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Are Leaders’ Perceptions of Organizational Politics Worsening Favorable Employee Outcomes? The Role of Ethical Leadership

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  • Soojin Lee

    (College of Business Administration, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Korea)

  • Jinhee Kim

    (College of Business Administration, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Korea)

  • Gukdo Byun

    (School of Business, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Korea)

Abstract

Researchers have conducted many empirical studies on the positive effects of ethical leadership. However, they have paid little attention to the antecedents of ethical leadership. This study sought to fill this gap by examining the negative effects of leaders’ perceptions of organizational politics on ethical leadership and the job performance of employees. Accordingly, this study investigated the relationships among them using data collected from 220 dyads of leaders and followers in major companies in South Korea. The results showed that leaders’ perceptions of organizational politics negatively affected their ethical leadership, which, in turn, had an adverse impact on the task performance and organizational citizenship behavior of employees. This paper also provides the theoretical and applied implications of the findings as well as future research directions.

Suggested Citation

  • Soojin Lee & Jinhee Kim & Gukdo Byun, 2021. "Are Leaders’ Perceptions of Organizational Politics Worsening Favorable Employee Outcomes? The Role of Ethical Leadership," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-10, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:19:p:10767-:d:645040
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    References listed on IDEAS

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