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1 – 10 of over 2000
Article
Publication date: 9 August 2022

Chi-Sum Wong, Junbang Lan, Kelly Z. Peng and Joyce Iun

Proponents of paternalistic leadership argue that a paternalistic leader is authoritative and at the same time, a benevolent and moral individual, and this style is effective in…

Abstract

Purpose

Proponents of paternalistic leadership argue that a paternalistic leader is authoritative and at the same time, a benevolent and moral individual, and this style is effective in non-Western societies. However, past empirical studies consistently found that authoritarianism related negatively to benevolence, morality and job outcomes. The authors posit that the original proposed style probably did not exist, or at least not being a dominant style, in modern Chinese business organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors collected supervisor–subordinate dyadic data from three independent Chinese sample in Taiwan (N = 305), Hubei (N = 350) and Jiangsu (N = 270) and utilized the latent profile analysis method to test the hypotheses.

Findings

First, authoritarianism ratings are much lower than ratings of benevolence and morality. Second, none of the identified profiles is high on authoritarianism, benevolence and morality at the same time. Third, leadership style with low authoritarianism, but high on benevolence and morality leads to the best employee outcomes.

Originality/value

Conceptually, the authors clarify the typical leadership styles that compose of the independent dimensions proposed by paternalistic leadership researchers. Methodologically, the authors showed that using person-centered latent profile analysis method can examine combinations of various leadership dimensions or constructs to examine a leader as a whole person. Practically, understanding a leadership style that composes of different levels of various leadership constructs may better inform managers and leaders how they could effectively influence subordinates.

Details

Leadership & Organization Development Journal, vol. 43 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7739

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 November 2016

Preeti S. Rawat and Shiji Lyndon

The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of paternalistic leadership of the boss on the trust of the subordinate.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of paternalistic leadership of the boss on the trust of the subordinate.

Design/methodology/approach

The present study adopted survey method to test the hypotheses. Paternalistic leadership style was measured by a 24-item scale developed by Cheng et al. (2004). Trust was measured by a four-item scale by Schoorman and Ballinger (2006). Data were collected from a sample of 253 respondents.

Findings

The results show that in India, paternalistic leadership style leads to subordinate trust. The result further found that though benevolent and moral leadership leads to trust, authoritarian leadership does not lead to formation of trust.

Practical implications

The study has important implications in areas like managing leader–member relations, leadership training and team efficacy.

Originality/value

Leadership researchers in Indian context have largely adopted etic approach which attempts to generalize Western leadership theory to Indian context. However, uncritical adaptation of techniques developed in Western context may not be effective in the Indian cultural environment. The concept of paternalistic leadership was developed in Chinese context, but as India scores high on paternalism, the present study uses the paternalistic leadership style to study its effect on subordinate’s trust on leader.

Details

Journal of Indian Business Research, vol. 8 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1755-4195

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 May 2012

Zeynep Hale Öner

The purpose of this study is to test an adaptation of the servant leadership survey to Turkey for the first time and to explore the relationship between perceptions of servant…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to test an adaptation of the servant leadership survey to Turkey for the first time and to explore the relationship between perceptions of servant leadership and paternalistic leadership styles in the Turkish business context to contribute to the complex process of contextual dynamics of leadership.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from 305 self‐administered surveys completed by white‐collar mid‐level managers in Istanbul, Turkey. These white collar employees conveyed their perceptions about the leadership styles of their immediate supervisors.

Findings

The results revealed that Turkish employees perceived a high correlation between paternalistic and servant leadership styles, demonstrating that leadership practices held by employees are strongly culture‐specific. In particular, all dimensions of servant leadership construct – i.e. altruism, relationship, empowerment and participation – showed a significant positive correlation with the paternalistic leadership construct. Servant leadership attributes as perceived by Turkish employees reflect a higher degree of “people orientation”.

