The paradoxical effect of empowering leadership on innovative work behavior: roles of power distance and work passion in services

Abstract

Purpose – This paper examines the relationship between empowering leadership and subordinates’ innovative work behavior in the service industries. While this leadership style’s influence on innovative work behavior is somewhat known, our research delves deeper into the when and why of thisrelationship. To addressthis gap, we propose a conceptual framework building on social exchange theory. Design/methodology/approach – Using a laboratory study (Study 1)with samples of graduate projectmanagement students and a field study (Study 2; time-lagged and dyadic data) with samples of service managers and their subordinates, thisresearch examines how contextualstimuli, i.e. empowering leadership and power distance, interact to influence their innovative work behavior. Study 1 employed ordinary least squares path analysis for statistical analyses, while Study 2 used covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) to test the hypotheses. Findings – As predicted, we found support for the influence of empowering leadership on innovative work behavior and that work passion, i.e. harmonious passion and obsessive passion, differently mediates this relationship. In both studies, power distance dampens the positive effect of empowering leadership on harmonious passion. Specifically, the otherwise positive relationship between empowering leadership and harmonious passion turns negative under the boundary condition of high power distance. This shows the detrimental effect of power distance (Study 1). And, in Study 2, power distance inhibits this positive relationship, but not to the extent of turning it negative as in Study 1. On the other hand, the findings in Study 1 did not provide evidence for the inhibiting role of power distance in the relationship between empowering leadership and obsessive passion. However, in Study 2, we did find support for the prediction that the interactive effect of empowering leadership and power distance weakens obsessive passion. Practical implications – The current study also provides practical implications for enhancing innovative work behavior in service organizations. For instance, our findings suggest that service managers’ empowering leadership style can simultaneously foster and impede innovative work behavior by activating their harmonious and obsessive passions. In the same vein, high power distance can have a hindering effect on harmonious and obsessive passion. Originality/value – This research identifies the nuances of the relationship between empowering leadership and innovative work behavior by answering the why (the mediating role of both dimensions of work passion) and when (the moderating influence of power distance) of this relationship.