The Link Between Transformational Leadership and Knowledge Sharing: Mediating Role of Distributive, Procedural and Interactional Justice

Abstract

Drawing on the social exchange theory, this study investigates the influences of transformational leadership (TL) and specific aspects of justice on employee knowledge sharing (KS) behaviours, namely, knowledge collecting (KC) and knowledge donating (KD). Structural equations modelling (SEM) is applied to examine the correlation among the latent factors using data collected from 365 participants at 85 large manufacturing and service firms. The findings indicated that distributive justice (DJ), procedural justice (PJ) and interactional justice (IJ) act as mediating roles in the relationship between TL and KS processes. Specifically, TL and DJ have more significant effects on KD, whereas PJ and IJ have more significant effects on KC. From a practical perspective, the study brings more deep understanding for directors/managers about the effective pathway to improve KC and KD. The findings of this study provide a theoretical basis, which can be used to analyze relationships TL, aspects of justice and KS behaviours. The paper, therefore, significantly extends and refines theories of leadership and social exchange.