Humble Leadership Benefits Employee Job Performance: The Role of Supervisor-Subordinate Guanxi and Perceived Leader Integrity

Although humility is a hallmark of many beloved and respected leaders, yet little is known about the impact of humble leadership on employee job performance. Drawing on social exchange theory and attribution theory, the current study suggests a moderated mediation model to elucidate how and when humble leadership encourages follower job performance. Analyses of multilevel, multisource data from 204 subordinates and 68 supervisors showed that humble leadership and employee job performance via supervisor-subordinate guanxi is moderated by perceived leader integrity, such that the indirect and positive relationship between humble leadership and employee job performance via supervisor-subordinate guanxi would be strengthened when perceived leader integrity is high rather than low. Theoretical and practical implications as well as limitations and future directions are discussed.

Automated summary

This study investigates the relationship between humble leadership and employee job performance, and suggests that this relationship is mediated by the supervisor-subordinate guanxi. It also finds that perceived leader integrity moderates this relationship, with the positive effect of humble leadership on job performance being stronger when perceived leader integrity is high.