Just be yourself. .. but only if you are like us? A social identity theory cross-cultural meta-analysis of authentic leadership

Abstract

We apply social identity theory (SIT) within a culturally endorsed implicit leadership theory (CLT) frame to model how cultural values shape relationships between authentic leadership and follower outcomes. We use meta-analytic methods to test hypotheses with data from 292 studies drawn from over 40 countries, comprised of 100,641 individuals, and including 35 attitudinal, behavioural, and performance outcomes. Meta-analytic regression of cultural values coded at the country level reveals a significant pattern of moderation effects across 42.9% of the correlates we tested, suggesting that authentic leadership theory is culturally embedded. The effects of authentic leadership vary to the extent that it aligns with followers’ sociocultural identities and actively interacts with the processes by which these identities are constructed and maintained. We provide a dynamic view of SIT, where leadership plays a critical role in shaping, reinforcing, or disrupting followers’ social identities.