How supervisor Machiavellianism affects graduate student creativity: a mediated moderation model

Abstract

ABSTRACT Innovation and creativity are essential for graduate education, and supervisors have a substantial responsibility to foster the creative abilities of graduate students. However, empirical studies investigating how supervisor personality affects graduate student creativity are rare. To enhance the ability of higher education institutions to cultivate creativity among graduate students, we examined how supervisor Machiavellianism leads graduate students to perceived objectification, reducing graduate student creative performance based on the Job Demands-Resources model and Job-Demand-Control-Support theory. We proposed personal initiative as the moderator to explore boundary conditions of the relationship between supervisor Machiavellianism and perceived objectification. Results from 326 graduate students across three time points indicated that supervisor Machiavellianism negatively affects graduate students’ creative performance, and graduate students’ perceived objectification fully mediates the relationship. Additionally, graduate student personal initiative moderated this relationship. Graduate students with high personal initiative can mitigate the negative effects of Machiavellian supervisors. Our findings emphasize the significance of considering the individual traits of both supervisors and graduate students in graduate education with valuable theoretical and practical implications discussed.