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Impact of Leader’s Goal Framing on Followership Behavior: The Role of Work Meaning and Power Dependence

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  • Miao Xia

    (School of Labor and Human Resources, Renmin University of China, Zhongguancun Street 59, Beijing 100872, China)

  • Wei Shi

    (School of Labor and Human Resources, Renmin University of China, Zhongguancun Street 59, Beijing 100872, China)

  • Fulin Wang

    (School of Labor and Human Resources, Renmin University of China, Zhongguancun Street 59, Beijing 100872, China)

Abstract

While there is growing interest in leader–follower relationships in the leadership literature, little is known about how a leader’s framing effect triggers employees’ proactive behaviors. This research aims to extend previous knowledge about the effects of leaders’ goal framing and uncover their potential impacts on followership behaviors. Drawing on social information processing theory, this study proposes that both types of goal framing (gaining and losing) indirectly influence employees’ followership behaviors by mobilizing their sense of work meaning, especially when they have a power dependence on their leaders, using the method of questionnaire measurement, CFA analysis, hierarchical regression analysis, and the bootstrap tested hypotheses. The results show that gain framing indirectly contributes to employees’ followership behaviors by enhancing work meaning. Furthermore, this positive indirect relationship is stronger for employees with high power dependence. Yet another finding reveals that loss framing negatively impacts followership behavior by reducing employees’ sense of work meaning, which is unaffected by power dependence. From the perspective of the framing effect, this study verifies the influence of goal framing on employees’ behaviors and illustrates the effect of work meaning as a mechanism of goal framing on followership behavior.

Suggested Citation

  • Miao Xia & Wei Shi & Fulin Wang, 2024. "Impact of Leader’s Goal Framing on Followership Behavior: The Role of Work Meaning and Power Dependence," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-19, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:5:p:1806-:d:1343720
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Fast, Nathanael J. & Sivanathan, Niro & Mayer, Nicole D. & Galinsky, Adam D., 2012. "Power and overconfident decision-making," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 117(2), pages 249-260.
    2. Levin, Irwin P. & Schneider, Sandra L. & Gaeth, Gary J., 1998. "All Frames Are Not Created Equal: A Typology and Critical Analysis of Framing Effects," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 76(2), pages 149-188, November.
    3. Katrina Graham & Jonathan Ziegert & Johnna Capitano, 2015. "The Effect of Leadership Style, Framing, and Promotion Regulatory Focus on Unethical Pro-Organizational Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 126(3), pages 423-436, February.
    4. Drach-Zahavy, Anat & Erez, Miriam, 2002. "Challenge versus threat effects on the goal-performance relationship," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 88(2), pages 667-682, July.
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