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Assessing the mediating effect of team-member exchange on the relationship between transformational leadership and performance of people with disabilities: a study of hong kong employers of people with disabilities.

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Wong, A.T.K. Assessing the Mediating Effect of Team-Member Exchange on the Relationship between Transformational Leadership and Performance of People with Disabilities: A Study of Hong Kong Employers of People with Disabilities. Merits 2024 , 4 , 211-223. https://doi.org/10.3390/merits4030015

Wong ATK. Assessing the Mediating Effect of Team-Member Exchange on the Relationship between Transformational Leadership and Performance of People with Disabilities: A Study of Hong Kong Employers of People with Disabilities. Merits . 2024; 4(3):211-223. https://doi.org/10.3390/merits4030015

Wong, Anthony Tak Kin. 2024. "Assessing the Mediating Effect of Team-Member Exchange on the Relationship between Transformational Leadership and Performance of People with Disabilities: A Study of Hong Kong Employers of People with Disabilities" Merits 4, no. 3: 211-223. https://doi.org/10.3390/merits4030015

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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Transformational leadership and project success: serial mediation of team-building and teamwork.

• School of Economic and Management, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China

This research investigates the impact of transformational leadership (TL) style on project success (PS) in the indirect effect of serial mediation of team-building and teamwork quality (TWQ). A quantitative research approach was used for this study. Data were gathered from 374 professional information system development (ISD) project managers in Pakistan. The hypotheses were tested using regression analysis with bootstrapping. Both team-building and teamwork independently and serially mediate the relationship between the TL and PS of the project managers, respectively. The TL style of the project manager intensifies PS with team-building practices (TBP) and TWQ. The TL boosts TWQ in terms of communication, coordination, and cohesion to achieve a successful project. The findings suggest that TL is associated with PS through serial mediation of team-building and teamwork. No research to date has used this nascent methodology to explore the association between TL and PS.

Introduction

In most organizations using project success (PS) as a survival strategy, the ubiquitous PS phenomena will remain in the near future ( Musawir et al., 2017 ). The PS has become a universal topic for project management researchers due to the rapid expansion and heterogeneous nature of the organizations ( Albert et al., 2017 ). Leadership literature identifies the impact of leadership on the success and management of the project; however, there is a deficient understanding of the project-based organizations ( Albert et al., 2017 ). In the past three decades, the researcher and practitioners are interested in the psychological relationship between employees and their organizations ( Barattucci et al., 2021 ). Research calls to explore the underlying mechanism through which leadership styles influence information system development (ISD) projects.

Full Range Leadership Theory (FRLT) ( Antonakis et al., 2003 ) highlighted three leadership styles; transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire ( Sohmen, 2013 ). Laissez-faire is considered destructive in project management compared to the former two leadership styles ( Skogstad et al., 2007 ). Transformational and transactional styles have gained particular attention in project management, and some project leaders build up a meticulous leadership behavior attempt to enhance and improve the project performance ( Yang et al., 2011 ). The leader aims to accomplish the goal by subordinates through communication and influence, as cited by Raziq et al. (2018) . Project management literature ( Prabhakar, 2005 ; Yang et al., 2011 ) emphasizes some preconditions of project management and PS, such as team communication, cohesiveness, collaboration, and effective and efficient team-building ( Aga et al., 2016 ), which are the results of good project leadership. The role of the project leader is essential in all the phases of the project, from initiation to completion and delivery of the product or service according to the expected specifications of the project stakeholder ( PMI, 2013 ). Modern management approaches to understand the attitude of the leader, in particular, toward others ( Taşçi and Titrek, 2020 ). The rapid change in the environment brings challenges and opportunities to cope with the project successfully and is liable for sustainable development ( Huemann and Silvius, 2017 ). The role of the project leader is greatly signified to establish and achieve the desired goal ( Shao, 2018 ). Project success is the ultimate goal for any organization; hence, it is an indispensable subject to project management researchers ( Albert et al., 2017 ; Fernando et al., 2018 ). Complex projects are likely to be successful when experienced with a high level of team communication, collaboration, and cohesiveness ( Yang et al., 2011 ).

The present study seeks to contribute to a better understanding of the mechanisms through which the transformational leadership (TL) behavior of the project managers influences PS. A research study called for more research to understand the relationship between TL and team performance through the use of mediators representing team processes ( Gundersen et al., 2012 ). The government of Pakistan formulated series of policies to facilitate information technology (IT) firms to promote the export of software in the international market. The previous studies also demonstrated that project leadership is critical to PS ( Scott-Young et al., 2019 ). Although several studies ( Prabhakar, 2005 ; Yang et al., 2011 ; Sohmen, 2013 ; Tyssen et al., 2014 ; Aga et al., 2016 ; Raziq et al., 2018 ) have been conducted on project leadership style (transactional and transformational) in construction, NGO, and other industries, still there is a lack of understanding in ISD sector. The environment and the approach of the ISD projects are entirely different from other sectors due to the intangible nature of the product.

According to Antonakis et al. (2003) TL is one of the basic leadership styles of full range leadership theory (FRLT). The proposed plan is to investigate the unresolved question of previous literature with empirical evidence. This study is based on the serial mediation effect of building practices (TBP) and teamwork quality (TWQ) between TL and PS in the context of the ISD project workspace. As Pollack and Matous (2019) stated, in the project management literature, no research has been found that examined the effect of unique, repeatable team-building activities and how they affect teamwork. The study also argues that the TL style of the project manager leads to TBPs that predict teamwork quality (TWQ). The TWQ contributes to PS. The novel insights provide a serial mediation of TBP and TWQ to enhance the success of the sustainable project.

Conceptual Framework

Project success.

Project success is an intensively discussed topic in the project management field ( Standing et al., 2006 ; Basten et al., 2011 ). Traditionally, the scope, cost, and time of the iron triangle are considered key components for the measurement of PS ( PMI, 2013 ). Whereas, the PS evaluation also encompasses additional factors including product acceptance from the customer, stakeholder, commercialization, and future project opportunity ( Cooke-Davies, 2002 ; Serrador and Rodney, 2014 ). Baccarini (1999) considered that PS is related to the outcomes of a project, such as information system or research and development products, and project management success refers to the process and performance of the project in terms of cost, time, and quality ( Baccarini, 1999 ). DeLone and McLean defined the success of an information system (IT) as PS, in contrast to the success of the project management as cited by Petter et al. (2013) .

Though there is no mutual consensus among the researcher on PS criteria in the project management literature, the work by Khang and Moe (2008) and Ika et al. (2012) are comprehensive and relevant for developmental projects. Primarily, the work done by Raziq et al. (2018) and Oh et al. (2019) is more relevant to ISD projects. An investigation proposes the following as the PS determinants: the advantages the project brings to the project organization, key partners, the project team, customer satisfaction, the accomplishment of the objectives of the project organization, and marketing potential ( Ika, 2015 ). Given the above-mentioned determinants, comprehensively, we can describe that PS involves the following factors: project completion within the scope, time, expense, quality, customer and stakeholder satisfaction, and the achievement of the goals and objectives of the project organization.

Transformational Leadership Style

Although the subject of leadership has been under scholarly examination for several decades, there is a shortage of empirical study in the project management context ( Aga et al., 2016 ). Full Range Leadership Theory is the most generally accepted leadership theory, and it envelops transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire styles ( Sohmen, 2013 ). Gundersen et al. (2012) suggested that the TL style has high importance to the project-based organization. The TL is related to solid individual identification with the leader, forming a mutual vision of things to come, and a relationship between the leader and the subordinates who are undeniably dependent on something other than the straightforward trade of remunerations for consistency ( Keegan and Den Hartog, 2004 ). The leader is the primary source of motivation and encouragement for the subordinates to bring a positive change ( Raziq et al., 2018 ). In the literature, there seems to be a general agreement of researchers on four dimensions of TL: idealized influence, intellectual stimulation, inspirational motivation, and individualized consideration. Idealized influence is the behavior of the leader that arouses strong emotions in the followers and establishes a deep mutual understanding. The intellectual stimulation of the leader encourages the followers to be creative and induces them to develop innovative and/or creative solutions to the problem. Inspirational motivation is expressed when a leader conveys a vision that is compelling and encouraging to followers and offers demanding tasks and elevated expectations for them. Individualized consideration describes paying attention to individual followers and their personal needs ( Mittal, 2016 ), and provides support, encouragement, and coaching to the followers ( Avolio et al., 2004 ; Lindgren and Packendorff, 2009 ).

Team-Building Practices

In literature, TBP is considered a central part of human resource management (HRM) in project-based organizations ( Turner et al., 2008 ). Klein et al. (2009) defined team-building as “a class of formal and informal team-level interventions that focus on improving social relations and clarifying roles, as well as solving task and interpersonal problems that affect team functioning.” There is an agreement in the literature with regard to the following four components of team-building: goal setting, role clarification, interpersonal processes, and problem-solving ( Klein et al., 2009 ). The goal-setting strategy conveys the general goals and specific objectives of the project to the team members by defining a subtask and setting schedules. As a result, the team members who are subjected to a target setting will become active in action planning to discover ways to reach specific objectives ( Aga et al., 2016 ). Role clarification emphasizes increased communication among team members regarding their respective roles within the team. Team members exposed to role-clarification activities are expected to achieve a better understanding of the respective roles of themselves and others and their duties within the team ( Klein et al., 2009 ). This includes clarifying the requirements of the individual roles, team norms, and mutual responsibilities of team members ( Aga et al., 2016 ). The interpersonal process includes conflict resolution among team members and clearing up any hidden agenda ( Aga et al., 2016 ). Problem-solving practice stresses understanding significant challenges in group tasks to develop the aptitudes relevant to the task. This is a process in which the team members identify the problems, generate considerable and relevant data, take an interest in strategic thinking and action planning, and execute and review action plans ( Aga et al., 2016 ).

Teamwork Quality

The definition of teamwork refers to “the interdependent components of performance required to effectively coordinate the performance of multiple individuals.” ( Salas et al., 2008a ). Numerous studies have sought to assess the efficiency of teamwork. The first TWQ model developed tested the collective team-task processes and focused on the level of interaction ( Hoegl and Gemuenden, 2001 ). Previous studies demonstrated that teamwork efficiency is measured as a second-order construct consisting of communication, coordination, cohesion, mutual support, and learning in new product development (NPD) projects ( Kuthyola et al., 2017 ). Oh et al. (2019) used the TWQ construct for the ISD project: communication, coordination, the balance of member contribution (BMC), mutual support, effort, and cohesion. Communication considers the frequency of interaction among team members, formalization, and the free exchange of information. Coordination demands to develop a general understanding among the project team members when working on parallel subtasks, and agreement on common work-down structure, schedules, budgets, and deliverables of the project. Balance of member contribution is the ability to employ the expertise of the team members to its full potential. The contribution should reflect the specific knowledge and experience of the team members. Mutual support is the ability and willingness of the team members to assist and support each other in executing their tasks. The sub construct effort is the capacity and willingness of team members to share the workload and prioritize the activities of the group over other tasks. Cohesion is the motivation of the team members to maintain the team and to understand that the team goal is more important than individual goals.

Research Model and Hypotheses

This section presents the conceptual framework and hypotheses of the study. It also highlights the relationships between the variables in the study. Figure 1 depicts the conceptual framework of the study.

Figure 1 . The proposed model.

Transformational Leadership and Project Success

The literature indicates that the appropriate attitudes of the project leaders play a significant role in achieving an excellent project performance ( Scott-Young and Samson, 2008 ; Zwikael and Unger-Aviram, 2010 ). The TL style is positively associated with employee entrepreneurial behavior ( Afsar et al., 2017 ), innovative employee behavior ( Wang et al., 2017 ), employee creativity ( Dong et al., 2017 ), employee retention ( Caillier, 2018 ), organizational commitment ( Delegach et al., 2017 ), performance ( Jansen et al., 2009 ; Vaccaro et al., 2012 ), employee adaptability and proactivity ( Wang et al., 2017 ), and work engagement ( Ding et al., 2017 ). The leadership style is also linked positively in a project environment with PS ( Anantatmula, 2010 ) and project performance ( Keller, 1992 ).

The attributes (inspiration, respect, obligation, individualized consideration, support, and open communication) of TL are much more likely to yield positive results ( Al-Ghazali, 2020 ). Zaman et al. (2019) argued that TL plays a role of a catalyst in strategic repositioning and a positive change in implementing the perspective of the stakeholder, who contributes to a successful project. A transformational approach has enhanced the knowledge of different obstacles and related project problems that warrant initiatives to improve ( Zaman et al., 2019 ). The transformational leader thus sets inspiring goals for his team members to achieve demanding project objectives. In project teams, a transformational leader promotes positive workplace relationships, high engagement, and cohesion in project teams that guarantee the success of the project ( Raziq et al., 2018 ). In this way, the team members work to their full potential and bring the project to completion. Thus we propose our first hypothesis:

H1. The TL style of the project manager positively influences project success .

