Do humble leaders build more flexible teams?

Authors
  • Fangmei Lu

    School of Business, Nanjing University

  • Zhi Li

    School of Business, Nanjing University

Keywords:
leader humility, team reflexivity, team flexibility, team adaptation, social information processing theory, humble leader
Abstract

Researchers have suggested that humility is an adaptive strength at the individual level, but the questions of whether, and how, leader humility influences team adaptation are yet to be addressed. In this study we explored the relationship between leader humility and team flexibility. Drawing on social information processing theory, we theorized that humble leaders would promote team flexibility directly and indirectly by fostering team reflexivity. Analysis of survey data collected from 625 employees of a company in China provided empirical evidence for the proposed relationship of leader humility with team reflexivity and team flexibility. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

References
Published
2024-07-03
Section
Articles
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