Abstract
Subordinates’ trust is critical for a supervisor’s exercise of leadership to effectively influence subordinates’ work outcomes. However, the optimal approach for facilitating trust is still under debate, between instrumentality-based and motivation-based perspectives. On the basis of self-determination theory (SDT), the current study explored the direct effects of paternalistic leadership on trust in supervisors (TS) and the mediating role of the satisfaction of subordinates’ basic psychological needs. In a survey of 1,076 teachers in China, we found that paternalistic leadership affected trust directly, and that subordinates’ need for competence, autonomy, and relatedness also mediated the leadership–trust relationship to different degrees. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.
Highlights
Trust has been increasingly viewed as a central factor determining the effectiveness and efficiency of leadership and organizational management over the last several decades (van der Werff et al, 2019; Legood et al, 2021)
We tested how paternalistic leadership, a traditional leadership style that is often employed in East Asian countries, can promote subordinates’ trust in supervisors (TS) directly, and we explored the role that subordinates’ needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness play in the process
In order to test the discriminant validity of our measures, the goodness-of-fit of models ranging from seven-factor to singlefactor was examined
Summary
Trust has been increasingly viewed as a central factor determining the effectiveness and efficiency of leadership and organizational management over the last several decades (van der Werff et al, 2019; Legood et al, 2021). Determining how supervisors can promote subordinates’ sense of trust is considered increasingly critical in organizations (van der Werff et al, 2019). Trust is viewed as a person’s willingness to be vulnerable to the actions of another party based on the expectations of the other party (Mayer et al, 1995). Drawing from an economic perspective, the other approach attaches more importance to the role of expectations and considers trust as a choice behavior based on rationality and efficiency. Research studies that combine both approaches have suggested that trust may develop over time from being
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