The Mediating Role of TBP

There is a strong relationship between TL style and TBP ( Aga et al., 2016 ). Team-building facilitates the exchange of information and mutual understanding among team members and improves the outcomes of the team ( Hsu et al., 2011 ). McDonough (2000) investigated the following four factors of the leadership style of project managers that effect TBP: project goals, empowerment, climate, and human resources. In the project goal, effective project leadership defines the goals and tasks to subordinates and clarifies the constraints. Project managers should adopt the TL style to empower team members to explore, analyze, and make decisions about the strategies to utilize them for problem-solving and tasks to be performed. Effective leadership style is vital for project managers to maintain the flow of information and expertise within the team and other organizational groups for actual decision making. This process involves communication mechanisms to exchange information about the project objectives, project changes, and updates the role and responsibilities of individual members. An effective project leadership style is required to enhance team commitment, build trust, and establish efficient working relationships among the team members. Burke et al. (2006) underlined that even if the project team is high-performing with the right skills and techniques, it will not be effective without appropriate leadership. The TL style is required for a project manager to instill motivation and enthusiasm in the team to perform beyond their expectations by conventional team-building strategies, such as goal-setting, role-clarification, interpersonal communication, and problem-solving techniques ( Aga et al., 2016 ).

H2. TBPs mediate the relationship between the transformational leadership style of the project manager and PS .

The Mediating Role of TWQ

Several studies have indicated that teamwork is a crucial factor that positively affects the success of the project teams ( Hoegl and Gemuenden, 2001 ; Yang et al., 2011 ). Teamwork is considered a proxy for project performance evaluation and project progress in complex environments ( Qin et al., 2016 ). Several studies have shown how TWQ acts as a mediator between leadership styles and project performance ( Aronson et al., 2006 ; Yang et al., 2011 ; Oh et al., 2019 ). Oh et al. (2019) confirmed that transformational, transactional, and entrepreneur governance network leadership styles were correlated with the TWQ and ISD proPS, and TWQ served as an essential mediator between leadership and PS. Aronson et al. (2006) analyzed TWQ as a mediator variable between the personality of the leader and project output of new product development (NPD) under different conditions and uncertainty. Another study elaborated on how TWQ mediates leadership and project outcomes ( Dionne et al., 2004 ). In a controlled environment, the TL style enhances TWQ and leads to completion and success.

H3. TWQ mediates the relationship between the TL style of the project manager and PS .

The Serial Mediating Role of TBP and TWQ

The success of the team can have significant measurable effects on the time and cost of the success of a project; teamwork is usually seen as a soft skill with few specific guidelines or analysis of its influence on project results ( Thomas et al., 2008 ). Team-building is one of the ways for organizations to enhance the efficiency of teamwork ( Klein et al., 2009 ). It is an intervention in which cohesive working groups learn to improve their teamwork skills by using a planned agenda ( Tannenbaum et al., 1992 ). Svyantek et al. (1999) investigated that team-building positively affected the efficiency of the workgroup. Klein et al. (2009) and Salas et al. (2008b) examined that team-building improves cognitive thinking (e.g., declarative knowledge of teamwork competencies), team member affective outcomes (e.g., team potency and trust), processes (e.g., coordination and communication), and team performance outcomes (e.g., productivity measures). Xu et al. (2010) found that TWQ mediates the effect of the relationship between technical and human IT infrastructure capabilities and the success of the IT project. Effective and efficient team-building, team communication, cohesiveness, and collaboration are the preconditions for the success of project management ( Raziq et al., 2018 ). Staggers et al. (2008) strongly believed that most effective teamwork happens after team-building and team-building as a process is linked to the process of teamwork. Effective communication is an integral part of teamwork, one of every five projects being reported as unsuccessful due to poor communication ( Pollack and Matous, 2019 ). The purpose of team-building strategies is to change and extend team processes until they are formed and stabilized ( Kozlowski and Ilgen, 2006 ). Based on the arguments stated above, we recommend that TBPs help to enhance TWQ, which in turn will have a positive effect on PS.

H4. TBP and TWQ serially mediate the relationship between the TL style of the project manager and PS .

Materials and Methods

Research setting and participants.

It is possible to classify projects into various categories. This research considers information systems development (ISD) projects. The deliverables of ISD projects are intangible. The development of the ISD projects aims to enhance organizational coordination in terms of real-time data, better communication, greater productivity, and a secure location. The study was designed to investigate the association between TL and PS with serial mediation of TBPs and TWQ. In this study, the participants are ISD project managers from Pakistan.

Sample and Data Collection Procedure

The target institutions of the study were IT firms that undertake ISD projects. Data were collected in January 2020–April 2020 from ISD project managers working in leading companies in the IT sector of Pakistan. The data were collected from the registered firms with Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB). We took the information from the firm (name, contact, website, and city) from the PSEB website. The data were gathered from the following major cities of Pakistan: Islamabad (19.0%), Peshawar (17.1%), Lahore (20.1%), Karachi (21.9%), Quetta (12.0%), and other cities (9.9%) through an online questionnaire. Some significant studies have focused on a cross-sectional approach to examine the project's success ( Joslin and Müller, 2016 ; Musawir et al., 2017 ; Zaman et al., 2019 ). The managers have already sensed, observed, and witnessed the results of these specific characteristics of the project in question; the self-reported survey concept is more appropriate ( Zhang et al., 2018 ). We sent the link to the online questionnaire to 800 ISD project managers. We received 374 responses; the response rate was 46.75%. In this study, we took one participant per organization. It had been mentioned at the top of the questionnaire that participants must have managed one or more ISD project(s) in the past.

In the project management literature, there is a debate on what constitutes the PS criteria. Some researchers used the aggregative approach ( Yang et al., 2011 ; Kissi et al., 2013 ), whereas others used the distributive PS criteria ( Dvir et al., 2003 ; Diallo and Thuillier, 2004 ). This research used the aggregate approach of measuring a multi-dimensional project performance construct based on the interpretation of specific parameters by project managers. Project success constructs adopted from a well-validated study of Aga (2016) composed of six items, addressing time, expense, quality, client use, satisfaction, and efficacy. The project managers evaluated each item on a five-point Likert scale ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree.”

Transformational Leadership

We adopted the constructs of Aga et al. (2016) which are based on the study by Bass and Avolio (1996) . The study by Bass and Avolio (1996) has been considered a well-validated study in leadership research. We adopted eight elements of TL, covering idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individual consideration. Items ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree) were based on the five-point Likert scale, respectively.

Team-Building Practices and Teamwork Quality

Project TBPs and TWQ are used as serial mediator variables in the research model. Team-building is a multi-dimensional construct that entails goal setting, role clarification, interpersonal processes, and problem-solving ( Klein et al., 2009 ). We adopted eight items from the study by Aga et al. (2016) for TBPs. The project managers assessed each item on a five-point Likert scale of 1–5 ranging between “strongly disagree” and “strongly agree,” respectively.

Teamwork quality that entails communication, coordination, the BMC, mutual support, effort, and cohesion comprises six items adapted from Oh et al. (2019) and Yang et al. (2011) .

In this study, the participants were ISD project managers. A set of control variables are listed that adopted to mitigate spurious effects and enhance internal validity. The control variables in this study categorize the demographics of ISD project managers. The measures of demographic control variables include gender (1 = male, 2 = female), age (1 ≤ 21 years, 2 = 21–25 years, 3 = 26–30 years, 4 = 31–35 years, 5 = 36–40 years, 6 = 41–45 years, 7 = 46–50 years, and 8 = more than 50 years), academic qualification (1 = intermediate, 2 = graduate, 3 = master/doctorate), and the experience in ISD projects (1 ≤ 1 year, 2 = 2–5 years, 3 = 6–9 years, 4 = 10–13 years, 5 = 14–17 years, and 6 = more than 17 years).

Data Analysis

Before analyzing the hypotheses, missing values, the accuracy of data, and outliers were examined. We used AMOS 23 and Plug-ins to conduct Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) to examine convergent and discriminant validity.

We investigated the mediating effect of TBP and TWQ independently on the relationship between TL and PS. We adopted the mediation four steps methodology developed by Hayes (2013) . First, the independent variable (TL) must be related to the dependent variable (PS). Second, the independent variable (TL) must be related to the mediator variable (TBPs and TWQ). Third, the dependent variable (PS) must be related to the mediator variable (TBPs and TWQ). Fourth, when the mediator variable is controlled, the effect of the independent variable (TL) on the dependent variable (PS) is no longer significant or is substantially reduced. Next, we examined the serial mediation effect of team-building and teamwork in the relationship between TL and PS.

Table 1 presents descriptive statistics of the demographics of participants. It shows 374 ISD project managers who took part in this study. In the result, 78.9% of respondents were men and 21.1% were women. The average age, experience, and education of the ISD project managers were found to be 5.47 (38 years), 4.04 (10 years), and 2.08 (graduation), respectively.

Table 1 . Sample characteristics.

Validity and Reliability Analyses

Convergent validity is the internal consistency of multiple dimensions for each construct. In the composite reliability (CR) statistics used for internal consistency, the recommended ( Bagozzi and Yi, 1988 ) threshold value must be <0.70. In Table 2 , the CR of TL (0.930), TBPs (0.895), TWQ (0.860), and PS (0.857) were internally consistent. Factor loadings were all >0.50.

Table 2 . Model validity measures.

Discriminant validity assesses how distinct is each construct of the model is from the others. The average variance extracted (AVE) was used to determine if the constructs had adequate discriminant validity. The acceptable threshold value for AVE should be greater than 0.50 ( Fornell and Larcker, 1981 ). In Table 2 , the results show that each construct has an acceptable AVE value: TL (0.654), TBPs (0.519), TWQ (0.510), and PS (0.501) were internally consistent. In addition, the square roots of the AVE of TL (0.808), TBPs (0.720), TWQ (0.714), and PS (0.708) were greater than the correlations between the constructs. As a result, all of the tests met the recommended convergent and discriminant validity thresholds.

The tool used for the model fit measures AMOS 23.0 and AMOS Plug-in ( Gaskin and Lim, 2016 ). The presented results in Table 3 examined the dimensionality and fitness of the CFA model. The results indicate that our hypothesized model significantly fit the data. All the fitness indicator values are as follows: CMIN = 607.940, DF = 318, CMIN/DF = 1.912, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.946, standard root-mean-square residual (SRMR) = 0.057, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.049 and PClose = 0.553 are in the acceptable range.

Table 3 . Model fit measures.

Hypotheses Testing

The hypotheses were tested using an analytical method provided by Hayes (2013) . The PROCESS SPSS plug-in calculated a total of 374 valid responses. Hayes (2013) argued that this method is superior to the traditional method for evaluating mediating effects. In this study, age, gender, education, and experience have considered control variables. Figure 2 shows standardized path coefficients. The proof that the 95% CI for all indirect effects does not include zero is summarized in Tables 4 , 5 . The results confirm that (TBPs) and TWQ mediate the relationship between TL and PS. Table 5 entailed estimates of the indirect effects along with the 98% bias-corrected bootstrapped confidence intervals for path estimates.

Figure 2 . Mediation model. Notes: N = 374, *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001.

Table 4 . Regression coefficients and model summary information for the serial multiple mediator model.

Table 5 . Indirect effects.

Hypothesis 1 states that the TL style of the project manager positively influences PS. For H1, the analysis shows the total direct effect of TL on PS. The regression analysis indicates that TL significantly (β = 0.417, SE = 0.041, P < 0.000) influence PS, supporting H1. Hypothesis 2 states that TBPs mediate the relation of TL and PS. The H2 analysis requires the indirect effect of TL through TBPs to predict PS. The results shows that TBPs significantly (β = a 1 × b 1 = 0.807 × 0.174 = 0.140, SE = 0.073, BootLLCI = 0.018, BootULCI = 0.306) mediate the relationship between TL and PS, supporting H2. Hypothesis 3 states that the TL of the project manager predicts TWQ which affects PS. For H3 analysis, the significance test required the prediction of the indirect effect on PS of TL through TWQ. According to the result, TWQ significantly (β = a 2 × b 2 = 0.290 × 0.328 = 0.095, SE = 0.043, BootLLCI = 0.015, BootULCI = 0.182) mediates the relationship of TL and PS, H3 supporting H4 states that TBPs and TWQ sequentially mediate the relationship between TL and PS. For H4, the results show that TBPs and TWQ significantly (β = a 1 × d 21 × b 2 = 0.807 ×0.582 × 0.328 = 0.154, SE = 0.039, BootLLCI = 0.084, BootULCI = 0.235) and serially mediate the relationship between TL and PS. The results supported all hypotheses.

The purpose of the present study is to empirically investigate how the TL style of the project manager influences PS directly and indirectly by multiple mediation and robust analysis. Project management necessitates the use of team-building strategies and teamwork. Gundersen et al. (2012) suggested that the TL style has high importance to the project-based organization. The following are some significant findings of the study.

First, the study shows that TL style positively influences PS. The TL style of the project manager promoted the perception of PS among the project team members. If the team members believe that the project is going in the right direction, there will be no doubt about the success. Second, there is a positive association between TL style and TBPs. The TL positively influences and clarifies the primary goal of the project, expectations, and responsibilities of individual team members and identifies task-related problems, and generates ideas, and resolves the problems. Third, the results indicate that TBPs mediate the relationship between TL and PS. Aga et al. (2016) also found a strong association among the TL style of the project manager, PS, and TBPs. Team-building practice is found to mediate the relationship between TL and PS.

