| The concept of innovative work behavior has emerged as an important factor for organizations to achieve competitive advantage and to survive in this dynamic business environment.In the literature,various antecedents and contextual factors were identified to enhance employee innovative work behavior.However,more studies needed to examine the various contextual factors,psychological mechanisms,individual characteristics,and particularly how cultural variables across multiple organizations and contexts affect innovative work behavior.To identify various factors that enhances innovative work behavior this dissertation conducts a series of studies(i.e.,survey and experiment)to examine the contextual factors(e.g.,empowering and autocratic leadership),cultural dimension(e.g.,power distance),job design characteristic(e.g.,job complexity),and psychological mechanism(e.g.,work passion and creative self-efficacy),by developing a complex interplay among these variables.Study 1 has investigated the role of empowering leadership,work passion,and power distance on innovative work behavior.Relying on social exchange theory(Blau,1964),this study hypothesized that empowering leadership has a positive effect on innovative work behavior,and work passion(e.g.,harmonious and obsessive passion)are differentially mediating the relationship between empowering leadership and innovative work behavior.In addition,the current study also hypothesized that power distance would influence the linkages between empowering leadership and work passion.This study examined two independent samples(study 1a,n1=305 and study 1b,n2=172)using a multi-method approach.As predicted,the study found that empowering leadership positively predicted innovative work behavior,while harmonious and obsessive passion differentially mediated the relationship between empowering leadership and innovative work behavior in both studies(1a)and(1b).Further,the results found that power distance mitigated the positive relationship between empowering leadership and harmonious and obsessive passion,such that the positive relationship was weaker for individuals with high power distance in study(1a),whereas study(1b),has found inconsistent results for the moderating effect of power distance between empowering leadership and obsessive passion.In Study 2,the effect of empowering versus autocratic leadership was compared on creative self-efficacy,job complexity,and innovative work behavior,and power distance moderates the hypothesized relationship.Empowering and autocratic leadership are two basic sets of behaviors that leaders execute to influence and motivate employees towards job-related outcomes.Data was collected from a sample of(n=340)individuals working in various organizations enrolled in the part-time Executive Development Program(EDP)from many universities located in different cities such as Beijing,Shanghai,Nanjing,Ningbo,and Hangzhou.Using structural equation model(SEM),the results supported the relationship between empowering leadership and innovative work behavior,however,autocratic leadership was found to have a negative effect on innovative work behavior.The results supported the underlying mechanism of creative self-efficacy and job complexity between empowering leadership and innovative work behavior.Creative self-efficacy and job complexity also mediated the relationship between autocratic leadership and innovative work behavior.Moreover,the results supported that power distance mitigates the positive relationship between empowering leadership and creative self-efficacy and job complexity.However,the moderating effect of power distance between autocratic leadership and creative self-efficacy and job complexity was not significant.The aim of study 3 was to examine that how job complexity affects innovative work behavior.Based on social cognitive and trait activation theory,this study attempts to explore the mediating role of creative self-efficacy and harmonious passion between job complexity and innovative work behavior,and that how empowering leadership activates the relationship between creative self-efficacy and harmonious passion with innovative work behavior.The sample(n=375)was consists of full-time employees working in diverse organizations,and they were employed from the Executive Development Program(EDP)from many universities located in different cities such as Beijing,Shanghai,Nanjing,Ningbo,and Hangzhou.The hypothesized relationship was tested through structural equation model(SEM),the results of the present study supported the relationship between job complexity and innovative work behavior.Similarly,results supported that harmonious passion and creative self-efficacy mediate the relationship between job complexity and innovative work behavior.Moreover,the moderating role of empowering leadership played the role of trait activator between creative self-efficacy and harmonious passion with innovative work behavior.Overall,this study suggests that leadership styles play an important role in individual innovative work behavior,and specifically,cultural variables have a strong influence on work passion.The findings of the study enrich the existing body of literature regarding the antecedents of innovative work behavior and how contextual factors influence employee outcomes.This dissertation also has several practical and theoretical implications.Moreover,several future research directions were recommended for further studies. |
PDF Full Text Request