An Exploration of Co-Workers’ Group Identification as Moderator of the Leadership-Health Link

Martin P Fladerer,Louisa G Kunze,Sonja Kugler

doi:10.1177/10464964211007562

Martin P Fladerer, Louisa G Kunze + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1177/10464964211007562

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Abstract

This study explores the leadership-health link from a social identity perspective. It focuses on leadership behaviors that seek to form a strong shared social identity (i.e., identity leadership) and the contextual influence of co-workers’ group identification. In a sample of 319 members in 77 workgroups, data supports the indirect link of identity leadership and reduced symptoms of burnout via perceived social support. However, contrary to our expectation, high levels of co-workers’ group identification weakened the relationship of identity leadership and perceived social support. The implications of this finding for the understanding of leadership as a group process are discussed.

Highlights

This study explores the leadership-health link from a social identity perspective
Avanzi et al (2015) found a significant and negative relationship of social support and indicators of burnout. Building on this theoretical and empirical work, we suggest that social support negatively relates to symptoms of burnout and mediates the link of identity leadership and burnout
Because we proposed a model of relationships between identity leadership, perceived social support, co-workers’ group identification, and individual burnout symptoms, an analytical approach was chosen to take into account the multilevel data structure

Summary

Introduction

This study explores the leadership-health link from a social identity perspective. It focuses on leadership behaviors that seek to form a strong shared social identity (i.e., identity leadership) and the contextual influence of co-workers’ group identification. SIA-L assumes that the group forms the stage on which leadership interactions unfold (Hogg, 2001; van Knippenberg, 2011) This suggests that group members other than the formal leader may affect organizational members’ health at work (Haslam & Reicher, 2006; Häusser et al, 2020). Reinforce their effects by lending credibility to these through their actions, which are partly driven by their own identification with the group (ChrobotMason et al, 2016; Hogg, 2001)

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