Fourth, the TL style of the project manager promotes TWQ. The project team recognizes individual strengths and weaknesses and assigns work regarding the strength of the individual. The project team members are mutually helpful and supportive. Fifth, the TWQ mediates the relationship between TL and PS. Transformational leadership emphasizes that inspirational motivation, individualized consideration, and intellectual stimulation are positive effects of TWQ. In turn, TWQ increases the level of PS. Sixth, more importantly, the studies also found that TBPs and TWQ serially mediate the association between the TL style of the project manager and PS. This is the first study that explicitly identifies the serial mediation role of TBPs and TWQ in the relationship between TL and PS.

Theoretical Implications

The current study incorporates leadership theory in project management literature in the context of the multiple mediation effect of TBPs and TWQ between TL style and PS. The study results show that TBP and TWQ link the relationship between TL and ISD of PS. The study also presents that TBPs and TWQ serially mediate the relationship between TL and ISD of PS. This finding strengthens our knowledge of the importance of TL in project management.

As our results found, TL style influences PS with or without team-building and teamwork mediation. Project management literature also found that the TL, directly and indirectly, explains the PS in the context of team-building ( Aga et al., 2016 ) and TWQ ( Yang et al., 2011 ). The presented results show that TL influences TBPs that contribute to TWQ, which in turn predicts the ISD of PS. In other words, TBPs and TWQ serially intervene in the path of TL and PS.

Limitation and Future Research Direction

Our study has several limitations that should be taken into account and considered as a direction for future research.

First, the provided practical implication is limited to ISD projects. We collected data from ISD project managers in a specific country (Pakistan), which restricts the universality. Future research should focus on reassessing and reconfirming our findings in different work environments and countries.

Second, the data were collected for different constructs from one source (ISD project managers) at the same time. Therefore, a common method could be a concern. However, the results of CFA also confirm that variables are empirically distinct and the constructs used in the present study are widely applied in previous empirical research studies.

Third, we used cross-sectional data rather than longitudinal data, which are the restricting factors to draw strong inferences about causality. To better understand causality direction, future research should be conducted using longitudinal and/or experimental data sets.

Fourth, the control variable project type has not been examined in this study. The Project type in terms of team size, cost, and complexity could influence the PS. We recommend that future research should concentrate on investigating the effect of project type on PS.

The demographics of the respondents, such as age, gender, and experience need to be explored as moderators in future studies.

Since this is the first study of its kind that found team-building and TWQ serially mediate the relationship between TL and PS, respectively. We encourage the researchers to extend our model and explore more paths to PS.

Conclusions and Implications

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the direct and indirect influence of TL style on ISD projects. The research demonstrated that TL has a direct impact on the PS of ISD. The results indicated that TBPs and TWQ serially mediate between TL and PS. In addition, we showed that team-building and TWQ independently and serially mediate the path between TL and PS. The project-based organizations should promote the TL style in project managers through leadership development programs.

This study has several practical implications. The TL style of the project managers intensifies the success of the project with TBPs and TWQ. The TL style enhances the ability of the project managers to improve their performance ( Aga et al., 2016 ). As a result, adopting TL increases the probability of achieving the project objectives and benefiting the organizations. Team-building aims to clarify the roles, bettering social relations, and solving task-oriented problems. The TL boosts TWQ in terms of communication, coordination, and cohesion to achieve successful projects. This implies that the project managers should focus on the TL style and implement properly all components of team-building and TWQ to get a higher probability of PS. This is the responsibility of the transformational leader to create a climate to apply all ingredients of team-building and teamwork.

Data Availability Statement

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.

Ethics Statement

Ethical review and approval was not required for the study on human participants in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The patients/participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study.

Author Contributions

SC: supervised. HA: devised the research idea and methodology. HA, AM, and SC: formal analysis. MK and HA: investigation and writing—original draft preparation. HA and AT: data curation. HA, MA, and SC: writing—review and editing. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher's Note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the participants of the study for their valuable time. The authors thank the reviewers for their comments, which improved the final version of this paper.

Supplementary Material

The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.689311/full#supplementary-material

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Keywords: transformational leadership, team-building, teamwork quality, project success, information system development

Citation: Ali H, Chuanmin S, Ahmed M, Mahmood A, Khayyam M and Tikhomirova A (2021) Transformational Leadership and Project Success: Serial Mediation of Team-Building and Teamwork. Front. Psychol. 12:689311. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.689311

Received: 31 March 2021; Accepted: 03 August 2021; Published: 07 September 2021.

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Copyright © 2021 Ali, Chuanmin, Ahmed, Mahmood, Khayyam and Tikhomirova. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Shuai Chuanmin, shuaicm@cug.edu.cn

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

• Open access
• Published: 09 December 2020

Impact of transformational leadership on work performance, burnout and social loafing: a mediation model

• Hira Khan 1 ,
• Maryam Rehmat   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3377-0082 2 , 3 ,
• Tahira Hassan Butt 3 ,
• Saira Farooqi 2 , 3 &
• Javaria Asim 2 , 3  

Future Business Journal volume  6 , Article number:  40 ( 2020 ) Cite this article

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The aim of this research was to study the effect of transformational leadership on employees’ work outcomes which include their work performances and working burnout, and their working behavior such as social loafing at workplace. Also, it studies the impact of intrinsic motivation as a mediator between transformational leadership and other stated variables. A cross-sectional survey was conducted to collect data from 308 employees working in the telecommunication sector. To test the hypotheses, Model 4 of Process Hayes was used to test direct and mediating effects among transformational leadership and employees’ work outcomes and working behavior. The results showed that transformational leadership has a significant positive relationship with mediator intrinsic motivation. The results also concluded that work performance has positive significant relationship with transformational leadership. However, there is indirect and insignificant relationship of transformational leadership with working burnout and social loafing. Therefore, it can be stated that organizational leaders must have transformational attributes by getting informed of their employees well because transformational leader can inspire employees to achieve anticipated or significant outcomes. It gives employees self-confidence over specific jobs, as well as the power to make decisions once they have been trained.

Introduction

During the last two decades, transformational leadership has gained most conspicuous place in philosophy of leadership [ 81 ]. Therefore, it is not surprising that the current evolution in leadership theory and practice has attracted the interest of both practitioners and researchers and they exhibited great deal of interest toward exploring its ascendancy for organization and individuals as well [ 72 , 87 ]. Particularly, the studies conducted during the previous decades recommends that transformational leadership is considerably related to followers’ behaviors and performance [ 20 , 65 ]. In a review on progress in the domain of leadership printed in “Annual Review of Psychology,” Avolio et al. [ 8 ] stressed the need to establish mechanisms that connect leadership to vital organizational and individual outcomes. They further stressed the need to investigate the role of mediators, so as to clarify the noteworthiness of leadership for organizations. Chan and Mak [ 20 ] in their research contended that “a variety of different influence processes may be involved in transformational leadership yet there is still room for research to further examine the process of the relationship between transformational leadership and follower attitudes and behaviors.” Transformational leadership defined as leadership approach in which a leader transforms his followers, inspires them, builds trust, encourages them, admires their innovative ideas, and develops them [ 12 ], is presently the most extensively acknowledged definition in the leadership literature.

Transformational leadership can be implicated to managerial context. Transformational leadership which is the leader’s competency to get performance of employees beyond expectations, can be more helpful and beneficial in enhancing one’s ability to intrinsically motivate them. It can improve psychological empowerment as well [ 85 ]. Transformational leadership has four components which are: (i) idealized influence, (ii) inspirational motivation to enhance confidence, (iii) intellectual stimulation, and (iv) individualized consideration [ 13 ]. Idealized influence is shown when a leader efficiently makes provision of accurate sense of mission and appropriately visualizes it. Inspirational motivation can be defined as leadership attitude which deals with emotional traits of employees, builds confidence in employees about their performances, appropriately communicates and provides actual feedback [ 68 ]. Individual consideration refers to the support of leader for each follower. It may include training and coaching, allocating tasks according to the competence of each individual and supervision of performances [ 92 ]. Intellectual stimulation describes the effort of leader to motivate and encourage his employees to be more adaptive and follow new technical approaches according to the varied situation. It may be advantageous to overcome the cues and hindrances which occur at multi stages [ 14 ]. Transformational leaders can anticipate that employees will need transformational leadership when the work is more stressful and when the work is more meaningful [ 84 ].

Extant research on the transformational leadership tried to explore its “black box” and presented empirical confirmation of its direct fruitful consequences for followers’ outcomes including work performance [ 16 , 44 , 52 , 90 ], burnout [ 40 , 82 ], and social loafing [ 5 ]. Nevertheless, there exists some room for further research, explaining the specific mechanisms by which transformational leadership influence such individuals’ behavior and psychological state particularly at organizational level [ 16 ]. Hence, this study aims at providing new comprehension of how and why and under what circumstances transformational leadership influences work performance, burnout and social loafing of employees, in Pakistani context.

Transformational leadership tends to maximize the level of professional performance of work In addition to provided literature on association of transformational leadership and work performance; researchers indicate that organizations of diverse structures highly depend upon the performance of its workers. Past studies have empirically established the positive association between work performance and transformational leadership [ 9 ]. Transformational leaders inspire their followers to have shared vision of targeted goals and standards of performance defined by the organization and also facilitate them achieve it [ 4 ]. Another factor which is highly influenced by transformational leadership is employee’s burnout which may be decreased through this particular style of leadership. Prevalence of stress is highly probable in any organizational sector [ 73 ]. Transformational leadership is most influencing factor which enhances the employee’s ability to deal with all kind of circumstances as such leader provide supportive circumstances to employees so that they can maintain the optimum level of mental health through inspirational motivation and also enhances their confidence level [ 28 , 93 ].

“Social loafing is the inclination of putting less effort while working in a team than working alone” [ 5 ]. Transformational leader, while working in a group, follows a strategy in which he can allocate various assignments and tasks according to the competencies of employee and he must evaluate performances of each individual. Social loafing is a psychological aspect of an individual which may differ from situation to situation and individual to individual [ 55 ]. Leadership literature has established that individualized consideration by the leader may deflate the degree of social loafing [ 45 ].

Building on the previous literature, this research incorporated employee intrinsic motivation as a factor that explains the linkage of transformational leadership with employee work performance, burnout and social loafing. Intrinsic motivation which is “the implementation of an action for the inherent satisfaction rather than for external reasons” [ 63 ]. Undeniably, the motivation of current workforce is not much reliant on extrinsic rewards. Rather material rewards may decline job performance in complex jobs with diverse responsibilities [ 30 ]. Further, in order to perform their duties effectively in today’s dynamic work environment, the employees need to have an elastic and highly flexible work arrangement. For that reason and for instilling good motivation among workers, organizations not only offer extrinsic rewards to them but also plan to enhance their intrinsic motivation [ 63 ]. Transformational leadership is the leadership approach which contributes to present a clear and justified organizational vision and mission by motivating workers to work toward idea through developing association with employees, consider employees’ requirements and assisting them to exert their potential positively, participates to positive outcomes for an organization [ 31 ]. Employees whose work competencies are encouraged by the leader are more likely to have higher intrinsic motivation and resultantly perform better at work. They become more focused and try to accomplish organizational goals by taking their own interests. There also exists indirect association between employees’ burnout and transformational leadership through mediating effect of intrinsic motivation [ 28 ]. Transformational leaders focus more on individual requirements and they build strong association with their employees who are supposed to perform with higher objectives, which enhances employees’ intrinsic motivation. Such motivation keeps them away from burning out [ 6 ]. We further argued that intrinsic motivation mediates the relationship between transformational leadership and social loafing. Previous studies indicate that role of intrinsic motivation discourages social loafing as it does not happen circumstantially only, but it also happens whenever an employee is low in intrinsic motivation [ 5 ].

This research makes provision of significant contribution in the literature of organizational behavior by enriching our understanding of the conditions under which transformational leadership influences employee performance, burnout and social loafing. The findings of our research allow organizations and its management to comprehend how efficiently and effectively they can follow a policy or some kind of advanced strategy in order to intrinsically motivate their employees so that they can increase the level of work performance and deflate burnout and social loafing in employees.

Literature review

Transformational leadership and intrinsic motivation.

Envisioning visions and motivating are two core jobs of effective leadership [ 24 ]. According to traditional transformational leadership literature, transformational leaders guide and encourage employee mindfulness by enunciating a vision that escalates employees’ consciousness and consideration for the significance of organizational values, goals, and performances [ 42 ]. Thusly, fundamental to the theory on transformational leadership is a strong accentuation on the part of a combined vision; that is, an idealized arrangement of objectives that the organization seeks to accomplish one day [ 18 ]. Transformational leaders, through clear enunciation, have their utmost influence on the followers’ sentiments by cultivating a feeling of success and proficiency in them. Transformational leaders are much capable to improve organizational outcomes according to the market requirements by developing human resources and creating justified modifications [ 34 ]. The reason to acquire specific knowledge is associated with the degree that what is the level of intrinsic motivation of a person and how he is keen to get knowledge by developing particular competencies and meaningful learning [ 78 ]. Transformational leadership has power to enhance the ability of psychological empowerment which is referred as intrinsic motivation [ 85 ]. According to [ 74 ], the idea of motivation is known as “the set of reasons why people behave in the ways they do”, for example, intrinsic motivation is “the motivational state in which the employees are driven by their interests in the work rather than a contract-for-rewards approach to completing a task” [ 24 ]. A study by Koh et al. [ 51 ] identified that intrinsic motivation is highly influenced by the transformational leadership, as the transformational leader guides and supports effectively, self-motivation to be an effective and beneficial part of an organization increases as well.

