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Leadership
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The Leadership Quarterly
Training & Development
Leadership
Measuring CEO responsible leadership: Development and validation of a linguistic-based instrument
Abstract
Responsible leadership (RL) has gained growing attention in both academia and organizational practice. However, extant research faces three key limitations: a lack of conceptual clarity (i.e., tautologies and overlaps with other leadership constructs), a conflation of leader behaviors with follower evaluations, and overreliance on surveys, which typically capture supervisory rather than top-executive perspectives. To address these issues, we introduce a novel behavioral measure of responsible…
Responsible leadership (RL) has gained growing attention in both academia and organizational practice. However, extant research faces three key limitations: a lack of conceptual clarity (i.e., tautologies and overlaps with other leadership constructs), a conflation of leader behaviors with follower evaluations, and overreliance on surveys, which typically capture supervisory rather than top-executive perspectives. To address these issues, we introduce a novel behavioral measure of responsible CEOs based on linguistic markers. We leverage computer-aided text analysis (CATA) to develop and validate a keyword-based CEO RL measure, combining deductively derived words with inductively derived words from machine learning (ML) and human raters. We then empirically examine the relationship between CEO RL and firm Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Using a sample of 955 CEOs over 19 years, we find that CEO RL is positively associated with CSR. Finally, we derive a taxonomy of RL behaviors (RLBs) and show overlaps and distinctions with Ethical Leader Signals (ELS). We conclude with a roadmap for future research.
The Leadership Quarterly
Leadership
Using customized, conversational AI agents in leadership and management research: Benefits, practical illustrations, and best practices
The Leadership Quarterly
Leadership
Research Methods
Corpus linguistics for leadership studies: Bridging the quantitative-qualitative divide
Abstract
Our aim in this paper is to add to the methodological toolbox of qualitative research in leadership by illustrating how corpus linguistics (CL) can be used to study large-scale datasets comprised of text or talk. CL differs from other approaches to analysing large-scale textual data, such as topic modeling and sentiment analysis, because it enables detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis of linguistic choices on the level of vocabulary and grammar. CL can be used to study text or talk…
Our aim in this paper is to add to the methodological toolbox of qualitative research in leadership by illustrating how corpus linguistics (CL) can be used to study large-scale datasets comprised of text or talk. CL differs from other approaches to analysing large-scale textual data, such as topic modeling and sentiment analysis, because it enables detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis of linguistic choices on the level of vocabulary and grammar. CL can be used to study text or talk produced by leaders (such as CEO speeches, letters to shareholders, or interviews) or written about leaders (such as newspaper or magazine articles, social media posts, or biographies). Whilst CL methods can be applied using R or Python, here we demonstrate how a user-friendly proprietary software, Sketch Engine, can be used. We illustrate the relative strengths of the method using a corpus of media texts comprising leader profiles published in The Times (UK) newspaper where senior executives (n = 733) answered the question “What does leadership mean to you?”. We conclude by discussing the potential that CL offers for informing future research and theory development, spanning positivist, interpretivist and social constructionist styles of theorizing. We also outline the practical benefits the method offers for improving leadership practice and for people involved in leadership teaching and training by providing robust evidence about concrete and learnable behaviors.
Journal of Vocational Behavior
Diversity & Inclusion
Research Methods
Equalizing networking opportunities: How women can leverage incubators in entrepreneurship
Abstract
Entrepreneurship remains a male-dominated field, with women facing persistent disparities in areas such as representation and innovation. This paper examines whether and how incubators contribute to reducing the gender gap in entrepreneurial innovation. Using a mixed-methods approach—combining large-scale quantitative data with qualitative interviews—we find that women-led ventures benefit more from incubator participation, which helps them close the innovation gap. Women tend to engage with…
Entrepreneurship remains a male-dominated field, with women facing persistent disparities in areas such as representation and innovation. This paper examines whether and how incubators contribute to reducing the gender gap in entrepreneurial innovation. Using a mixed-methods approach—combining large-scale quantitative data with qualitative interviews—we find that women-led ventures benefit more from incubator participation, which helps them close the innovation gap. Women tend to engage with incubators more strategically across three dimensions: strengthening individual resources (e.g., confidence and expertise), building relationships with key stakeholders, and accessing role models and mentors who help them navigate gendered expectations. In contrast, men are more likely to use incubators in a targeted, transactional way, primarily to acquire technical or business knowledge. These findings suggest that incubators can serve as equalizing spaces that offer women critical support to overcome barriers and enhance innovation outcomes.