Research limitations/implications

Although this is a cross‐sectional study, its findings have implications for contemporary leadership research and practice, particularly with regard to understanding of leadership in the cultural context.

Practical implications

The study findings may assist human resources practitioners in multinational corporations and in Eastern and Western countries to unravel the confusion and misunderstandings created when different cultures perceive leadership in disparate ways.

Originality/value

This paper is among the first to establish empirically a possible link between servant leadership and paternalistic leadership perception as shown in the understanding of the Turkish employees. Turkish mid‐level managers did not consider servant leadership and paternalistic leadership styles as inconsistent, while the Western populace thinks of them as mutually exclusive. This study is a step in the complex process of theorizing about the contextual dynamics of leadership.

Details

Leadership & Organization Development Journal, vol. 33 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7739

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 February 2019

Tuan Trong Luu and Nikola Djurkovic

Reflecting a behavioral orientation specific to leaders in Confucian-based cultures, paternalistic leadership appears relevant to the Vietnamese business context. Taking…

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Abstract

Purpose

Reflecting a behavioral orientation specific to leaders in Confucian-based cultures, paternalistic leadership appears relevant to the Vietnamese business context. Taking healthcare organizations in Vietnam as a source of data collection, the purpose of this paper is to seek an insight into the relationship between paternalistic leadership and idiosyncratic deals (i-deals) among clinical members.

Design/methodology/approach

The data were harvested from 1,182 clinical employees and 168 direct supervisors from 19 hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Findings

The data analysis revealed that authoritarian leadership behaviors displayed a weak negative link with employees’ i-deals, while the benevolence and morality dimensions of paternalistic leadership exhibited positive relationships with i-deals. The research results also provide evidence for the roles of organizational identification and role breadth self-efficacy (RBSE) in mediating the relationships between paternalistic leadership dimensions and i-deals. The current study also verified the utility of employees’ flexible role identity as an enhancer of both the relationship between organizational identification and i-deals, as well as of the relationship between RBSE and i-deals.

Originality/value

This study extends the leadership literature by unveiling the role of paternalistic leadership in fostering i-deals among clinicians through organizational identification and RBSE as dual mediation paths as well as flexible role identity as a moderator of the relationship between both organizational identification and RBSE and i-deals.

Article
Publication date: 28 February 2019

Bojun Hou, Jin Hong, Kejia Zhu and Yu Zhou

The purpose of this paper is to focus on how the three elements of paternalistic leadership – authoritarianism, benevolence and moral leadership – affect organizational innovation…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to focus on how the three elements of paternalistic leadership – authoritarianism, benevolence and moral leadership – affect organizational innovation – both explorative and exploitative innovation – in Chinese enterprises. It also examines the moderating effect of environmental dynamism on the relationship between paternalistic leadership and organizational innovation.

Design/methodology/approach

Data on 190 superior–subordinate dyads are collected using questionnaire surveys. The supervisors are recruited from the MBA program in a famous university in the city of Hefei, China, who are also asked to distribute subordinate questionnaires to their subordinates. The hierarchical regression analysis is conducted to test the hypotheses by using SPSS 22.0.

Findings

The analysis of 190 superior–subordinate dyads shows that benevolent and authoritarian leadership is positively related to exploratory innovation, while moral leadership has no significant impact on exploratory innovation. The results also reveal that all three elements of paternalistic leadership is, in general, positively correlated with exploitative innovation. Furthermore, environmental dynamism moderates the relationship between paternalistic leadership and innovation. In a dynamic environment, moral leadership has a stronger positive effect on innovation, but only on exploratory innovation; whereas authoritarian leadership exerts more detrimental effects on both exploratory and exploitative innovation.

Originality/value

The current work contributes to understanding the relationship between paternalistic leadership and innovation in the Chinese cultural context by examining the effects of the three elements of paternalistic leadership separately and by showing how these effects can be moderated by environmental dynamism.

