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Self-esteem and transformational leadership

Kurt Matzler*, Florian Andreas Bauer, Todd A. Mooradian

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticle (Academic Journal)peer-review

    36 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether transformational leadership behavior is a function of the leader’s own self-respect and his/her evaluation of being capable, significant, and worthy (self-esteem). It is also tested whether transformational leadership is related to innovation success. Design/methodology/approach - Data were collected from 411 entrepreneurs and managing directors of small- and medium-sized Austrian companies. The proposed hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling (PLS). Findings - A strong and significant relationship between self-esteem and transformational leadership was found. Furthermore, data analyses revealed that transformational leadership has a positive impact on innovation success. Originality/value - This study reveals the important but heretofore neglected role of self-esteem, defined as a manager’s overall self-evaluation of his/her competences, as an important predictor of transformational leadership.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)815-831
    Number of pages17
    JournalJournal of Managerial Psychology
    Volume30
    Issue number7
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 14 Sept 2015

    Bibliographical note

    Publisher Copyright:
    © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

    Keywords

    • Leadership
    • Personality
    • Self-esteem

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