Journal of Vocational Behavior
Careers
Research Methods
A meta-analytic review of 60 years of role stressor research
Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes
The downside of generosity: How rare giving fosters stronger social connection
Abstract
Giving serves not only to benefit others and society but also to foster social connections between givers and recipients. However, more giving is not necessarily merrier. This research finds that social connection depends not only on the act of giving but also on how many others receive the gesture from the same giver. Rare givers—those who give to fewer recipients—are perceived as more socially connected to each recipient than broad givers—those who give to many (the rare giving effect). This…
Giving serves not only to benefit others and society but also to foster social connections between givers and recipients. However, more giving is not necessarily merrier. This research finds that social connection depends not only on the act of giving but also on how many others receive the gesture from the same giver. Rare givers—those who give to fewer recipients—are perceived as more socially connected to each recipient than broad givers—those who give to many (the rare giving effect). This effect emerges across diverse contexts, including interpersonal gift exchanges in both new and existing relationships and corporate donations. As a result, rare givers enjoy a relational advantage: their gifts are valued more, and they are more likely to receive reciprocation (e.g., a gift in return or purchasing from the firm), even though they are perceived as less generous than broad givers. However, the negative effect of the number of recipients on perceived connection is attenuated when recipients are closely connected (e.g., donations to multiple charities supporting the same cause) or when gifts reinforce connections between recipients (e.g., friends sharing items in a matching set). These findings highlight an overlooked cost of broad generosity, with implications for managing interpersonal relationships and firms’ giving strategies.
Academy of Management Journal
Work Design
Artificial Intelligence and Responsible Research at AMJ
Journal of Vocational Behavior
Careers
Beyond the flow continuum: A person-centered approach to identify unique constellations of flow components
Journal of Organizational Behavior
Teams & Groups
Diversity & Inclusion
Whose Status Is Higher? How and When Dyadic Status Incongruence Influences Team Members' Interactions and Coordination
Abstract
A critical challenge for diverse teams is ensuring that members coordinate their work effectively. While research has examined how diversity triggers social categorization that harms coordination, we know little about how the social status attached to these differences influences coordination, especially when members hold different ranks across multiple attributes simultaneously. We introduce a construct called dyadic status incongruence, which occurs when two team members hold conflicting…
A critical challenge for diverse teams is ensuring that members coordinate their work effectively. While research has examined how diversity triggers social categorization that harms coordination, we know little about how the social status attached to these differences influences coordination, especially when members hold different ranks across multiple attributes simultaneously. We introduce a construct called dyadic status incongruence, which occurs when two team members hold conflicting ranks across different status hierarchies (e.g., one has higher education but shorter organizational tenure than the other). Drawing on status inconsistency theory, we argue that this incongruence generates ambiguity and disagreement over who has higher status, which in turn reduces interpersonal liking and ultimately hinders dyadic coordination. We further propose that team specialization mitigates these adverse effects by clarifying task roles and redirecting members' attention from status‐based comparisons to respective expertise for task execution. We tested our hypotheses using round‐robin data from 743 dyads among 221 members in 57 teams at a technology firm, employing polynomial regression, response surface analysis, and social relations modeling. These results were supplemented by a qualitative study using semi‐structured interviews with 15 employees from this firm to provide contextual evidence for the observed effects. Our findings support the proposed model, advancing a more precise, status‐based account of why coordination breaks down in diverse teams and how these effects can be mitigated.