Details

European Journal of Innovation Management, vol. 22 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1460-1060

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 July 2020

Sajjad Nazir, Amina Shafi, Muhammad Ali Asadullah, Wang Qun and Sahar Khadim

This study examines the serial mediation mechanism between paternalistic leadership and innovative work behavior through the leader–member exchange (LMX) and employee voice…

2993

Abstract

Purpose

This study examines the serial mediation mechanism between paternalistic leadership and innovative work behavior through the leader–member exchange (LMX) and employee voice behavior. Particularly, this study utilized the social exchange theory to investigate the indirect effect of three distinct dimensions of paternalistic leadership style on innovative work behavior through LMX and employee voice behavior.

Design/methodology/approach

Self-reported questionnaires were used to collect data from 397 employees in Pakistan. Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM).

Findings

The two dimensions of paternalistic leadership were significantly related to LMX. LMX had a significant effect on employee voice behavior that was further related to innovative work behavior. The findings also support the mediating role of LMX between authoritarian and moral leadership and employee voice. Further, LMX and employee voice boosted the indirect relationship between moral leadership and innovative behavior. However, authoritarian leadership demonstrated a significant but negative indirect effect on innovative behavior through LMX and employee voice.

Practical implications

The organizational members need to encourage a high LMX and voice behavior to enhance the positive effects of benevolent and moral leadership styles on innovative employee behaviors. Contrarily, they need to discourage authoritarian leadership if they want to enhance innovative work behavior through LMX and employee voice. Furthermore, when leaders provide a safe environment to employees at the workplace, then they may feel secure to take risks and exhibit innovative work behavior, which ultimately contributes to increasing employee and organizational performance.

Originality/value

This study extended the existing literature on paternalistic leadership in two important ways. First, this study examined a serial mediation mechanism to test the effect of paternalistic leadership on innovative work behavior through LMX and voice behavior. Second, this is a key study to investigate which dimension of paternalistic leadership is effective to boost employees' innovative work behavior at the individual level in the Pakistani organizational context.

Details

European Journal of Innovation Management, vol. 24 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1460-1060

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 September 2023

Gong Yunpeng and Umer Zaman

The traditional Chinese culture has always emphasized the authority of leaders and their “top-down” influence over subordinates tangled with “bottom-up” management. Paternalistic

Abstract

Purpose

The traditional Chinese culture has always emphasized the authority of leaders and their “top-down” influence over subordinates tangled with “bottom-up” management. Paternalistic leadership can both nurture and restrict growth in mega-construction projects, due to the unique consequences (i.e. positive vs negative implications) for project teams. Hence, the present study aimed to explore the impact of paternalistic leadership (PL), team members’ voice (TMV) and team resilience (TR) on the mega-construction project success (MPS) in China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Design/methodology/approach

A surveyed-based sample of project professionals (N = 563) directly linked with the BRI was employed for statistical estimations with partial least squares (PLS) structural equation modeling (SEM).

Findings

Paternalistic leadership styles, including authoritarian leadership (AL), moral leadership (ML) and benevolent leadership (BL), significantly influence the mega-construction project success in BRI. The findings empirically validated that both BL and ML increase the likelihood of mega-construction project success. However, AL could impose a threat through its underlying negative influence. In addition, leaders with benevolence and morality have a positive influence on TMV and TR, while leaders with authoritarianism signal a negative impact. Furthermore, both TMV and TR significantly and positively mediate the relationships between AL-MPS (Model-1), BL-MPS (Model-2) and ML-MPS (Model-3), respectively.

Originality/value

The present study is a groundbreaking endeavor that fills a crucial research gap by investigating mega-construction project success in the BRI through paternalistic leadership, project team members' voice and team resilience in a multi-mediation model. These novel findings offer valuable strategic insights for managing mega-construction projects in countries with paternalistic solid cultural foundations, enabling project managers to navigate cultural nuances and optimize megaproject outcomes.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 30 May 2018

Jeoung Yul Lee, Seung Hoon Jang and Sang Youn Lee

The purpose of this paper is to examine knowledge sharing with external partners within the China context, demonstrating that paternalistic leadership combined with the resulting…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine knowledge sharing with external partners within the China context, demonstrating that paternalistic leadership combined with the resulting reciprocal relations between leaders and employees are accountable for knowledge transfer with external partners based on social exchange.

