Examining leaders’ emotional intelligence as a distal antecedent of employee engagement: The role of employee voice and trust in direct leadership

Abstract

ABSTRACT The study investigated leaders’ emotional intelligence (EI) as a distal antecedent of employee engagement, using employee voice and trust in direct leadership as mediating variables. Based on the Affective Event Theory, the study recognized the emotional intelligence of leaders as a proximal antecedent of the work climate (event) which serves to influence employee behavior, such as voice and trust in leadership. The study is a cross-sectional design that utilized data from 250 subordinates and their leaders from organizations in Lagos, Nigeria's banking, manufacturing, and consulting industries. Leaders provided the data for emotional intelligence, while subordinates provided the data for employee engagement, employee voice, and trust in leadership. Structural Equation Modeling showed that leaders’ emotional intelligence affects employee engagement directly, as well as indirectly through employee voice and trust in leadership as hypothesized. The study highlighted the importance of the emotional intelligence of leaders in creating workplace climates that affect individual and organizational productivity. Hence, a significant managerial implication is that organizations should consider the enhancement of leaders’ EI an important aspect of leadership development. Directions for future studies include performing longitudinal studies and exploring the role of emotional intelligence in creating other dimensions of organizational climate.