Journal of Organizational Behavior
Leadership
Careers
How Narcissistic Followers Navigate Leader Relationships: Bonding Efforts, Strategic Support‐Seeking, and Gossip
Abstract
The grandiose self‐concept of narcissistic individuals is at odds with occupying subordinate positions in organizations. We examine how narcissistic followers navigate this tension through distinctive leader‐directed relational strategies. In three studies, we find that narcissistic followers are (1) more likely to strive to cultivate a personal bond with their leaders, (2) more likely to seek career‐enhancing support from them, and (3) more willing to share negative gossip about co‐workers…
The grandiose self‐concept of narcissistic individuals is at odds with occupying subordinate positions in organizations. We examine how narcissistic followers navigate this tension through distinctive leader‐directed relational strategies. In three studies, we find that narcissistic followers are (1) more likely to strive to cultivate a personal bond with their leaders, (2) more likely to seek career‐enhancing support from them, and (3) more willing to share negative gossip about co‐workers with them. Narcissistic followers also believe that they enjoy superior relationships with their leaders compared to their peers (high LMXSC), and this perceived relational advantage partly explains their leader‐directed behaviors. These effects persist after controlling for followers' absolute relationship quality, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism, indicating that they reflect uniquely narcissistic tendencies. This work advances our understanding of narcissistic followers, identifies narcissism as an antecedent of LMXSC, and demonstrates that narcissists' grandiosity extends to relational perceptions when the relationship has instrumental value. Overall, the findings suggest that narcissistic followers do not passively accept their subordinate status but actively seek to reduce both psychological and hierarchical distance from their leaders.
Journal of Management
Job Attitudes
Where Do Transitioning Executives Go? Exploring Demand-Side and Supply-Side Drivers of Destination Rivalry
Abstract
Executive movement to close rivals can have significant implications for firm competitiveness. While prior research has provided valuable insights into the antecedents of executive search and turnover in general, the theoretical understanding of where ...
Executive movement to close rivals can have significant implications for firm competitiveness. While prior research has provided valuable insights into the antecedents of executive search and turnover in general, the theoretical understanding of where executives go when they move remains underdeveloped. We extend research in this area by introducing the concept of destination rivalry, defined as the degree of market commonality and resource similarity between an executive’s departure firm and destination firm. We then develop a theoretical model of key demand-side and supply-side factors associated with an executive’s position in the departure firm that explains movement to a closer versus more distant rivals. We theorize that among executives moving between firms, destination rivalry will be higher when the executive possesses competition-specific human capital (e.g., via core functional experience or corporate or divisional experience at the departure firm), has a larger pay gap to the CEO, and especially when both factors are present. Empirical tests of the theoretical model using a sample of executive movements from S&P 1500 firms to other public companies between 1993 and 2023 are largely consistent with these predictions. Our findings contribute to research on executive mobility and competitive strategy by providing novel insights into factors shaping the degree of rivalry in executive moves.
Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology
Motivation
The effect of crew rostering policies on flight crew safety behaviours
Abstract
Crew rostering (i.e., designing and assigning work schedules for cockpit and cabin crew) is a core personnel management function in commercial airlines. Surprisingly, little is known about how rostering policies shape flight crews' psychological resources and safety performance. Combining Conservation of Resources theory and the Job Demands–Resources model, we investigate if rostering policies that provide greater opportunities to state schedule preferences foster perceived autonomy and…
Crew rostering (i.e., designing and assigning work schedules for cockpit and cabin crew) is a core personnel management function in commercial airlines. Surprisingly, little is known about how rostering policies shape flight crews' psychological resources and safety performance. Combining Conservation of Resources theory and the Job Demands–Resources model, we investigate if rostering policies that provide greater opportunities to state schedule preferences foster perceived autonomy and inclusion in decision making, thereby reducing fatigue and strengthening dedication, with implications for safety behaviours. Study 1, a vignette experiment with flight crew members (N = 160), shows that policies with more extensive preferential bidding options are perceived as providing greater autonomy and inclusion and, in turn, are associated with lower fatigue and greater dedication. Study 2, a one‐month time‐lagged panel study (N = 221), extends these findings: perceived autonomy and inclusion predict extra‐role safety behaviour and upward safety communication via increased dedication, with autonomy also reducing fatigue to enhance upward safety communication. Indirect effects on in‐role safety behaviour were not significant. Overall, the findings suggest that rostering policies can shape flight crew safety performance, offering airlines actionable, evidence‐based guidance for rostering‐system design.
Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology
Training & Development
Knowledge transfer comes of ‘age’: Key themes and directions for future research
Abstract
As workforces age, understanding how knowledge flows between younger and older employees has become a central concern in organizations. This reflective commentary synthesizes the development of research on age and knowledge transfer since the seminal contribution by Burmeister et al. (Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 2018, 91, 518). Moving beyond age as a control variable, the literature conceptualizes knowledge transfer as a structured, relational and context‐dependent…
As workforces age, understanding how knowledge flows between younger and older employees has become a central concern in organizations. This reflective commentary synthesizes the development of research on age and knowledge transfer since the seminal contribution by Burmeister et al. (Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 2018, 91, 518). Moving beyond age as a control variable, the literature conceptualizes knowledge transfer as a structured, relational and context‐dependent process shaped by age‐based norms, motivation and identities. I summarize key themes that have emerged in the field, including multi‐level antecedents and expanding consequences ranging from employability and successful aging at work to organizational performance. The commentary highlights methodological advances, including dyadic designs, field experiments and multi‐level studies, while identifying persistent conceptual blind spots. Building on these insights, seven directions for future research are proposed as follows: (1) emphasizing age as a continuous and multifaceted construct, (2) exploring emotions as central mechanisms, (3) differentiating knowledge types and behaviours, (4) capturing micro‐dynamics and temporal fluctuations, (5) broadening the outcome scope, (6) digitization and (7) methodological pluralism. By integrating lifespan and knowledge transfer perspectives, this commentary argues that knowledge transfer across the lifespan and between different age groups constitutes a critical vehicle for sustaining both organizational effectiveness and meaningful working lives.
Personnel Psychology
Leadership
Teams & Groups
Well-being & Health
The Ripple Effects of Leader Job Insecurity: How and When Job Insecure Leaders are Detrimental to the Team
Abstract
The existing job insecurity research predominantly focuses on general employees, viewing job insecurity as an intrapersonal phenomenon that primarily affects the person experiencing it. Shifting this focus to leaders, this research aims to examine how and when leader job insecurity may have interpersonal implications on team outcomes. Integrating the job insecurity literature and the emotion as social information (EASI) model, we theorize that job insecurity experienced by team leaders renders…
The existing job insecurity research predominantly focuses on general employees, viewing job insecurity as an intrapersonal phenomenon that primarily affects the person experiencing it. Shifting this focus to leaders, this research aims to examine how and when leader job insecurity may have interpersonal implications on team outcomes. Integrating the job insecurity literature and the emotion as social information (EASI) model, we theorize that job insecurity experienced by team leaders renders their frequent display of anxiety, which in turn induces two parallel emotion‐based mechanisms—higher team anxiety and lower team perception of leader effectiveness—that subsequently influence team outcomes (i.e., team task performance and team citizenship behavior). Further, we examine emotional stability of the leader and emotional stability of team members as two important contingencies for such ripple effects. Findings from a field survey study and four vignette‐based experiments in different cultural contexts largely support our hypotheses. Our research offers novel insights into the complex ripple effects of leader job insecurity in teams.
Journal of Organizational Behavior
Leadership
Motivation
Teams & Groups
Rapid Rise Versus Slow Recognition: Motivation to Lead and the Emergence of Informal Leaders in Self‐Managing Teams Over Time
Abstract
Research on motivation to lead (MTL) suggests that team members' agentic motives are more relevant than their communal motives in shaping informal leader emergence. Yet, this prevailing consensus in the MTL literature is based on the view of leader emergence as a static one‐time event, discounting its inherently dynamic nature. Integrating dynamic views of leader emergence with the warmth‐competence framework and the passage of time, we propose that both agentic and communal MTL shape leader…
Research on motivation to lead (MTL) suggests that team members' agentic motives are more relevant than their communal motives in shaping informal leader emergence. Yet, this prevailing consensus in the MTL literature is based on the view of leader emergence as a static one‐time event, discounting its inherently dynamic nature. Integrating dynamic views of leader emergence with the warmth‐competence framework and the passage of time, we propose that both agentic and communal MTL shape leader emergence, albeit at different points of teamwork and through distinct social perceptual pathways. Results from two multiwave studies of MBA students in self‐managing teams (n = 212 and 355, respectively) show that agentic MTL predicts initial leader emergence via perceptions of competence, which also enable agentic leaders to sustain in leadership positions in the long term. In contrast, communal MTL fosters later leader emergence, as perceptions of warmth and competence increase over time. These findings suggest that teams may appear to initially undervalue communal motives in leadership decisions because agentic individuals establish themselves as leaders before the benefits of communal motives fully materialize.
