Effects of empowering leadership under boundary conditions in the hospitality industry

Abstract

This study tests the positive effects of empowering leadership (ELSH) under boundary conditions in the hospitality industry. We propose the existence of an interactive process through which ELSH behaviors interact with employees’ personality type to condition their engagement, which in turn influences their extra-role service behavior. We use data from 294 employees and structural equation modeling. The results show that the interaction of ELSH with employees’ independent and interdependent personality is negatively related to their engagement. This decrease in engagement is then reflected in decreased extra-role service behaviors due to the positive relationship between engagement and extra-role service. These findings suggest that self-construal is a significant boundary condition capable of changing the positive relationship between ELSH and engagement to a negative one. Not considering this relationship when establishing a leadership strategy such as ELSH in the hospitality context could render efforts to achieve the goal of high-quality service ineffective.