Transformational leadership comprises four interconnected behavioral dimensions including “idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration” [ 11 ]. All behavioral dimensions can influence employees’ intrinsic motivation. First, transformational leaders utilize idealized influence and offer inspirational motivation through communicating an alluring collective vision [ 91 ]. This collective vision provides a meaningful idea of team’s tasks by a leader which increase the intrinsic motivation of employees [ 75 ]. Transformational leadership can develop positive outcomes such as optimism and high self-interests in all members of team which ultimately increase the pleasure and job satisfaction relevant to the task [ 26 ]. Second, the intellectual stimulation of transformational leaders boosts team members’ confidence to develop more effective emotional and situational stability and resolving their problems by their own selves [ 11 ]. They are also motivated to understand and encourage the basic knowledge and skills of other coworkers to share new ideologies. Third, transformational leaders differentiate individuals’ ideas and interests, promote their ideas to describe their uniqueness, and consider them through individualized consideration [ 11 ]. When employees observe the behaviors of their leaders, all of them feel motivated and try to construct one another’s ideas and competencies to create innovative solutions of problems. Therefore, in this article, we expect that all dimensions of transformational leadership encourage employees to invest higher willingness and energy in their work and tasks which exhibit their higher intrinsic motivation. Therefore, it can be hypothesized that:

Transformational leadership relates positively to intrinsic motivation.

Transformational leadership, intrinsic motivation and work performance

Intrinsic motivation is highly associated with the work performance. Intrinsic motivation may be defined as “the doing of an activity for its inherent satisfactions rather than for some separable consequence but it is rare for employees to experience intrinsic motivation in all of their tasks” [ 76 ]. Intrinsic motivation is generated for self-developing attributes that refers to make an individual ready to be the part of learning procedure without having interests of extrinsic rewards [ 83 ]. Intrinsic motivation is basically the degree of an individual’s interest in a task completion and how he engages himself in work [ 3 ]. It describes the psychological development process with an employee’s performance [ 85 ].

According to recent operational settings, enhancing the employees’ motivation has become one of most impactful human resources strategy. Most of the organizations are tending to build up, sustain and grow their HR strategies, just to motivate their employees so that short-term and long-term goals and objectives can be achieved. In recent researches, there are numerous variables which can be influenced by employees’ intrinsic motivation like performance, creativity, and relevant outcomes. For example, it has been stated that behavior of an individual influences the work outcomes which are performance and quality as well [ 10 ]. It is strongly evidenced that motivation has a most important role between cognitive abilities and work performance. Gist [ 37 ] suggested that short term goals can be achieved through self-interest of an individual. Also, a research indicates that there is a significant and direct relationship of intrinsic motivation and job performance [ 43 ]. Furthermore, an employee’s intrinsic motivation illustrates an important contribution in organizational progress and growth [ 39 ]. The work performance indices are constructed for the degree of performance, not only for the individual level always; it also includes group and organizational performances [ 2 ]. In most employment situations, where intrinsic motivation of an employee is supposed to be high, the employee usually tries to acquire continual employment,and he/she develops interpersonal associations with his subordinates, perform better at job as they take pleasure in the process of finishing their tasks effectively [ 38 ]. Conversely, if the worker feels de-motivated, it can be resulted in low performance of work. Thus intrinsic motivation may be concluded with better performance of work while meeting organizational targets and goals [ 7 ].

As we propose the direct relationship of intrinsic motivation and performance, it may be stated that the intrinsic motivation can actively influence the performance of work as a significant workplace outcome [ 19 ]. Therefore, we hypothesize that:

Intrinsic motivation relates positively to employee work performance.

In current research, we posit that intrinsic motivation is one of the main mechanisms by which transformational leaders influence employees’ job performance. Transformational leaders may help to ensure individual’s inner motivation to perform a task efficiently which in turn increases their work performance .These leadership approaches are advantageous for both individual and organizational growth [ 36 ]. In fact, it is justified to examine how leaders motivate their employees and this motivation enhances their performance [ 12 ]. In line with the previous literature [ 22 , 23 ], we expect that transformational leadership enhances individuals’ intrinsic motivation which in turn will significantly predict employee job performance. Intrinsic motivation is known as self-directed type of motivation and represents the highest commitment and stability with the self [ 25 ]. A variety of researches indicate that higher intrinsic motivation result in better performance [ 89 ] as intrinsic motivation inspires and encourages employees to work more efficiently. Therefore, it can be hypothesized:

Intrinsic motivation mediates the relationship between transformational leadership and work performance.

Transformational leadership, intrinsic motivation and employee’s working burnout

Intrinsically motivated employees persistently focus on their tasks and jobs because they find themselves more focused, attentive and exert their best efforts while being a part of an organization and in achieving the goals of their employing organization [ 76 ]. Burnout is a psychological and mental condition which happens in response to high stress level at job; it is a multi-dimensional concept which covers the following three aspects: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and decreased personal focus for accomplishment of goals [ 77 ]. Burnout affects the interpersonal relationship of employees too [ 58 ].

Prior research indicates that there is contrary effect of intrinsic motivation on employee’s working burnout [ 70 ]. Intrinsically motivated employees find their jobs more interesting, are more optimistic, put more effort in their work, and have higher perseverance level because they gain contentment and fulfillment from performing a task itself [ 15 ]. Vallerand [ 88 ] in his study exhibit that “employees with high intrinsic motivation have higher level of vitality, positive effect, self-esteem, absorption, concentration, effort, and persistence” and when such employees went through the felling of burnout, they have more personal resources to surmount this situation. Such employees feel less exhausted, less stressed and more focused toward contributing in organization’s progress [ 49 ]. Intrinsically motivated employees feel less pressure and low stress level rather than the employees who are low in motivation [ 69 , 71 ]. Intrinsic motivation of employees’ can be negatively associated with their burnout [ 70 ].Therefore; the employees who are high in intrinsic motivation can decrease their burnout at workplace [ 50 ]. Thus, it can be hypothesized that:

Intrinsic motivation is negatively associated to employee’s working burnout.

In current research, we propose that intrinsic motivation plays a mediating role between transformational leadership and burnout. Burnout is the major concern for organizations as it influences the relevant outcomes. It results in low productivity and commitment. Hence, it causes the high turnover and absenteeism in employees [ 82 ]. Studies indicate that leaders highly contribute to employees’ health and welfare as well [ 80 ]. But the relationship between leadership behaviors and employee burnout is less studied yet [ 41 ]. As mentioned earlier, there exists a positive relationship between transformational leadership and intrinsic motivation which in turn make them more competent, teach them how to handle and manage stressful conditions and reduce their burnout. Therefore, we hypothesize that:

Intrinsic motivation mediates the relationship of transformational leadership and employee’s working burnout.

Transformational leadership, intrinsic motivation and social loafing

Social loafing is defined as the tendency of individuals who exert less effort and their productivity decreases when working in groups than working individually [ 21 , 33 , 57 , 79 ]. It is a negative employee behavior and is particularly shown by individuals with lower motivation [ 1 ]. These kinds of behaviors can be resulted in low productivity and poor commitment toward a task [ 62 ] and organization as well.

Social loafing is common practice and can be observed in every organizational setting, across age and gender and in different professions and various cultures [ 46 ]. This is more alarming that it can be seen at every single workplace and considered as misconduct. The variety of factors is studied in influence of social loafing, but there is still an insufficiency of individual inherent factors such as intrinsic motivation which is part of this research framework.

“Intrinsic motivation which describes an inherent tendency that individuals engage in activities due to their inner interests, pleasure and satisfaction” [ 70 ] is negatively linked to Social loafing. George [ 33 ] established in his study on 221 salespeople that intrinsic task involvement is negatively linked to social loafing. He further exerted that intrinsically motivated individuals may have self realization that their efforts are vital for the success of their team/group and for organization as well and therefore they are less likely to be engaged in social loafing. He/she would try his/her own best to exert extra effort to accomplish the goals and tasks assigned by the leader.

Therefore, we hypothesize that:

Intrinsic motivation is negatively linked to social loafing.

Intrinsic motivation may be described as the inherent process that initiates attributes, behaviors and what defines people to moves or act [ 27 ]. Self-determination theory indicates that there are different levels of motivation. Intrinsic motivation is at the most independent end of the scale because an individual opts to get engaged in any conduct according to his own choice [ 32 ]. A leader motivates his employees by incorporated strategies which results in better achievement of goals and objectives of a firm or organization. Gilbert et al. [ 35 ]. Social loafing is defined as a reduced amount of effort and motivation while being a part of group or working in a team as compared to working individually [ 46 ]. Social loafing is well-known phenomena and can be found in all of the organizations, across gender, and age and in various occupations and different cultures [ 46 ].

Social loafing is considered as a big hindrance in organizational growth as well. It causes low potential [ 61 ], low productivity [ 29 ], and low motivation of other team members too [ 67 ]. It decreases the overall efficiency, productivity and performance of the team [ 47 ]. Social loafing is widely spread term which is also known as social disease [ 54 ].

In line with this connection, social loafing is a big moral and social issue since it is an option that “involves modifying the life plan of another individual or group of individuals” [ 60 ]. On contrast, if a transformational leader motivates his employees and encourages their performance on individual basis, then through individualized considerations and inspirational motivation, social loafing can be decreased. Therefore, it can be hypothesized:

Intrinsic motivation mediates the relationship of transformational leadership and social loafing.

Mediating role of intrinsic motivation between transformational leadership and social loafing

(Fig.  1 ).

Theoretical framework

Sample and data collection

The data was collected through survey via emails, online surveys and printed questionnaires through convenience sampling from individuals working in the telecommunication sector. The participants were informed about the objective of this study and the assurance of confidentiality and anonymity of their responses. Respondents were assured that their information will not be assessed by any individuals except those who are authorized. After removing the duplicates, outliers and responses with missing data, we obtained 308 valid responses for further data analysis Table  1 depicts the demographic characteristics of the respondents.

• Transformational leadership

Transformational leadership was measured by McColl-Kennedy and Anderson [ 59 ] four-item scale. Six-point Likert scale (1—strongly disagree to 6 —strongly agree) was used to measure responses. This is the most widely used scale to measure transformational leadership. Cronbach’s alpha for transformational leadership scale is 0.84.

• Intrinsic motivation

In this study, Liu et al. [ 56 ] four-item scale was adopted to measure intrinsic motivation. To record the responses five-point Likert scale was used (1 —strongly disagree to 5—strongly agree). Cronbach’s alpha for intrinsic motivation scale is 0.89.

• Work performance

To measure work performance [ 19 ] four-item scale was adopted. Five-point Likert scale (1—much worse to 5—much better) was used to measure responses. Cronbach’s alpha of work performance scale is 0.80.

• Working burnout

Working burnout was measured by Kristensen et al. [ 53 ]. Seven items with five-point Likert scale (1 –never to 5—always) was used. Cronbach’s alpha of burnout scale is 0.88.

• Social loafing

Social loafing was measured by Akgunduz and Eryilmaz [ 1 ]. Four items with five-point Likert scale (1—strongly disagree to 5—strongly agree) was used. Cronbach’s alpha of social loafing scale is 0.80.

Data analysis

After data collection, the reliability, correlation was calculated by using SPSS software. Research model was tested using Hayes Process Model 4.

Descriptive statistics

Table  2 describes descriptive statistics of all the study variables including the mean, standard deviation, and correlation. Correlation coefficients are in the anticipated directions and provide preliminary support for our study hypotheses. Our results depicts that transformational leadership and intrinsic motivation ( r  = 0. 29, p  < 0.01) are positively and significantly correlated. Further intrinsic motivation is significantly associated with work performance ( r  = .30, p  < 0.01); working burnout ( r  = − 0.59, p  < 0.01); social loafing ( r  = − 0.15, p  < 0.01).

Reliability analysis

To examine the consistency of the variables, reliability analysis is calculated. The reliabilities of all the variables with number of items are summarized in Table  3 . The values between 0.84 and 0.8 indicate good reliability. The reliability of transformational leadership is 0.84 which is good, and intrinsic motivation shows another good reliability which is 0.89. Working burnout shows 0.88 reliability. The reliability of work performance is 0.8 and the reliability of social loafing is 0.8 which is also good. So this explains that the data used is reliable.

Hypothesis testing

Results of mediation for work performance.

Firstly, we investigated the impact of Transformational Leadership (X) on Work Performance (Y) through mediating factor of Intrinsic Motivation (M). Results justify that total effect of transformational leadership on work performance (path c, Fig.  2 ) is significant ( β  = 0.13, t  = 3.07, p  < 0.01) as shown in Table  4 . The relationship between transformational leadership and intrinsic motivation (path a, Fig.  4 ) is highly significant and positive which support Hypothesis 1 also ( β  = 0.31, t  = 5.20, p  < 0.01). Furthermore, the findings showed that the relationship between Intrinsic Motivation and Work Performance (path b, Fig.  2 ) is positive and significant relationship ( β  = 0.19, t  = 4.79, p  < 0.01).

Mediation model—work performance

Our overall findings represent that there is positive and significant impact of transformational leadership on work performance (path c ′, Fig.  2 ) through the mediation of intrinsic motivation ( β  = 0.07, t  = 1.68, p  > 0.01) which accepts Hypothesis 3.

