Why Do Leaders Express Humility and How Does This Matter: A Rational Choice Perspective

Abstract

The utility of leader humility expressing behavior has been examined by several studies across multiple levels. However, our knowledge about why leaders express humility continues to be sparse. Drawing on rational choice theory, this paper proposes a model examining whether followers’ capability triggers leader’s humility expressing behavior and how followers’ interpretations of it influence its effectiveness. Results from 278 leader-follower dyads from a time-lagged research design showed that followers’ capability as perceived by the leader is positively related to leader-expressed humility and, in turn, this behavior would conditionally enhance follower trust, that is, followers will trust the humble leader less when they attribute leader’s expressed humility more to serving impression management motives. Several theoretical and practical implications of this observation are discussed in this study.

Leader Humility and Knowledge Sharing Intention: A Serial Mediation Model

“…The last but not least contribution of our study to the literature on knowledge management is the mediating mechanism in which how leader humility encourages followers to share knowledge. Support for our serial mediator model depicts the unique contribution in showing that the motivation derived from the social exchange with one's immediate supervisor who exhibits humility behaviors is positively associated with affect trust in the supervisor (Wang et al, 2019;Yang et al, 2019). This positive association will then be reciprocated with enhanced levels of work engagement (Nielsen and Marrone, 2018).…”

“…Second, a humble leader is willing to involve employees in decision-making and listen to their advice and feedback that builds up strong interpersonal relationships with subordinates that go beyond the social exchange. Next, the self-disclosure element of leader humility (accepting one's limitations) that is not the impression management strategy of the leader (Yang et al, 2019) signals employees that the supervisor cares for employees' feelings and opinions so they can trust the leader in sharing information and receiving feedback (Bharanitharan et al, 2019). Leader humility also shows vulnerability with employees and shapes their perceptions of a power-equalized workplace that enables a sense of trust in leaders (Owens and Hekman, 2012;Wang et al, 2018;Yang et al, 2019).…”

“…Next, the self-disclosure element of leader humility (accepting one's limitations) that is not the impression management strategy of the leader (Yang et al, 2019) signals employees that the supervisor cares for employees' feelings and opinions so they can trust the leader in sharing information and receiving feedback (Bharanitharan et al, 2019). Leader humility also shows vulnerability with employees and shapes their perceptions of a power-equalized workplace that enables a sense of trust in leaders (Owens and Hekman, 2012;Wang et al, 2018;Yang et al, 2019). This relationship makes employees reciprocate positive attitudes and behavior such as work engagement, in line with the focus on the exchange of socio-emotional benefits between supervisors and employees.…”

“…Leader humility is defined as a set of interpersonal qualities consist of "(a) a manifested willingness to view oneself accurately, (b) a displayed appreciation of others' strengths and contributions, and (c) teachability, or openness to new ideas and feedback" (Owens et al, 2013(Owens et al, , p. 1518. Our study adopts this definition of leader humility to explain employees' knowledge sharing intention (Stenius et al, 2017;Yang et al, 2019) can be enhanced with the inclusion of affective trust in supervisor, one of the most vital factors influencing knowledge sharing intention and behaviors (see Navimipour and Charband, 2016), work engagement, and organizational citizenship behaviors directed toward the individual (OCB-I; Nielsen and Marrone, 2018). These three SET-related factors will contribute to our understanding of the mediation processes between leader humility and knowledge sharing intention.…”

Leader Humility and Employees’ Accountability During The Pandemic

“…Leaders who show humility are more concerned with the interests of others than their own interests, hence they will be able to elicit a transformational leadership style which leads to the growth of respect, trust, and creativity from their employees (Morris, et al, 2005). Leader humility have been demonstrated to bring out employee behaviors that improve productivity such as voice behavior, feedback seeking, organizational citizenship behavior, and team creativity (Hu, et al, 2018;Jeung & Yoon, 2016;Lin, et al, 2019;Qian, et al, 2018;Qian, et al, 2020;Yang, et al, 2019;Zhong, et al, 2020).…”