Design/methodology/approach

This study collected data at two time-points and obtained 391 usable observations for hypothesis testing using questionnaire surveys administered to the managers of major Chinese companies.

Findings

Empirical analysis of employees at major Chinese firms shows that paternalistic leadership may encourage perceived reciprocal support from employees that results in smooth knowledge sharing with outsiders in the form of voluntary helping behaviors.

Originality/value

This study expects that both scholars and practitioners will gain answers on how to best encourage employees into contributing toward relationships with external stakeholders within the China context. One valuable point in this study is demonstrating that Chinese firms’ benevolent leadership promotes human relationships and thereby long-term relationships with alliance partners, while their moral leadership promotes ethical trust between alliance partners. These factors may accordingly further increase knowledge sharing opportunities with external partners.

Article
Publication date: 27 August 2019

Martin Sposato

The purpose of this article is to help employees trained in Western business practice who move to different countries for work and encounter leaders who display paternalistic

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to help employees trained in Western business practice who move to different countries for work and encounter leaders who display paternalistic leadership as their main leadership style. by providing an explanation of paternalistic leadership and practical advice.

Design/methodology/approach

The article is based on a literature review on paternalistic leadership and in qualitative data collected for research on paternalistic leadership practices.

Findings

The article explains the main characteristic of paternalistic leadership and provides the reader with practical advice .

Originality/value

This paper provides the reader with a non-western perspective on leadership and advice for employees on what to expect and what to do when working with a paternalistic leader

Details

Strategy & Leadership, vol. 47 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1087-8572

Article
Publication date: 8 January 2020

Jianfeng Jia, Shunyi Zhou, Long Zhang and Xiaoxiao Jiang

Drawn upon the perspective of implicit voice theory, the purpose of this paper is to explore the underlying mechanism as well as the boundary effect in the relationship between…

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Abstract

Purpose

Drawn upon the perspective of implicit voice theory, the purpose of this paper is to explore the underlying mechanism as well as the boundary effect in the relationship between paternalistic leadership and voice behavior.

Design/methodology/approach

Multiple-wave survey data from a sample of 368 employees in China were used to test the hypothesized moderated mediation model.

Findings

The findings show that both benevolent leadership and moral leadership related positively to voice behavior, whereas authoritative leadership played a negative role in influencing voice behavior. Employees’ implicit voice belief played a partial mediating role between paternalistic leadership and voice behavior. Furthermore, perceived HRM strength weakens both the mediation relationship among benevolent leadership, implicit voice belief and voice behavior, and the mediation relationship among moral leadership, implicit voice belief and voice behavior. However, the moderated mediation effect of implicit voice belief on the relationship between authoritative leadership and voice behavior is not significant.

Practical implications

Leaders are encouraged to behave benevolently and morally whereas to avoid excessive authoritative style at work, so that employees can be encouraged to speak out. Organizations are advised to introduce management practices like training and development sessions and to improve employees’ perceived HRM strength so that the implicit voice belief can be reduced, and the voice behavior can be stimulated.

Originality/value

The research provided a fresh theoretical perspective on the underlying mechanism between paternalistic leadership and employees’ voice behavior by unveiling employee implicit voice belief’s partial mediating role between paternalistic leadership and employee voice behavior. Furthermore, the study contributed to the literature of voice by adopting a more integrative perspective and exploring the role of the implementation of the organization’s system, i.e., perceived HRM strength that provided a boundary condition in the above mediation model.

Details

Employee Relations: The International Journal, vol. 42 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

Keywords

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