Role of team transformational leadership and workplace spirituality in facilitating team viability: an optimal distinctiveness of identities’ theory-based perspective

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the moderating role of workplace spirituality (WS) in the relationship between team transformational leadership (TTL) and team viability (TV) under the theoretical lens of the theory of optimal distinctiveness of identities.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopted quantitative, cross-sectional research design at the team level of analysis among 141 software development project teams that belonged to 22 information technology (IT) organizations in the Indian IT sector to evaluate the effect of TTL behavior on TV under the conditional presence of WS.

Findings

This research has found empirical evidence to show that TTL is positively associated with TV or the team members’ desire to be a part of future performance episodes of their team. However, this research has shown that the relative effect of WS on the relationship between TTL and TV is weaker in those teams that experience higher levels of WS than those teams that experience lower levels of WS.

Originality/value

This research’s originality exists in its team-level conceptualization of WS, a gap in prior research addressed by this paper, in order to evaluate the interactive effects of team-level conceptualizations of transformational leadership and WS on TV. Further, this paper’s originality stems from the explanation of TV as the result of desirable balance between team members’ needs for within-team inclusion and within-team differentiation.

Citation

K.P., N.P., Rodrigus L.R., L., K.P.V., R.K. and Pai, Y.P. (2019), "Role of team transformational leadership and workplace spirituality in facilitating team viability: an optimal distinctiveness of identities’ theory-based perspective", Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 51 No. 2, pp. 64-84. https://doi.org/10.1108/ICT-07-2018-0062