Do the Right Thing the Right Way! How Ethical Leaders Increase Employees Creative Performance

This study presents a moderated mediation model of leadership influences by examining the effects of ethical leadership on employee creative performance, using data from 342 employees matched with their supervisors in small and medium organizations in Ghana. The study revealed that creative self-efficacy mediated the positive relationship between ethical leadership and employee creative performance from the SPSS macro-PROCESS analysis. Additionally, job autonomy was identified as a situational moderator in the ethical leadership and employee creative self-efficacy relationship. Thus, the relationship between ethical leadership and employee creative self-efficacy was stronger as the job autonomy level rose. Finally, the theoretical contributions, practical implications as well as limitations, and future research directions were also discussed.

Automated summary

This study presents a moderated mediation model of leadership influences and found that ethical leadership has a positive impact on employee creative performance through the mediation of creative self-efficacy. It was also observed that job autonomy acts as a situational moderator, strengthening the relationship between ethical leadership and employee creative self-efficacy. The study discusses the theoretical contributions, practical implications, limitations, and future research directions.