Results for mediation for working burnout

In this model we studied the relationship of Transformational Leadership(X) and Working Burnout (Y) through mediating role Intrinsic Motivation (M). Results indicated that total effect of transformational leadership on working burnout is significant ( β  = − 0.19, t  = − 3.51, p  < 0.01 We examined the relationship between the mediator, Intrinsic Motivation and the dependent variable, Working Burnout (path b , Fig.  3 ). The findings showed a significant and negative relationship ( β  = − 0.50, t  = − 11.98, p  < 0.01). This finding supports Hypothesis 4. As it is shown in Table  5 the final results determined a significant relationship between transformational leadership and working burnout with mediation of intrinsic motivation (path c ′, Fig.  3 ) ( β  = − 0.03, t  = − 0.66, p  > 0.01). Therefore Hypothesis 5 is accepted.

Mediation model—working burnout

Results for mediation for social loafing

Our third and last finding for studied relationship between transformational leadership and social loafing through mediator intrinsic motivation, are presented in Table  6 . According to the total effect model, the relationship between transformational leadership and social loafing (path c , Fig.  4 ) is significant and negative ( β  = − 0.32, t  = − 9.57, p  < 0.01) as shown in Table  6 .

Mediation model—social loafing

The outcomes showed that intrinsic motivation and social loafing (path b , Fig.  4 ) are insignificantly and related relationship ( β  = − 0.01, t  = − 0.31, p  > 0.01) which opposes Hypothesis 6.

Our last finding determined that transformational leadership does not have a significant negative impact on social loafing (path c ′, Fig.  3 ), while controlling intrinsic motivation ( β  = − 0.32, t  = − 9.07, p  < 0.01). Thus Hypothesis 7 is not accepted. Thus, it can be resulted that there is no mediation.

Theoretical contributions

Although, previous researches have vastly recognized the direct impact of transformational leadership on positive employee work outcomes [ 17 , 48 ], yet not all employees do not respond to transformational leadership optimistically [ 66 ]. This study overall, made an important contribution to the available literature mainly by including variables that are very essential for all work environments that are aiming toward high employee motivation and performance. The current study is a unique attempt to look at the relationship between of transformational leadership, employees’ work performance, working burnout, and social loafing and intrinsic motivation in Asian context. This study contributes to the existing literature on transformational leadership since it is among the first to investigate the indirect impact of transformational leadership on employees’ work performance, working burnout, and social loafing through intrinsic motivation. Providing empirical evidence for association between transformational leadership (independent variable), work performance, working burnout and social loafing (dependent variables) through the mediating effect of intrinsic motivation. Our empirical results provide support for our hypothesized model except for the indirect effect of transformational leadership on social loafing through intrinsic motivation. Transformational leadership consists of four elements which are idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation and Individualized consideration [ 13 ]. All of these elements showed very good reliability and consistency with each other. These elements actively participate to affect the outcome of intrinsic motivation [ 85 ].

This study shows that transformational leadership has a significant and positive relationship with employees’ intrinsic motivation. Previous literature supports this finding that transformational leadership promotes motivation in employees and develops positive psychological states such as meaningfulness of work, experienced responsibility for the outcomes and knowledge of work results. It indicates that transformational leadership directly exerts its influence by helping employees or followers to think more positively about themselves and their tasks, by enhancing the quality of their relationships, and by creating environments that are fair, respectful, and supportive [ 86 ] and all of these factors contribute positively toward employee’s self motivation toward his/her work (i.e., intrinsic motivation).

The positive elements of transformational leadership bring out positive psychological states by escalating intrinsic motivation among employees. Employees with increased intrinsic motivation are more effective and efficient toward their work performances. They are supposed to be converted into responsive and perform efficiently in their work [ 64 ].

This study results showed significant positive relationship of transformational leadership on working burnout through intrinsic motivation. When a transformational leader indicates support for honest and fair matters associated with employees, the employee feels less exhausted and motivated. Intrinsically motivated employees who are driven by enjoyment and interest in their work are more likely to work hard at their jobs and feel less fatigue, less emotional exhaustion, and increased desire to participate in the organization [ 49 ].

Finally, it was examined that how transformational leadership impact social loafing through Intrinsic motivation. Findings depicts that although Social loafing has a significant and negative relationship with transformational leader, but their indirect relationship through intrinsic motivation is not significant The reason behind can be that the direct strong association between transformational leader and social loafing as “transactional leaders effectively inspire followers to identify with a mission while rallying them to work together to achieve organizational objectives.” Further, social loafing in employees is also effected significantly by other factors such as workload, organizational culture, tenure of job. etc.

Practical implications

Our study also provides several practical implications for organizations. Transformational leaders who realize the significance of intrinsic motivation for employees will adopt such behaviors that are conducive for development employees’ intrinsic motivation at the workplace. The results of current study confirmed that transformational leadership through fostering intrinsic motivation create such environment which is stress free and fruitful for employee effective performance. One way to exhibit these behaviors by managers is to aim at encouraging motivation among employees based on their inherent happiness and enjoyment. Another way to enhance employees’ intrinsic motivation and involvement toward organizational success is to value their contributions and sharing organizational goals and objectives with their workers. Further, it is very essential for organizational leaders to be transformed by being informed of their employees well because transformational leader can inspire people to achieve unexpected or remarkable results. It gives workers autonomy over specific jobs, as well as the authority to make decisions once they have been trained. In that the leader can inspire workers to find better ways of achieving a goal as leadership can mobilize people into groups that can get work done, and morale, in that transformational leaders raise the well-being and motivation level of a group through excellent connection. The findings of this study also stressed the need of designing leadership coaching and training programs in order to develop transformational leadership which may include “programs for communication, motivation, and brainstorming, to train employees with the necessary resources to be more articulate and inspirational as well as to think out of the box”.

Limitations and future directions

The first limitation of this research is that cross-sectional survey has been conducted. There may be ambiguity in establishing causal direction. Results may vary while collecting data at various times. It is suggested to conduct longitudinal study design in future research to see how impact of transformational leadership on employee outcomes varies over time. Next, it represented data from only the telecom sector of Lahore, Pakistan which may limit the study generalizability it would have been advantageous to conduct this research across the diverse sectors and n different context. Another limitation of this research is that there can be a probability of response bias as all the data was collected through same source i.e., employees. For example, a person can have deliberate falsification by quoting false responses of statements, just to attain social desirability. An employee in the organization may have high degrees of social loafing but he may not state it appropriately as well. Future researchers may collect data from different sources like work performance data can be collected from supervisors.

Existing literature and this research too is having high tendency toward constructive and significant outcomes to discover impact of transformational leadership so it is suggested that in future studies impact of transformational leadership should be examined in relation to more negative employee outcomes such as turnover intention and cyber loafing.

It is also recommended to see the impact of other mediators like emotional stability between transformational leadership and employees’ various outcomes.

Furthermore, future studies can also observe the effect of different moderators such as performance appraisal politics and contingent awards on the existing research model. It might prove valuable.

Future studies can also respond to the limitations of current research by collecting data across different business sectors (education, banking, etc.) of diverse locations.

This research contributes to the field of organizational behavior by enhancing our knowledge on how a transformational leader upgrades employees’ positive work outcomes by improving their intrinsic motivation. Furthermore, their increased intrinsic motivation will develop their positive work outcomes by increasing employees’ work performance and the same time reducing their burnout and work stress. We hope that our study will stimulate future endeavors to advance our understanding in this domain.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Khan, H., Rehmat, M., Butt, T.H. et al. Impact of transformational leadership on work performance, burnout and social loafing: a mediation model. Futur Bus J 6 , 40 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s43093-020-00043-8

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Transformational Leadership: How to Motivate & Inspire Teams

A perennial question in the arena of leadership thinking is simply this: ‘ What constitutes good leadership? ’

Filtering such questions through a new theoretical framework can be powerful, causing top-down paradigm shifts in the way organizations are run.

One framework that has the potential to cause this degree of change is transformational leadership theory. In this article, we explore its origins, along with several fascinating research findings.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Positive Leadership Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or others adopt positive leadership practices and help organizations thrive.

This Article Contains:

What is transformational leadership theory, characteristics and traits: 5 examples, how does it work explaining the model & diagram, transformational leadership & emotional intelligence, is the style effective 5 research findings, advantages & disadvantages of transformational leadership, 7 common criticisms of transformational leadership, applying transformational leadership in healthcare, using transformational leadership in education: 3 games, assessing leadership styles: 4 questionnaires, positivepsychology.com’s relevant resources, a take-home message.

The concept of transformational leadership originated with leadership expert and presidential biographer James MacGregor Burns, who was interested in the leadership styles of historical figures such as Mahatma Gandhi and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

In his impactful book Leadership , Burns (1978, p. 20) describes transformational leaders as those who engage with followers such that they “raise one another to higher levels of motivation and morality.”

How do they achieve this? By embodying an inspiring vision in order to motivate followers to work on shared goals that transcend their self-interest.

It was Bernard M. Bass (1985) who further developed transformational leadership theory in his work Leadership and Performance Beyond Expectations . Along with hypothesizing the psychological mechanisms behind it, Bass argued that its impact can be quantified in terms of subjective impact on followers, including measures like admiration, trust, and respect.

Indeed, a plethora of research has shown transformational leadership to be correlated with such measures, along with favorable outcomes at the level of the organization and employee.

When it comes to assessing leadership styles, the role played by certain dispositional factors is well documented. The field of transformational leadership is no different.

For instance, a large 2004 meta-analysis analyzed its link with the Big Five personality traits (Bono & Judge, 2004). Reflecting on these findings, the authors suggested why each trait might predict ratings of transformational leadership behaviors (the first two showing a stronger correlation):

1. Extraversion

A tendency to “convey positive emotions and project optimism and enthusiasm” (Bono & Judge, 2004, p. 908) may account for the link between extraversion and transformational leadership behaviors.

2. Low neuroticism

Transformational leaders are usually high in self-esteem and self-efficacy, while those high in neuroticism tend toward the opposite, given their negatively skewed worldview.

3. Openness to new experience

Two important aspects of transformational leadership are entertaining new ideas and thinking outside the box. Transformational leaders are also more proactive than reactive, working to change organizational culture instead of conforming to the status quo (Odumeru & Ifeanyi, 2013).

4. Conscientiousness

The ability to self-manage without needing supervision is the mark of any outstanding leader. This is especially true of a transformational one, with high levels of internal motivation serving to keep the organization on track.

5. Agreeableness

Those with an agreeable nature often show concern, support, and basic respect for others – all pivotal aspects of transformational leadership.

Source: Renjith, Renu, & George, 2015

There are four main components, or domains, of transformational leadership (Bass, 1985):

Idealized influence

Transformational leaders set a high standard of moral and ethical conduct to engender loyalty and respect in their followers. One might say they ‘walk the talk’ or lead by example.

Inspirational motivation

In tandem with this, transformational leaders stimulate the inner emotional worlds of their followers by appealing to higher ideals and values.

They achieve this by tenaciously upholding an inspiring vision linked to clear goals. Rather than obfuscating the vision with jargon, they repeatedly and enthusiastically repeat it to keep it front of mind.

Idealized influence and inspirational motivation are highly correlated, sometimes combined in the research to form the dimension ‘charisma’ (Bass, 1998).

Individualized consideration

Transformational leaders also model concern for their team’s welfare, creating an atmosphere of trust. By coaching and mentoring with empathy, they promote growth and development while garnering meaningful insights into any problems occurring on the ground.

Intellectual stimulation

Lastly, they foster creative, innovative problem solving, as well as a culture that regularly challenges the status quo.

Transformational leadership is often juxtaposed with transactional leadership. The latter leaders “cater to their followers’ immediate self-interests” instead of uplifting the morals of their followers through inspiration (Bass, 1999).

Moreover, they motivate through external incentives (a ‘give-and-take’ approach), defer to the status quo, and manage ‘by exception,’ relying on corrective actions whenever the status quo is breached (Bass, 1985).

Given its popularity in the media, with claims that EI is virtually synonymous with good leadership , one might expect there to be a strong association.

To recap, there are five elements of emotional intelligence (Cherniss, Goleman, Emmerling, Cowan, & Adler, 1998):

• Self-awareness The ability to recognize and understand one’s own emotions, as well as one’s effect on other people.
• Self-regulation Being able to manage one’s emotions appropriately.
• Social awareness Skillful interactions that build meaningful relationships .
• Empathy The ability to understand how others are feeling and respond with care.
• Self-motivation Being able to harness passion, as opposed to extrinsic incentives, to fulfill one’s inner needs.

At face value, there appears to be an overlap with the four domains of transformational leadership, but is this borne out in empirical research?

The authors of a 2010 meta-analysis asked exactly this question (Harms & Credé, 2010). While there was indeed a significant link between transformational leadership variables and emotional intelligence parameters, it turned out to be weaker than one might expect.

They concluded, “it is evident that claims of EI being the core of transformational leadership were overstated, but this study does demonstrate that EI may contribute to successful leadership at some level” (Harms & Credé, 2010, p.13).

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Some organizations perform to a much higher level, engender more loyalty from workers, and innovate to an unusual degree. Can the transformational leadership style help to account for some of these outcomes? Across a variety of settings, there’s plenty of research suggesting this to be the case.

In their book Transformational Leadership , Bernard Bass and Ronald Riggio (2006) summarize a large body of evidence showing that transformational leadership positively aligns with how well companies, the military, governmental organizations, educational institutions, and nonprofits perform.

