Linking empowering leadership and career calling: The mediating role of psychological need fulfilment

Abstract

This study investigated whether and how empowering leadership influences employees’ career calling by exploring the mediating role of psychological need fulfilment. Participants comprised a convenience sample of 584 clinical nurses from ten public hospitals in China (female = 85.2%; age range = 23–49; mean years of work experience = 13.8, SD = 6.23). Participants completed measures of empowering leadership, fulfilment of basic psychological needs, and career calling. We performed structural equation modelling and multiple mediation modelling to test the direct and indirect effect of empowering leadership on career calling. As expected, empowering leadership was positively associated with psychological need fulfilment and career calling. Particularly, psychological need fulfilment mediated the relationship between empowering leadership and career calling. Attending to employees’ empowerment needs could enhance their career calling.