how and when authentic leadership is more or less effective in promoting the well-being and work engagement of followers is little known. Drawing from the conservation of resource theory, the authors draw upon the interactionist perspective and suggest psychological capital is a dispositional boundary condition that influences the effectiveness of authentic leadership in promoting well-being and work engagement of followers.

Design/methodology/approach

Using cross-sectional research design data were collected from 547 team members nested under 118 team leaders from the financial sector in India. The study used structural equation modelling and hierarchical regression analysis to examine the hypothesised relationships.

Findings

The findings from the study revealed that authentic leadership predicts followers' psychological well-being and work engagement. Also as proposed, the study found psychological capital moderates the relationship between authentic leadership and the well-being of followers. However, the study found psychological capital does not moderate the relationship between authentic leadership and followers' work engagement.

Research limitations/implications

The study has helped expand the nomological network of authentic leadership by examining the authentic leadership model with followers' psychological well-being and work engagement. Further, the findings suggest that psychological capital being a dispositional boundary condition, it plays a contingent role in explaining the role of authentic leadership in promoting the well-being of followers.

Practical implications

The results offer strong practical implications that can be considered as the basis for actionable strategies by the human resource management system of the organisation to enhance authentic leadership and psychological capital.

Originality/value

The study is unique in its scope and contribution, as it tries to develop an understanding of how and when authentic leadership promotes psychological well-being and work engagement by considering an interactionist approach in the Indian context.

Authentic leadership and organizational citizenship behaviour: the role of psychological capital

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the direct and indirect effects of authentic leadership on organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) with the presence of psychological capital as a mediating factor.

Design/methodology/approach

This quantitative research was conducted among 396 front-line employees in six public sector organizations in Sri Lanka. A survey method was employed to collect the data.

Findings

It was found that psychological capital partially mediates the relationship between authentic leadership and OCB. In other words, the relationship between authentic leadership and OCB is both direct and indirect, mediated though psychological capital.

Research limitations/implications

The authenticity of leaders' conduct, psychological capabilities and the outcomes of the performance, are rooted in and reinforced by the culture of the particular organization; hence, the findings should be interpreted cautiously.

Practical implications

The framework of the present study provides a guideline to the top management of the public sector in Sri Lanka to design leadership programs that can develop authentic leaders.

Originality/value

The direct and indirect relationships established between authentic leadership and psychological capital and OCB signifies the critical importance of authentic leadership in the development of psychological capital and OCB among employees.

The effect of authentic leadership and psychological capital on work engagement: the mediating role of job satisfaction

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the effect of authentic leadership and psychological capital (PsyCap) on work engagement via job satisfaction by employing the job demands-resources (JD-R) model.

Design/methodology/approach

Participants were 307 (52% male and 48% female) employees randomly recruited from a state-owned company in the eastern part of Indonesia. Most participants had completed an undergraduate degree with a mean age of 27.55 (SD = 7.89). The study employed a three-wave data collection technique to rule out any common method biases.

Findings

The results suggested that the theoretical model and empirical data showed a good fit (CMIN/DF = 2.19 and RMSEA = 0.06), indicating an indirect effect of authentic leadership and PsyCap on work engagement via job satisfaction. The effect of authentic leadership on work engagement was fully mediated by job satisfaction. In contrast, job satisfaction only partially mediated the relationship between PsyCap and work engagement.

Research limitations/implications

First, this study did not explore any further consequences of gender equality. Second, although the data have been compared with some existing studies, this study did not collect cross-cultural data from different countries. Lastly, the data were collected from a state-owned enterprise, which may limit generalisation to other organisations.

Originality/value

This study offered a new perspective by examining the implications of the JD-R model in the eastern part of Indonesia, where organisation culture is predominantly influenced by Buginese values. Furthermore, the inclusion of job satisfaction into the model added new information regarding the importance of mediating variables in explaining the indirect effect of job and personal resources.

The antecedents and consequences of psychological capital: a meta-analytic approach

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to focus on psychological capital (PsyCap) – one of the emerging topics of human resource management, by examining its antecedents and outcomes through the lens of social exchange theory.

Design/methodology/approach

A meta-analytic approach was applied to validate the proposed hypotheses. Altogether, 105 primary studies published between 2000 and 2018 were collected and used.

Findings

Results show that leadership styles (authentic leadership, ethical leadership, abusive leadership) and organizational support are antecedents and desirable work attitudes (job satisfaction, organizational commitment, organizational citizenship behavior) are consequences of PsyCap. Employee’s characteristics significantly moderated the relationship between PsyCap and work attitudes.

Originality/value

This was the first attempt to examine PsyCap in a theoretical framework with its antecedents and outcomes and furthermore, to apply a meta-analytic method. The moderating role of employee characteristics in the relationship between PsyCap and work attitudes is also explored.

Relationship between authentic leadership and nurses' intent to leave: The mediating role of work environment and burnout

AIM

The aim of this study was to explore the mediating effects of work environment and burnout on the relationship between authentic leadership and the intention of nurses to leave their job.

BACKGROUND

Authentic leadership can contribute to a good work environment. Burnout is a critical factor that affects nurses‧ intent to leave. The mediating roles of work environment and burnout on the relationship between authentic leadership and intent to leave is unclear.

METHODS

A cross-sectional design was used, and 946 nurses from three different levels of hospital (medical center, regional, and district), defined in terms of the number of beds and type of medical care provided, responded to four self-report questionnaires.

RESULTS

Work environment and burnout mediated the effect of authentic leadership on intent to leave among nurses. The mediating effects of burnout on authentic leadership was present both for junior (β = 0.073) and senior (β = 0.081) nurses.

CONCLUSION

Authentic leadership can affect nurses‧ intent to leave but the work environment and burnout are important mediators of this influence.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT

Administrators should adopt authentic leadership practices and make efforts to improve the work environment and decrease burnout in order to decrease nurses‧ intent to leave.