Examining Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Counterproductive Work Behavior: A Moderated Mediated Model

Abstract

Despite various attempts to know the relationship between emotional intelligence (EI) and counterproductive work behavior (CWB), the findings are inconsistent and offer a varying degree of associations. The present study examines the underlying mechanism by hypothesizing impression management (IM) as a mediator to address the element of equivocality in the subject matter. Furthermore, it tests the moderating role of self-esteem (SE) on the impression management to counterproductive work behavior relationship. A representative sample of 398 employees was collected from different organizations of Pakistan. The results confirmed the intervening role of impression management between emotional intelligence and counterproductive work behavior. Furthermore, the employees high on self-esteem showed lesser tendencies to involve in counterproductive work behavior. Theoretical and practical implications have also been discussed.