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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Wee Chan Au
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
PurposeNot much is known about the conditions under which the negative relationship between co-worker undermining and employee outcomes may wax or wane. This study seeks to address this issue by analysing the role of leadership in mitigating the negative impact of co-worker undermining on employee outcomes. Drawing on expectancy violation theory (EVT), the study proposes that servant leadership will alleviate the association between co-worker undermining, emotional exhaustion and consequently organisational commitment.Design/methodology/approachTwo-wave time-lagged data were collected from a sample of 345 nurses working under 33 supervisors in a large public hospital in Malaysia. To account for the nested nature of the data, generalised multilevel structural equation modeling (GSEM) in STATA was used to test the hypotheses.FindingsAfter controlling for transformational leadership, co-worker undermining was indirectly related to organisational commitment via emotional exhaustion, and this indirect relationship was weaker when servant leadership was high.Practical implicationsOrganisations need to invest in interventions that help reduce co-worker undermining and put emphasis on promoting servant leadership.Originality/valueThe study extends the literature by introducing EVT as a new theoretical lens to analyse the consequences of co-worker undermining on employee outcomes. The study also addresses calls for research on the role of leadership in ameliorating the negative consequences of co-worker undermining.
Author(s): Mostafa AMS, Yunus S, Au WC, Cai Z
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Journal of Managerial Psychology
Year: 2023
Volume: 38
Issue: 3
Pages: 194-209
Print publication date: 15/05/2023
Online publication date: 08/05/2023
Acceptance date: 11/04/2023
Date deposited: 09/05/2023
ISSN (print): 0268-3946
ISSN (electronic): 1758-7778
Publisher: Emerald
URL: https://doi.org/10.1108/JMP-07-2022-0351
DOI: 10.1108/JMP-07-2022-0351
ePrints DOI: 10.57711/dhkz-5w63
