Digital Leadership as a Resource to Enhance Managers’ Psychological Well-Being in COVID-19 Pandemic Situation in Indonesia

Abstract

Research Aims: The digitalization of work forced by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has led to excessive job demands that might reduce psychological well-being. Hence, this study aims to explore the relationship between digital leadership and psychological well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic situation. Design/Methodology/Approach: A total of 1,899 managers participated in this study. A logistic regression analysis was performed to test for associations between well-being and digital leadership skills. Research Findings: The results show that as a unidimensional variable, digital leadership is a strong predictor of psychological well-being. However, as a multidimensional variable, the digital leadership – skill dimension has significant and positive effects on psychological well-being, whereas the digital leadership – attitude, competences, and behavior dimension does not have a significant effect on psychological well-being. Theoretical Contribution/Originality: As a multidimensional variable, digital leadership has a partial effect in determining psychological well-being. Managerial Implication in the Southeast Asian context: Improving digital leadership does not guarantee that psychological well-being will improve. However, specifically improving the digital leadership – skill dimension will considerably influence the likelihood of having high psychological well-being. Research Limitation & Implications: The slightly low, but still acceptable, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient on the digital leadership – attitudes, competences, and behavior dimension scale may improve on adding more items. Since t he study participants were from one organization and one country, future studies could include several organizations and countries to enrich the findings .