Here are five specific research findings that found a link between transformational leadership and employee/organizational effectiveness:

1. Team performance

Lowe, Kroeck, and Sivasubramaniam (1996) established a link between transformational leadership style and team effectiveness across the set of studies included in the meta-analysis. The level of ‘charisma’ was especially correlated with leader effectiveness, as reflected by subordinate perception, supervisor appraisals, and hard measures of organizational outcomes such as meeting profit goals (Lowe et al., 1996).

2. Employee job performance

A more recent meta-analysis revealed a link between transformational leadership and employee job performance, as mediated by mechanisms such as (Ng, 2017):

• Employee task performance
• ‘Citizenship’ behaviors
• The degree of innovative behavior

3. Communication

Another study, which investigated the impact of transformational leadership in small- and medium-sized enterprises, similarly found that such a leadership style was significantly related to not only citizenship behavior but also employee retention (Tian et al., 2020).

Interestingly, the researchers took this further to reveal that communication moderates these relationships. This coheres with the elements of transformational leadership, which emphasize the conveying of an inspiring mission to the team.

4. Employee outcomes

This study looked at questionnaire data from social service employees, as well as interview data from managers in three empirical studies. Transformational leadership was positively correlated with employee outcomes, including ‘commitment’ and ‘role clarity’ (Tafvelin, 2013).

These effects were further enhanced by the degree of coworker support, reflecting the importance of not only leader–follower but also follower–follower relationships.

5. Inspirational motivation

This Swedish study evaluated 128 leaders across different sectors to see whether transformational leadership domains are predictive of organizational outcomes. All four components were significantly correlated with not only employee effectiveness but also higher job satisfaction , with ‘inspirational motivation’ producing the greatest amount of extra effort on the job (Zineldin, 2017).

For one, inspirational motivation has been linked to employee enthusiasm, hopefulness, pride, happiness, attentiveness, and inspiration (Zineldin, 2017). This may culminate in a general rise in job satisfaction , along with improved mental health both at work and at home.

Previous studies (e.g., Jacobs et al., 2013) have similarly correlated transformational leadership with follower wellbeing, even after controlling for potential confounding factors like job difficulty, education level, and age.

Despite the clear advantages of the approach, there are noteworthy drawbacks of transformational leadership.

To begin with, it isn’t a blanket solution to be used in every scenario and across every setting. Some argue that some teams need a more transactional style, meaning closer supervision and greater direction. This might especially be the case when followers are unskilled and require more oversight.

Transformational leadership is also more effective when applied in smaller, privately held organizations compared to larger, more complex ones (Ling, Simseck, Lubatkin, & Veiga, 2008).

Despite the mostly positive press regarding transformational leadership, some researchers have pointed out conceptual holes in its underpinning theory. Management professor Gary Yukl (1999), for instance, has generated a list of seven major criticisms, detailed below.

1. Limited interest in group-level processes

Yukl argues that too much emphasis is put on how well the leader influences individual followers, rather than how the group functions. For example, the theory cannot account for how well leadership activities are coordinated or how efficiently resources are utilized.

2. Ambiguity about transformational behaviors

Secondly, the theory may fall short in terms of its clarity. Yukl is one of many to criticize the vagueness of the four components, given the overlapping descriptions and high inter-correlation among them. There is also little mention of how each domain gives rise to improved performance outcomes, making it tricky to organize appropriate training for leaders.

3. Ambiguity about transactional leadership

Another criticism is that transactional leadership is identified by a diverse collection of behaviors that “lack any clear common denominator” (Yukl, 1999, p. 289). Yukl points out that providing ‘praise’ and ‘recognition’ encompasses transformational as well as transactional leadership, blurring the distinction between the two.

4. Omission of important behaviors

Yukl identified several leadership behaviors that translate to improved organizational outcomes yet are not included in transformational leadership theory. These include enhancing follower skillsets and sharing power.

5. Insufficient specification of situational variables

While the original theory assumed transformational leadership to be uniformly beneficial in all situations, Yukl points out factors likely to place a ceiling on how effective it can be in practice, such as the lack of ‘environment stability’ and an ‘entrepreneurial culture.’

6. Insufficient identification of negative effects

The theory doesn’t address potential negative effects of this leadership style. One suggestion is that followers can become “transformed to such a high degree of emotional involvement in the work that over time they become ‘ burned out ’ by the prolonged stress” (Yukl, 1999, p. 292).

Furthermore, there might be a risk of followers becoming so devoted that they blindly follow charismatic leaders without questioning the underlying ethical principles.

7. Heroic leadership stereotype

Finally, Yukl points out that transformational leadership theory (like earlier leadership theories) succumbs to heroic leadership bias – the assumption that performance depends primarily on leadership style rather than individual factors. In other words, the focus is mainly on top-down as opposed to bottom-up influence.

Through all levels of a healthcare system, effective leadership is recognized as integral to desirable outcomes, whether in relation to clinical staff or local, regional, and national leaders.

In 2015, independent British charity The King’s Fund conducted an evidence review on healthcare leadership (West et al., 2015). Having analyzed the research, the authors stipulated five key elements of optimum leadership in healthcare settings:

• Inspiring visions at every level, along with upholding a shared, holistic view of care
• Clear, aligned objectives for all teams, departments, and individual staff
• Supportive and enabling people management and high levels of staff engagement
• Learning, innovation, and quality improvement embedded in the practice of all staff
• Effective teamwork

The overlap between these criteria and the four components of transformational leadership is clear, with the paper noting that the included studies provided “strong support for transformational leadership” in healthcare settings (West et al. 2015). They also noted links with “staff satisfaction, unit or team performance, organizational climate and turnover intentions” (West et al., 2015, p. 10).

There were also positive effects in relation to employee work–life balance, staff wellbeing, positive nursing outcomes, patient safety, openness about errors, and patient/staff satisfaction.

When it comes to becoming a better leader, reading up on theory is only part of the equation. After all, leadership isn’t primarily an academic exercise, but a lived experience.

That said, there are plenty of exercises that can be used to cultivate the four components of transformational leadership. Any approach that emphasizes reflection on values, a cohesive vision, group collaboration, intellectual stimulation, and creative problem solving will be consistent with this.

The following three games make participants consider what it is to be an effective transformational leader.

1. Leadership crest

Participants are asked to create a family crest that visually represents their organization. The crest is to be broken into four categories, such as ‘values,’ ‘beliefs,’ ‘strengths,’ and any other category they can think of.

Not only will this inspire creativity, but it will also encourage thinking around the organizational story and vision. Afterward, reflection might focus on how well each team’s crest aligns with each other (Landau, 2018).

2. Desert island

In this game, each team has to agree on just five items they would take if stranded on a desert island. This activity reveals any mismatch between the priorities of participants and tests their ability to make compromises for the greater good of surviving together.

It can be a useful exercise for companies, emphasizing the importance of managing limited resources and banding together for a common goal (Landau, 2018).

3. Tallest tower

Participants are given everyday items like toothpicks, wooden blocks, and uncooked pasta. The task is to construct the tallest possible free-standing structure from the materials provided. This game encourages creative problem solving, thinking outside the box, and collaboration – all elements of effective transformational leadership (Stepshift, 2016).

There are validated leadership questionnaires, many of which are accessible via online repositories such as StatisticsSolutions.com and mindgarden.com .

Here are four worth noting:

1. Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ)

Comprising 36 items pertaining to leadership styles and 9 items pertaining to leadership outcomes, the MLQ, developed by Bass and Avolio (1990), is the gold standard for measuring transformational leadership.

It is designed as a 360-degree instrument, taking data from the leader’s superiors, peers, subordinates, and others. Much of the research on transformational leadership utilizes the MLQ, given its validation across many cultures and types of organizations (Bass & Riggio, 2006, p. 21).

2. Authentic Leadership Questionnaire (ALQ)

The ALQ is often combined with the MLQ and measures components of authentic leadership like self-awareness, transparency/openness, and ethical/moral conduct (Walumbwa, Avolio, Gardner, Wernsing, & Peterson, 2008).

3. Leadership Assessment Inventory (LAI)

Though not used in research that often, the LAI can also measure both transformational and transactional leadership behaviors. It comes with a self-rating and observer-rating form, assessing 37 attributes linked to successful leadership performance (Burke, 1994).

4. Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI)

The LPI is another tool that can measure leadership, including transformational leadership style (though it is not explicitly labeled as such).

Both leaders and their team members rate the leader on 30 items using a 10-point Likert scale. Note that while often used in workplace settings, the LPI isn’t often used in research (Posner & Kouzes, 1988).

17 Exercises To Build Positive Leaders

Use these 17 Positive Leadership Exercises [PDF] to help others inspire, motivate, and guide employees in ways that enrich workplace performance and satisfaction. Created by Experts. 100% Science-based.

If you’re a leader or help leaders become more effective, check out the following free resources from our blog:

• Empathy Bingo This worksheet can help leaders and their teams practice differentiating between empathy and other responses they may have during dialog with others, including interrogating, storytelling, or consoling.
• Generating Alternative Solutions and Better Decision-Making This worksheet can help a leader and their team systematically practice better decision-making by brainstorming many alternative solutions to a problem.
• Spotting Good Traits This worksheet can be adapted for use with a group of leaders as a way to help them spot and reflect on positive leadership traits. Consider inviting a group to share positive leadership traits they have observed in one another at the beginning of the exercise.
• Writing Your Mission Statement This worksheet guides users through a series of four questions to help clarify links between values, skills, and the impact they wish to leave on the world.

If you’re looking for more science-based ways to help others develop positive leadership skills, this collection contains 17 validated positive leadership exercises . Use them to equip leaders with the skills needed to cultivate a culture of positivity and resilience.

Another great resource for transformational leadership is our Positive Relationships Masterclass© , which provides practical tools to build long-lasting relationships.

Whether it’s for a small startup or large, multifaceted organization, the quality of leadership can make all the difference when it comes to achieving both objective success and subjective wellbeing. As the evidence has shown, adopting a transformational style may well be integral to these ends.

While transformational leadership likely won’t offer a ‘quick fix’ – especially for larger organizations resistant to change – this isn’t grounds for despondency.

It’s never too late to change the approach, and the power of a compelling, inspiring vision to motivate shouldn’t be underestimated.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Positive Leadership Exercises for free .

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Transformational Leadership and Employees’ Psychological Wellbeing: A Longitudinal Study

Lara lindert.

1 Institute of Medical Sociology, Health Services Research and Rehabilitation Science, Faculty of Medicine, University Hospital Cologne, Faculty of Human Sciences, University of Cologne, Eupener Str. 129, 50933 Cologne, Germany

2 Center for Health Services Research, Brandenburg Medical School Theodor Fontane, Fehrbelliner Str. 38, 16816 Neuruppin, Germany

Sabrina Zeike

3 vivalue Health Consulting GmbH, Friesenplatz 4, 50672 Cologne, Germany

Kyung-Eun (Anna) Choi

4 Health Services Research, MIAAI, Danube Private University (DPU) GmbH, Steiner Landstraße 124, 3500 Krems an der Donau, Austria

Holger Pfaff

Associated data.

The data presented in this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to data protection reasons.

Managers play a key role in realizing a humane organization of work. Transformational leadership aims to identify and examine leadership behaviors that strengthen employees’ awareness of the importance and values of task outcomes by articulating a vision for the future, providing a realistic action plan, and giving individualized support. Previous studies have revealed associations between transformational leadership and the psychological wellbeing of employees in different settings, while others did not find such associations. As research based on longitudinal data remains rare, this study builds on longitudinal data from two employee surveys conducted in 2015 and 2018 in a medium-sized German company. In this study, transformational leadership t0 and gender had a significant impact on transformational leadership t1 , while psychological wellbeing ∆ , social capital ∆ , and age did not. Psychological wellbeing t0 and social capital ∆ had a significant impact on psychological wellbeing t1 , but transformational leadership ∆ , age, and gender did not. Therefore, it is worthwhile for companies to invest in social capital and focus on gender aspects at work. As underlying mechanisms regarding employees’ psychological wellbeing may differ between companies, it is worthwhile for each organization to conduct mental risk assessments to identify “red flags” and implement suitable measures.

1. Introduction

Work has many beneficial aspects, including regular income, social participation, and experiencing a sense of purpose. However, working life can also provoke anxiety and perceived threats such as bullying, pack behavior and rank fights, unpleasant external control (e.g., by computer monitoring and managers), high performance requirements and evaluations, uncontrollable changes, and job insecurity, as well as accident risks and health hazards [ 1 ]. It is already well examined that work factors have an impact on the psychological wellbeing of employees [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]. Nonetheless, mental illnesses are still the second commonest reason for absence of work days [ 5 ]. Particularly against the backdrop of demographic change and the associated shortage of skilled workers, the mental health of employees is crucial from an economic point of view: it is becoming increasingly important for companies to maintain the health of employees and employ workers for as long as possible [ 6 ]. Although this need is acknowledged, many companies—notably small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)—still struggle with investing in employees’ wellbeing (SME) [ 7 ]. This is despite the fact that SMEs are particularly affected by demographic change, due to issues such as missing resources (e.g., for demographic management strategies) [ 8 ]. Regarding limited financial possibilities, it is vital for SMEs to use the available money in the right place. The job demands-resources model (JD-R model) [ 9 ] provides a conceptual framework for positively or negatively associating work aspects with employees’ psychological wellbeing.

