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The Effect of Mutual Help Behavior on Employee Creativity—Based on the Recipient’s Perspective

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  • Mingdan Han

    (School of Management, Wuhan University of Technology, 122 Luoshi Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan 430070, China)

  • Ran Li

    (School of Entrepreneurship, Wuhan University of Technology, 122 Luoshi Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan 430070, China)

  • Wenjing Wang

    (School of Entrepreneurship, Wuhan University of Technology, 122 Luoshi Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan 430070, China)

  • Zehou Sun

    (School of Management, Wuhan University of Technology, 122 Luoshi Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan 430070, China)

  • Jiaming Zhang

    (School of Entrepreneurship, Wuhan University of Technology, 122 Luoshi Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan 430070, China)

  • Haokun Han

    (School of Entrepreneurship, Wuhan University of Technology, 122 Luoshi Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan 430070, China)

Abstract

This paper explores the effect of the recipient’s acceptance of help on his or her personal creativity in mutual aid behavior from the perspective of the recipient and explores the mediating role of learning between the two and the moderating role of the target atmosphere. Through the two research methods of a scenario experiment and questionnaire survey, sample data were collected for screening and analysis, the research hypothesis was verified, and three main research conclusions were drawn. The study suggests that employees’ acceptance of help in work situations is positively correlated with their individual creativity, and that individual learning plays an intermediary role between receiving help and employee creativity. The team-learning, goal-oriented atmosphere and the atmosphere of goal recognition can adjust the relationship between the acceptance of help behavior and individual learning, and the perception of a team-learning, goal-oriented atmosphere plays a positive adjustment role, that is, the higher the team-learning goal orientation level, the greater the impact of employees’ acceptance of help behavior on their own personal learning, and the team proves that the perception of a goal-oriented atmosphere plays a negative adjustment role, that is, the lower the team’s orientation to the goal-oriented level, the greater the impact of employees’ acceptance of help behavior on their own personal learning. This study deepens the study of the relationship between mutual aid behavior and creativity and has a certain guiding significance for managerial practice.

Suggested Citation

  • Mingdan Han & Ran Li & Wenjing Wang & Zehou Sun & Jiaming Zhang & Haokun Han, 2022. "The Effect of Mutual Help Behavior on Employee Creativity—Based on the Recipient’s Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-22, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:18:p:11182-:d:909071
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Andrew B. Hargadon & Beth A. Bechky, 2006. "When Collections of Creatives Become Creative Collectives: A Field Study of Problem Solving at Work," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 17(4), pages 484-500, August.
    2. Newark, Daniel A. & Bohns, Vanessa K. & Flynn, Francis J., 2017. "A helping hand is hard at work: Help-seekers’ underestimation of helpers’ effort," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 18-29.
    3. van Ginkel, Wendy P. & van Knippenberg, Daan, 2008. "Group information elaboration and group decision making: The role of shared task representations," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 105(1), pages 82-97, January.
    4. Soojin Lee & Gukdo Byun & Suzi Kim, 2021. "Effects of Coworkers’ Helping Behavior on Employees’ Knowledge Sharing and Creativity: The Moderating Role of Interactional Justice," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-14, December.
    5. Lee, Fiona, 1997. "When the Going Gets Tough, Do the Tough Ask for Help? Help Seeking and Power Motivation in Organizations," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 72(3), pages 336-363, December.
    6. Bai, Yuntao & Lin, Li & Li, Peter Ping, 2016. "How to enable employee creativity in a team context: A cross-level mediating process of transformational leadership," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(9), pages 3240-3250.
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