Academy of Management Review
Competitive Dynamics are Alive with the Sound of Music: A Reply to “Time to Face the Music”
Journal of Vocational Behavior
Careers
Corrigendum to “The role of workplace supports and barriers in Latiné engineers' work satisfaction” [Journal of Vocational Behavior 166 (2026) 104232]
Academy of Management Journal
Selection & Assessment
Training & Development
Teams & Groups
Listen to Your Users? Self-Selection in User Community Feedback and Commercial Impact
Abstract
Firms increasingly involve user communities in product development, and prior research documents many benefits in idea generation, knowledge sharing, and cost reduction. We theorize, however, that incorporating market feedback about products from these communities can harm products’ commercial performance. Because community feedback is volunteered by self-selected participants rather than sampled to represent the broader market, it may mislead firms when narrow community preferences diverge…
Firms increasingly involve user communities in product development, and prior research documents many benefits in idea generation, knowledge sharing, and cost reduction. We theorize, however, that incorporating market feedback about products from these communities can harm products’ commercial performance. Because community feedback is volunteered by self-selected participants rather than sampled to represent the broader market, it may mislead firms when narrow community preferences diverge from mainstream demand. We predict that greater incorporation of community feedback will increase positive evaluations of a product within the community, but undermine its broader commercial success when there are strong user self-selection pressures (like for initially niche-targeted games). We test this theory in the personal-computer (PC) video-game industry using Steam Early Access, where developers integrate community feedback prior to release. Using a multimethod design that combines large-scale archival analyses with interviews of developers, executives, and community members, we find that feedback incorporation during Early Access improves post-launch commercial outcomes of games only when the Early Access community closely mirrors the distribution of users in the broader Steam market. However, in unrepresentative communities—even large ones—greater incorporation predicts lower post-launch revenues despite favorable community evaluations.
Academy of Management Journal
A Prosocial Perspective on Advice Seeking and Networking: How Focusing on What Advice Givers Can Gain Motivates Advice Seekers to Reach Out More
Academy of Management Review
Leadership
Leaders on the Other Side of Voice: Extending Black et al.’s Integrative Theory of Collective Voice
Organizational Research Methods
Research Methods
“How Many Interviews Do I Need?” An Examination of Interview Numbers and Sampling Moves in Qualitative Research
Abstract
Qualitative researchers face an enduring question: How many interviews do I need? While a variety of guidelines exist, there is limited consensus over which specific factors should determine the number of interviews required. We examined the determination ...
Qualitative researchers face an enduring question: How many interviews do I need? While a variety of guidelines exist, there is limited consensus over which specific factors should determine the number of interviews required. We examined the determination of interview sample sizes in 562 qualitative studies across six high-impact management and organizational journals over a decade. Our findings reveal considerable variance in interview numbers, yet limited information is often provided on the criteria used to determine them. To promote clearer alignment between sample sizes and methodology, we examined studies with detailed descriptions of their interview sampling. We identified specific “sampling moves” used to determine the number of interviews, categorized into three types—opening, focusing, and closing sampling moves—that researchers use to establish confidence in the sample and support theoretical insights. By implication, our study refutes the notion of a “magic” interview number. Instead, sampling moves are heuristic tools that qualitative researchers can thoughtfully adapt to their analytical aims when determining appropriate sample sizes.
