Affiliative and aggressive humour in leadership and their relationship to leader–member exchange

Abstract

In this study, we investigate the relationship between affiliative and aggressive humour of the leader and the quality of relationship between leader and follower in terms of leader–member exchange (LMX), assuming identification with the leader to mediate this relationship. We conducted a 2‐wave survey study with a time lag of 6 weeks (N = 152). We found affiliative humour of the leader rated at Time 1 to be positively related to LMX at Time 2, even after controlling for LMX at Time 1, whereas aggressive humour was negatively related to LMX at Time 2. Identification with the leader mediated the relationship between affiliative humour of the leader and LMX but did not mediate the relationship between aggressive humour and LMX. Our results contribute to the understanding of leader behaviours that contribute to a positive professional relationship between leader and follower as well as to the understanding of the relational processes that may explain the effects of humour in leadership.Practitioner points Leader humour may help establish high‐quality relationships between leaders and followers. Leaders could use affiliative humour and should avoid aggressive humour to improve the quality of leader–follower relationships. Affiliative humour may be developed by an established humour training programme focusing on the so‐called humour habits. Aggressive humour could be prevented by establishing organizational non‐aggression norms. Formal humour training for leaders should be used with care to prevent potential downsides such as emotional exhaustion.