Collective Efficacy as a Mediator of the Relationship between Authentic Leadership and Well-being at Work

Prior research, both theoretically and empirically, has revealed that authentic leadership is positively related to work attitudes and behaviors. But the fundamental mechanisms through which an authentic leader utilizes his/her influence on followers have not fully been explored. To provide a clear insight into authentic leadership and the inner working of the construct, further research is needed. This study addresses that needs and proposes that positive organizational outcomes are fundamentally related with the emotions felt by followers at work and followers' belief in their competences. Thus, the mechanisms that link the authentic leadership behavior to positive work outcomes are followers' well-being at work and collective efficacy perceptions. In this way, the aim of present study is to explore the influence of authentic leadership behavior on employees' well-being at work and also develop a clear understanding about the role of collective efficacy perceptions of employees' in that relationship. We conducted the research with full-time employed 556 construction engineers. Consequently, structural equation modeling results exposed that there is a positive relationship between authentic leadership and well-being at work. Moreover collective efficacy perception of employees' partially mediates this relationship. The implications of results and routes for future research are argued.