1.1. Psychological Wellbeing

“Mental health is a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, to realize their abilities, to learn well and work well, and to contribute to their communities” [ 10 ]. The JD-R model [ 9 ] is widely used by researchers (e.g., [ 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ]) and has helped eliminate some of the limitations of previous theoretical models (e.g., Karasek’s job-demand-control model [ 20 ]) [ 21 ]. The authors of a meta-analytic review based on longitudinal studies concluded that the JD-R model provides a valuable theoretical framework regarding employees’ wellbeing [ 22 ].

According to the model, there are several resources and demands that can influence employees’ psychological wellbeing [ 9 ]. One of them is the social environment, including social relations at work and leadership, such as social capital or social support from colleagues and supervisors (e.g., information provided by supervisor, high quality relationship with supervisor, constructive feedback) [ 2 , 9 ]. The role of managers in shaping cooperation with employees, providing feedback on work and performance, transparently communicating organizational decisions, and creating opportunities for participation are among the crucial elements in a humane organization of work. Leadership style may function either as a resource or a stressor [ 2 ].

1.2. Transformational Leadership

Northouse [ 23 ] defines leadership as “a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal.” Traditional views on leadership effectiveness in the 70s and 80s mainly focused on transactional leadership behavior [ 24 ]. Leaders who follow a transactional leadership style focus on employees’ performance (task completion, compliance) and reward or discipline them in this regard [ 25 ]. In the late 80s, transformational leadership has moved in the focus of science [ 24 ]. Transformational leadership identifies and examines leadership behaviors that strengthen employees’ awareness of the importance and values of task outcomes by articulating a vision for the future, providing a realistic action plan to reach necessary goals, and giving individualized support to employees. In doing so, leaders can influence employees’ values, beliefs and attitudes so that their performance exceeds the minimum requirements according to their employment contracts [ 24 , 26 ]. Transformational leadership remains a widely used concept in work and health research.

Given the requirements of the modern working world, rapid change due to increasing digitization, and unforeseen events (e.g., the SARS-CoV-II pandemic), psychological wellbeing and transformational leadership play a crucial role. Jamal et al. [ 18 ] found that employees’ wellbeing reduced stress in full-time telecommuters, and transformational leadership mitigated employee burnout during organizational change [ 27 ]. Most of the research on transformational leadership and psychological wellbeing is in line with the JD-R model and has concentrated on a leader-centric view that focusses on leadership style impacting employees’ psychological wellbeing. Several studies have revealed associations between transformational leadership and employees’ psychological wellbeing in different settings—for example, in nursing and health-care workers [ 28 , 29 ] or municipal employees [ 30 ]. A meta-analysis revealed strong associations between transformational leadership and positive mental health (e.g., wellbeing) [ 31 ]. In contrast, Eisele’s cross-sectional design [ 32 ] found no significant impact of transformational leadership on employees’ wellbeing and Nielsen [ 33 ] found no direct effect of transformational leadership on psychological wellbeing over time.

In addition to this leader-centric view, the follower-centric view has recently gained attention. The latter does not focus on leadership style influencing employee’s wellbeing but on employees’ mind-set being relevant for the evaluation of leadership behavior/style, which means that employee attitudes play a crucial role in the evaluation and acceptance of leaders, highlighting the relevance of employee characteristics in explaining their reactions [ 30 , 34 , 35 ]. Results of longitudinal studies indicate that employees’ wellbeing predicts transformational leadership [ 30 , 33 ]. However, Perko et al. [ 30 ] assert that transformational leadership and psychological wellbeing can be seen as antecedents for “favourable or unfavourable development” .

1.3. Research Question and Hypotheses

Even though the JD-R model is widely used and recommended, research on the reciprocal relationships between job characteristics and employees’ wellbeing is still needed [ 22 ]. Furthermore, although relevant research exists on the relationship between transformational leadership and psychological wellbeing, longitudinal studies on this topic are still rare and clarification is needed on how employees’ improving or declining wellbeing impacts on the perceived transformational leadership [ 30 , 36 , 37 ]. Research on this topic is also crucial for practitioners: in the case of a reciprocal relationship, organizations should focus on how leaders affect the psychological wellbeing of their employees while taking into account that employees’ psychological wellbeing might explain the positive or negative leadership feedback of employees [ 30 ].

Therefore, this study focuses on longitudinal data from two employee surveys in 2015 (t0) and 2018 (t1) in a medium-sized German company and examines the relationship between perceived transformational leadership and employees’ psychological wellbeing (see Figure 1 ). Considering the existing research and its partly contradictory results and based on the assumption of Perko et al. [ 30 ], the impact of declining or improving employees’ psychological wellbeing on transformational leadership and the impact of declining or improving perceived transformational leadership on employees’ psychological wellbeing is examined. Following the leader-centric view, we assume the following:

Conceptual model.

The difference in perceived transformational leadership over time significantly impacts psychological wellbeing at t1.

Furthermore, following the follower-centric view, we assume that:

The difference in psychological wellbeing over time significantly impacts the leadership score at t1.

2. Materials and Methods

This study builds on longitudinal data from an employee survey in a medium-sized German company in the lighting industry. Two surveys were conducted in 2015 and 2018 using paper-based questionnaires in 2015 and a web-based survey tool (LimeSurvey) in 2018. The surveys were aimed at all employees. In Germany, employers are subject to the Occupational Health and Safety Act and are obliged to identify and prevent or mitigate possible risks to the mental health of their employees [ 38 ]. The employee surveys were supported by the company, as such surveys comply with German employer obligations regarding mental risk assessment. Survey results in 2015 were used to reveal “red flags” in order to subsequently address them, for example via external support.

2.1. Study Design and Participants

All company employees (2015: N = 582; 2018: N = 537) were invited to participate in the surveys (total sample). Both surveys were supported by the company’s Human Resource Management by announcing the employee survey in the different departments and encouraging participation. In 2015, the employees received a paper-based questionnaire from their direct supervisors. Sealed collection boxes were available in the office to enable employees to anonymously return their questionnaires (sealed in an envelope). Employees who could not return the questionnaire personally due to illness or vacation received it by mail. An enclosed prepaid envelope could be sent directly to the evaluating institute (also anonymous). In 2018, the survey was conducted using a web-based survey tool. To ensure the survey was limited to company employees and that each person could only complete it once, all employees received from their direct supervisor an access key in a sealed envelope from the evaluating institute. This access key was known to the recipient alone. For employees with no access to a PC, rooms with PCs were provided. The survey took half an hour to complete, and employees were allowed to complete it during working hours. Study information was provided directly with the paper-based questionnaire in 2015, and participants had to confirm receipt of study information before being able to participate in the online survey in 2018 (via a PDF link).

Both surveys were available in German, and study participation was voluntary. Data were collected and analyzed anonymously. All participants provided consent and agreed with data analyses and scientific publications by the University of Cologne in anonymized form. The study was presented to and approved by the Ethics committee of the University of Cologne, Medical Faculty (application No. 20-1075).

Of the 582 employees in 2015, 408 answered and returned the questionnaire (response rate 70.1%). Of the 537 employees in 2018, 430 participated in the online survey (response rate 80.1%). To match individuals’ data over time, employees could voluntarily generate a personal code within the questionnaire (based on personal information such as “What is the first letter of your mother’s first name?”). With the help of personal codes in both surveys, we were able to link the data of 127 employees from 2015 (response rate 21.8%) to 2018 (response rate 23.6%) (see Figure 2 ). To include as many cases as possible in the analyses, missing values for all items were imputed (mean value of time series). The characteristics of the study sample are shown in Table 1 .

Flowchart of study sample.

Descriptions of study sample.

Notes: M = mean value; SD = standard deviation.

2.2. Measures

To measure the psychological wellbeing of employees, we used the German version of the WHO (Five) Well-Being Index (WHO-5) questionnaire developed by the World Health Organization [ 39 ], which is the most widely accepted tool for measuring subjective psychological wellbeing. The WHO-5 comprises five questions focusing on individuals’ last two weeks—for example “Over the last two weeks I have felt cheerful and in good spirits.” All items were answered using a six-point scale from 0 (never) to 5 (the whole time). A raw value of 0 indicates the worst possible wellbeing, and 25 indicates the best possible wellbeing. Values below 13 can be seen as an indicator to test for depression [ 40 ]. Items were used in their original form. Cronbach’s Alpha was 0.854 in 2015 and 0.872 in 2018.

Transformational leadership was measured by six items following Podsakoff et al.—for example “Always gives me positive feedback when I perform well” [ 24 , 26 ]. In this study, all six items were in German and could be answered on a five-point Likert scale from 1 (never) to 5 (always). Cronbach’s Alpha in this study was 0.785 in 2015 and 0.753 in 2018.

As a confounding variable we referred to the validated SOCAPO-E instrument ( social capital ), which was aimed initially at employees in healthcare organizations [ 41 ]. It comprises six items based on Bauman’s concept of community [ 42 ] (including mutual understanding, warm circle, trust, sense of being a team, mutual help, and shared values)—for example “In our hospital, there is unity and agreement” [ 41 ]. In this study, “In our hospital” was replaced by “In our company.” All items could be answered on a four-point scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree). In healthcare settings, the SOCAPO-E was associated with such factors as job satisfaction and burnout [ 41 ]. Cronbach’s Alpha was 0.867 in 2015 and 0.876 in 2018. Furthermore, age and gender were considered as confounding variables.

2.3. Data Analysis

We conducted paired t -tests to test for changes in transformational leadership, psychological wellbeing, and social capital over time. Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to test whether (H1) differences (∆) in psychological wellbeing over time significantly impacted perceived transformational leadership at t1 and whether (H2) differences over time in perceived transformational leadership significantly impacted psychological wellbeing at t1.

In model I, we focused on transformational leadership t1 as the dependent variable and psychological wellbeing ∆ as the independent variable. As confounding variables, we considered transformational leadership t0 , social capital ∆ , age, and gender.

In model II, we used psychological wellbeing t1t as the dependent variable and transformational leadership ∆ as the independent variable. As confounding variables, we considered psychological wellbeing t0 , social capital ∆ , age, and gender.

Before multiple linear regression analyses were conducted, we checked for multi-collinearity. Missing values were imputed by mean of each item, ranging from 1 to 7 imputations per item. All analyses were conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics 23.

Of the study population, 65.4% were male and 33.1% were female, with 35.5% under and 62.2% 40 years and older (see Table 1 ). Social capital increased over time with t(126) = −3.985, p < 0.001. No significant decrease or increase was found for psychological wellbeing (t(126) = −0.546, p > 0.05) and perceived transformational leadership (t(126) = 1.343, p > 0.05). According to the cut-off score of 13 [ 40 ], employees showed inconspicuous average values in their psychological wellbeing in 2015 (14.85) and 2018 (15.09).

Before conducting multiple linear regression analyses, we checked for multi-collinearity. The results showed no multi-collinearity of variables (see Table 2 and Table 3 ).

Correlations between variables, model I.

Notes: Pearson correlation r and α values (in the diagonal) are shown; ** p < 0.01; *** p < 0.001; Age was considered as bivariate variable.

Correlations between variables, model II.

Notes: Pearson correlation r and α values (in the diagonal) are shown; * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01; *** p < 0.001; Age was considered as bivariate variable.

Model I showed significant results for the determinant factors transformational leadership t0 (β = 0.548, p < 0.001) and gender (β = −0.283, p < 0.01). Psychological wellbeing ∆ (β = 0.005, p > 0.05), social capital ∆ (β = 0.134, p > 0.05), and age (β = 0.022, p > 0.05) had no significant impact on the perceived transformational leadership t1 (see Table 4 ).

Multiple linear regression analysis, model I.

Notes: SE = standard error; ** p < 0.01; *** p < 0.001. 1 dependent variable: leadership t1 . 2 Age was, due to small group sizes, considered as bivariate variables (age group 1 = 16 to 39 years, group 2 = 40 to ≥ 50 years).

In model II, significant results were revealed for the determinant factors psychological wellbeing t0 (β = 0.547, p < 0.001) and social capital ∆ (β = 2.739, p < 0.01). Transformational leadership ∆ (β = −0.119, p > 0.05), age (β = −0.761, p > 0.05) and gender (β = 1.074, p > 0.05) had no significant impact on psychological wellbeing t1 (see Table 5 ).

Multiple linear regression analysis, model II.

Notes: SE = standard error; ** p < 0.01. *** p < 0.001. 1 dependent variable: psychological wellbeing t1 . 2 Age was, due to small group sizes, considered as bivariate variables (age group 1 = 16 to 39 years, group 2 = 40 to ≥ 50 years).

4. Discussion

In this study, changes in psychological wellbeing over time had no significant impact on perceived transformational leadership. Furthermore, changes in perceived transformational leadership over time had no significant impact on employees’ psychological wellbeing. Hence, we found no evidence to support the follower- or the leader-centric view and cannot support Hypotheses 1 and 2. However, the results are congruent with Nielsen [ 33 ], who found no direct impact of transformational leadership on psychological wellbeing, over time. Moreover, Eisele [ 32 ] found no predictive power for transformational leadership on employees’ wellbeing but found it for devious leadership. Regarding leadership behavior, it might be the case that devious, rather than transformational leadership, had a significant impact on employees’ psychological wellbeing in this longitudinal study.

Regarding psychological wellbeing, the study results indicate that perceived transformational leadership is not a significant factor, but the social climate in the company as a whole might play a more crucial role. This finding aligns with previous studies that found predictive validity of social capital (SOCAPO-E) on burnout and wellbeing [ 41 ]. Furthermore, this result supports the underlying assumptions of the JD-R model on the relationship between job characteristics and employees’ wellbeing.

