A Moderated Mediation Model of Empowering Leadership and Employees’ Innovative Work Behavior

Abstract

This study examined the moderated mediation model of empowering leadership and employees’ innovative work behavior (IWB) by analyzing the mediating role of employees’ psychological empowerment and high-performance work system (HPWS). Using the convenience sampling technique, time-lagged data was collected from 433 software engineers working in different software companies operating in Pakistan. Hierarchical regression analysis and PROCESS macro were used to perform the analysis. The findings revealed that empowering leadership impacts employees’ IWB directly as well as through their psychological empowerment, while HPWS moderates the relationship between empowering leadership and employees’ psychological empowerment. The findings further articulated that the moderated mediation effects of HPWS also arbitrate between empowering leadership and employees’ IWB. The results of this study implied that when employees work in the context of a high HPWS, they reciprocate positively to the support and resources received from their leaders. Similarly, in the context of a high HPWS, empowering leadership greatly enhances employees’ psychological empowerment and creativity. In the context of a low HPWS, employees’ IWB depends upon their leaders’ behavior and also on their own psychological empowerment. Hence, the study analyzed when (contextual boundary conditions) and how (the underlying mechanism) empowering leadership enhances employees’ IWB by utilizing the moderated mediation model.