Distributed leadership in organizations: an investigation of antecedent conditions

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate antecedent conditions that lead to the development of distributed leadership (DL). The authors examine how the emergence of DL is affected by empowerment and internal context, which consists of shared purpose, social support and voice. The moderating effects of training are also investigated.

Design/methodology/approach

To test the hypotheses, this empirical analysis of the relationship between the variables was based on the results of a questionnaire survey on 62 teams in high-tech enterprises of mainland China.

Findings

Results indicate that empowerment and internal context in the team significantly predict the extent of DL and that training has positive moderating effects on the relationships.

Practical implications

The results imply that firms must carefully analyze specific team conditions to ensure shared purpose, social support and voice in each team. This study also suggests the importance of empowerment. Moreover, enterprises can use training, a human resource tool, to enhance the positive effects of internal context and empowerment on DL.

Originality/value

By building on upper echelons theory and integrating insights from contingency theory, this study extends prior research by examining the direct effects of both empowerment managerial system and internal context on DL and the moderating effect of training.

Citation

Fu, L. and Liu, Z. (2018), "Distributed leadership in organizations: an investigation of antecedent conditions", Chinese Management Studies, Vol. 12 No. 4, pp. 682-700. https://doi.org/10.1108/CMS-10-2017-0312