Male employees in this study perceived better transformational leadership than female employees did. Previous studies found that the effectiveness of transformational leadership depends on the gender dyad of employee and supervisor, that male employees are more likely to be influenced by transformational leadership [ 43 ], and that male supervisors are more likely to be reported with higher levels of perceived transformational leadership [ 44 ]. In this study, we could not trace directly whether employees rate male or female supervisors, but most of the supervisors in the study company were men (>86%). It might be the case that men in this study were more likely to be influenced by transformational leadership and therefore perceived higher transformational leadership than their female colleagues. The fact that gender influenced transformational leadership in this study might slightly support the follower-centric view [ 30 ], as individual characteristics of employees were found to be relevant for perceived transformational leadership. However, it might not be gender itself that was relevant in this case, but underlying gender mechanisms. For example, referring to former studies, women might perceive a double burden of employment and household chores [ 45 ] and might also be confronted more frequently with lower rewards and fewer advancement opportunities as a result of the use of family-friendly policies (e.g., parental leave or part-time work) [ 46 ]. There is evidence that extended parental leave negatively impacts career and salary. Some managers might believe that employees using family-friendly policies—that are more often women—are less committed to the organization, have low career ambitions and perceive unfairness due to more work for supervisors and colleagues. Long parental leave can have negative effects on the future career and salary [ 47 , 48 , 49 ]. These aspects might result in different perceived transformational leadership in male and female workers.

It should be noted that both surveys were conducted before the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2. Regarding home-office work due to the pandemic, employees are now confronted with a new and challenging work environment (e.g., telecommunication) [ 18 , 19 ]. Furthermore, employees experienced challenges regarding organizational and leadership culture, including the negative image of home-office work, lack of trust on the part of managers and colleagues, and a high “presence culture” (the focus is less on the results achieved by employees, but more on workplace presence being seen as a sign of engagement) [ 50 ]. These factors could not be addressed in this study. The impact of home-office work on the relationship between transformational leadership and employees’ psychological wellbeing needs to be addressed in future research.

Nonetheless, the study results and the partly contradictory current state of research highlight the necessity of mental risk assessments in each company as underlying mechanisms regarding the psychological wellbeing of employees may differ between companies. Evidence-based mental risk assessments in the form of employee surveys are an appropriate tool for identifying individual risk factors for the psychological wellbeing of employees and should consider as many possible stressors and resources as possible. Based on the survey results, those responsible have indications for further procedures, e.g., implementing measures in cooperation with the employees to enhance the situation. Close cooperation with employees is essential for uncovering underlying mechanisms and implementing relevant company or departmental measures [ 51 ]. Rural-urban aspects should be considered when implementing workplace health promotion measures [ 52 ]. Furthermore, developments over time should be tracked and analyzed regularly.

Strenghts and Limitations

In this study, we analyzed data from 127 employees. Therefore, the sample size was above the required number of 109 cases for conducting regression analyses with five independent variables, according to Green [ 53 ]. However, results on the relationship between transformational leadership and psychological wellbeing over time might require more cases or greater differences over time to reveal significant results.

The three-year gap between the surveys is relatively long, and due to linkage at the individual level, data for many employees were not included in this study. However, this was the only way of examining panel rather than trend data. In doing so, we were able to ensure that development over the three years was not related to different study samples (e.g., due to staff or employee changes) but to factors at the individual level. Nonetheless, staff changes might be relevant for changes over time (e.g., in social capital), affecting employees on an individual level. Furthermore, leadership-level staff changes might also be relevant for differences in employees’ perceived transformational leadership over time. In this study, most of the leadership positions were unchanged over time.

Limitations arising from social desirability and common method bias might have biased the study results. To address this possibility, employees were informed about the aim and the anonymity of the survey. Furthermore, the three-year gap might be beneficial in this case, as participants were unlikely to have remembered the answers, they gave three years earlier.

Furthermore, it is noteworthy that the perceived transformational leadership in this study sample was relatively high at both survey dates and that selection bias (e.g., through the healthy worker survivor effect [ 54 ]) cannot be totally excluded. The generalizability of the study results remains limited, as the study population was restricted to employees of a medium-sized German company in the lighting industry.

5. Conclusions

Even though we found no evidence of the impact of transformational leadership on psychological wellbeing over time, other studies have found associations between leadership style and the psychological wellbeing of employees. Therefore, companies should provide leaders with organizational resources (e.g., time for leadership tasks or training) to ensure good leadership behavior. Especially in the time of SARS-CoV-2 and the consequent rise in home-office work, employees perceived leadership behavior (e.g., lack of trust in employees) as challenging.

However, in this study sample, social capital and gender played a more crucial role in the psychological wellbeing of employees. The results highlight that it can be worthwhile for companies to invest in social capital and focus on gender aspects at work. As underlying mechanisms regarding the psychological wellbeing of employees may differ between companies, each organization should conduct mental risk assessments to identify “red flags” and implement suitable measures. Data should be tracked and analyzed over time.

Further longitudinal research on the relationship between psychological wellbeing and transformational leadership is needed and should focus on more confounding variables, always including social capital, gender, and SARS-CoV-2 factors.

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank all the employees who kindly agreed to participate in the survey. Also, we are grateful to the company’s human resources management, that supported the study and encouraged the employees to participate in the survey.

Funding Statement

The overall project from which the dataset was derived was financed as mental risk assessment measure by a German medium-sized company. For data protection reasons, the funder wishes to remain anonymous. The company was not involved in and did not finance any work that has been done to carry out the analyses and write the manuscript. For the purpose of this manuscript, none of the authors received any other specific funding. The research group of L.L. and K.-E.C. is funded by the German pension insurance Berlin-Brandenburg (Deutsche Rentenversicherung Berlin-Brandenburg) that was not involved in the study.

Author Contributions

The manuscript was written and visualized by L.L. and reviewed and edited by S.Z., K.-E.C. and H.P. The data were analyzed with IBM SPSS Statistics 26 and interpreted by L.L. under the guided supervision of H.P., S.Z. and K.-E.C. All authors contributed to the study design and conception. H.P. was responsible for funding acquisition. H.P. and L.L. were responsible for project administration. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Institutional Review Board Statement

The study was approved by the University of Cologne’s Faculty of Medicine’s Ethics Commission (project identification code: 20-1075, date of approval 24 April 2020).

Informed Consent Statement

Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in this study.

Data Availability Statement

Conflicts of interest.

The authors declare that this study is based on data of a mental risk assessment that was financed by the company itself. For data protection reasons, the company wishes to remain anonymous. The company’s human resource management was involved in questionnaire development. The company was not involved in data collection, analysis, interpretation of data, the writing of this article or the decision to submit it for publication.

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Transformational leadership, initiating structure, and substitutes for leadership: a longitudinal study of research and development project team performance

Affiliation.

• 1 Department of Management, C. T. Bauer College of Business, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204-6021, USA. [email protected]
• PMID: 16435950
• DOI: 10.1037/0021-9010.91.1.202

Transformational leadership, initiating structure, and selected substitutes for leadership were studied as longitudinal predictors of performance in 118 research and development (R&D) project teams from 5 firms. As hypothesized, transformational leadership predicted 1-year-later technical quality, schedule performance, and cost performance and 5-year-later profitability and speed to market. Initiating structure predicted all the performance measures. The substitutes of subordinate ability and an intrinsically satisfying task each predicted technical quality and profitability, and ability predicted speed to market. Moderator effects for type of R&D work were hypothesized and found whereby transformational leadership was a stronger predictor of technical quality in research projects, whereas initiating structure was a stronger predictor of technical quality in development projects. Implications for leadership theory and research are discussed.

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The Most Successful Approaches to Leading Organizational Change

• Deborah Rowland,
• Michael Thorley,
• Nicole Brauckmann

A closer look at four distinct ways to drive transformation.

When tasked with implementing large-scale organizational change, leaders often give too much attention to the what of change — such as a new organization strategy, operating model or acquisition integration — not the how — the particular way they will approach such changes. Such inattention to the how comes with the major risk that old routines will be used to get to new places. Any unquestioned, “default” approach to change may lead to a lot of busy action, but not genuine system transformation. Through their practice and research, the authors have identified the optimal ways to conceive, design, and implement successful organizational change.

Management of long-term, complex, large-scale change has a reputation of not delivering the anticipated benefits. A primary reason for this is that leaders generally fail to consider how to approach change in a way that matches their intent.

• Deborah Rowland is the co-author of  Sustaining Change: Leadership That Works , Still Moving: How to Lead Mindful Change , and the Still Moving Field Guide: Change Vitality at Your Fingertips . She has personally led change at Shell, Gucci Group, BBC Worldwide, and PepsiCo and pioneered original research in the field, accepted as a paper at the 2016 Academy of Management and the 2019 European Academy of Management. Thinkers50 Radar named as one of the generation of management thinkers changing the world of business in 2017, and she’s on the 2021 HR Most Influential Thinker list. She is Cambridge University 1st Class Archaeology & Anthropology Graduate.
• Michael Thorley is a qualified accountant, psychotherapist, executive psychological coach, and coach supervisor integrating all modalities to create a unique approach. Combining his extensive experience of running P&L accounts and developing approaches that combine “hard”-edged and “softer”-edged management approaches, he works as a non-executive director and advisor to many different organizations across the world that wish to generate a new perspective on change.
• Nicole Brauckmann focuses on helping organizations and individuals create the conditions for successful emergent change to unfold. As an executive and consultant, she has worked to deliver large-scale complex change across different industries, including energy, engineering, financial services, media, and not-for profit. She holds a PhD at Faculty of Philosophy, Westfaelische Wilhelms University Muenster and spent several years on academic research and teaching at University of San Diego Business School.

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Beekeeping breakthroughs: Purdue research strengthens bee colonies for top pollination performance

• Story by Devyn Raver
• June 26, 2024

A mid National Pollinators Month, beekeepers are focusing their efforts on enhancing their bee colonies’ resilience, particularly in preparation for the harsh winter months ahead. Krispn Given , senior apicultural specialist and honeybee breeder in Purdue’s entomology department , is leading research to boost honeybees’ behavioral resistance to the varroa destructor. Originating from Apis cerana (Asian honeybees), varroa destructor are parasitic mites that pose a severe threat by feeding on honeybees’ blood and fat, quickly compromising the immune system. While feeding on the pupae (the inactive, immature form of bees) and adult bees, the mites introduce viruses like deformed wing virus into the bees’ blood, which can cause colony mortality.

Last year, Given treated about 18% of Purdue’s colonies for mites. “If you don’t treat them, colonies could die or, in the worst-case scenario, spread the mites horizontally to neighboring healthy colonies within the breeding population,” he explained. Despite successful breeding efforts at Purdue that mitigate mites, treatments are sometimes necessary.

Beekeepers rely on miticides, such as thymol-based products and oxalic acid, to effectively eliminate approximately 90% of mites. However, since bees tend to dislike these products due to rapid volatilization and unpleasant odors in warm weather, breeding honeybees with natural mite-biting behaviors offers a more promising solution.

“In 1997 we started a hierarchical breeding program at Purdue where for the first 10 years we looked at colonies that grew the fewest mites, successfully survived the winter, and had relatively good honey reserves and general disease resistance,” Given explained. “During this period, I noticed some mites were missing legs, indicating that some bees were responding to the population of mites by chewing off the legs and occasionally inflicting damage to the shield of the mites (idiosoma) – a form of social immunity. We call this new strain of honeybees the Indiana Mite-biters.”

Given’s research prompted active reduction of the mite population. By 2007, The Purdue Bee Lab found that approximately 4% of mite population was damaged due to mite-biting behavior. Through controlled breeding efforts using instrumental insemination, Given reported that by 2015, 50% of the mite population was showing damage from increased mite biting.

“Right now, it’s plateaued around 50%, which is still fantastic. Honeybees are fighting back, and the colonies are overall healthier because they have fewer mites.” - Krispn Given

To meet the demand for local survivor stock–honeybees that have survived winter with varroa destructor without chemical treatments–Purdue collaborates with Midwest beekeepers. This partnership integrates locally adapted stocks into the breeding program, ensuring bees thrive in northern climates. One approach involves testing queens from local beekeepers in a controlled yard before incorporating them into Purdue’s breeding program, safeguarding against undesirable traits and preventing long-term detrimental effects.

“Our goal is to have a gentle bee that reduces the mite population, adapts to winters well and produces a surplus honey crop,” Given emphasized.

His future research will focus on continued selection for behavioral resistance to the varroa mite to improve honeybee health. “Bee breeding is a road with no ending. You must constantly select for the desired traits of interest, otherwise they can be lost within a few generations,” Given noted.

Given also offers advanced courses: one in queen rearing, focusing on creating multiple queens quickly and efficiently, and another in instrumental insemination, facilitating precise matings.

For those interested in supporting the honeybee population during pollination season, Given advocates planting bee-friendly flowers like clovers, plantains, basswoods, and black locusts.

Honeybees are the supreme pollinators of crops. What makes them number one is the sheer numbers and they are also flower constant, meaning they will only go to one plant type and not cross them. A lot of our colored fruits and vegetables are influenced by honeybees–apples, pears, oranges, many things that we like–so imagine a world without honeybees.” - Krispn Given

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