Academy of Management Journal
Teams & Groups
Theory & Philosophy of Science
Time the Surge: Theorizing and Examining Team Pacing in Multiple-Membership Contexts
Abstract
Pacing has long been critical for understanding team work patterns. As organizations increasingly embrace multiple memberships, with workers engaged in different concurrent projects, it becomes important to understand how team pacing is uniquely shaped in such contexts. Extending beyond prior theories with single-membership assumptions, we theorize a new perspective on how team pacing is influenced by multiple memberships—contexts typically characterized by non-coinciding project portfolios…
Pacing has long been critical for understanding team work patterns. As organizations increasingly embrace multiple memberships, with workers engaged in different concurrent projects, it becomes important to understand how team pacing is uniquely shaped in such contexts. Extending beyond prior theories with single-membership assumptions, we theorize a new perspective on how team pacing is influenced by multiple memberships—contexts typically characterized by non-coinciding project portfolios across members. Based on this theorizing, we examined a large-scale dataset comprising over 1.6 million entries of project activities involving 1,712 individuals across 415 team projects, and found that higher average multiple memberships among core members delayed the timing of a project’s activity surge. This surge-delaying effect was mitigated, however, when project members shared greater external project overlap. An additional experiment revealed that the reduced perceived feasibility of holistic optimization was an important psychological mechanism underlying the surge-delaying effect. Furthermore, we found that projects with longer time spans were less likely to experience a surge, but for those that did, surge timing had implications for efficiency: projects with either a markedly early surge (i.e., initial phase) or a markedly late surge (i.e., final phase) exhibited greater temporal procedural efficiency than those with an intermediate-phase surge.
Academy of Management Journal
Work Design
Algorithmic Facial Expression Analysis: A Novel Methodology to Advance Management Research on Emotions
Abstract
With the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence technologies, algorithmic facial expression analysis (AFEA) has emerged as a promising methodology to measure emotions. Despite rapid adoption across management subfields, however, the full scope of AFEA’s theoretical potential remains underexplored. This paper provides a framework that links the AFEA measurement innovation to major opportunities for theoretical advancement around emotions in organizations. We start by describing the…
With the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence technologies, algorithmic facial expression analysis (AFEA) has emerged as a promising methodology to measure emotions. Despite rapid adoption across management subfields, however, the full scope of AFEA’s theoretical potential remains underexplored. This paper provides a framework that links the AFEA measurement innovation to major opportunities for theoretical advancement around emotions in organizations. We start by describing the methodological basis of AFEA and reviewing its applications in management research to date. We then outline two core capabilities of AFEA—namely, capturing the temporal structure of emotions and detecting inauthentic expressions of emotions—and illustrate how these capabilities can enable theory advancement in management research. After presenting an empirical demonstration of AFEA’s capabilities and a practical step-by-step guide for using it, we conclude by discussing key considerations for realizing the future potential of AFEA research.
Organizational Research Methods
Personality
Research Methods
Modeling Unfolding Response Data Within the Structural Equation Modeling Framework
Abstract
Dominance and unfolding response processes describe two ways in which individuals may respond to rating scale items. The dominance process assumes a monotonic relationship between a latent trait and the probability of endorsement and is typically modeled ...
Dominance and unfolding response processes describe two ways in which individuals may respond to rating scale items. The dominance process assumes a monotonic relationship between a latent trait and the probability of endorsement and is typically modeled using a linear factor model within structural equation modeling (SEM). In contrast, the unfolding process assumes single-peaked response functions, with endorsement most likely when item and person locations are close on the latent continuum. Fitting unfolding models usually requires specialized software, which limits their integration with SEM. In this article, we proposed the ordered categorical response unfolding model (OCRUM), which can be estimated in Mplus. We illustrated its use with two empirical datasets and found that item and person locations were comparable to those obtained from the generalized graded unfolding model (GGUM). We also conducted Monte Carlo simulations to examine parameter recovery under varying sample sizes, test lengths, and response formats. Finally, we demonstrated that OCRUM can serve as the measurement component of a general structural equation model, enabling dominance and unfolding response processes to be represented within a single SEM framework.
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