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Instrumental leadership and creativity: cognitive mechanisms via problem-solving rumination and knowledge sharing with coworkers

  • Fairleigh Dickinson University

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

Abstract

Purpose: The present research aimed to develop and test cognitive processes through which instrumental leadership leads to creativity via problem-solving rumination and knowledge sharing with coworkers, based on the self-regulatory perspective of goal progress theory. Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected from 166 male construction workers (nested within 19 male leaders) who completed the total of 1,642 daily diary questionnaires. Further, a group-mean centering approach and several control variables were used in order to improve causal inferences of the results. Findings: It was found that instrumental leadership predicts problem-solving rumination (an intrapersonal self-regulatory process) and knowledge sharing with coworkers (an interpersonal self-regulatory process), which, in turn, result in creativity. Originality/value: In addition to motivational processes that explain the relationships between several leadership styles and creativity, the current research found a crucial role of instrumental leadership in predicting creativity.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)543-563
Number of pages21
JournalLeadership and Organization Development Journal
Volume44
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 2023.06.29

Keywords

  • Creativity
  • Instrumental leadership
  • Knowledge sharing
  • Problem-solving rumination
  • Self-regulatory processes

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