Can Humble Leaders Get Results? The Indirect and Contextual Influences of Skip-Level Leaders

Abstract

We draw from social learning theory to propose a model in which humble behaviors displayed by higher-level leaders trickle down to lower-level team leaders and thereby indirectly promote team performance. We also propose that skip-level leader humility enhances the positive effect of team leader humility on team performance. Results based on time-lagged, multisource data from a sample of 128 work teams supported our model. Also, the trickle-down effect of leader humility is stronger in organizations with relatively high authority centralization. Our study thus links humble leadership of both direct and distant leaders to team performance and highlights the role of higher-level leaders in fostering humble behaviors of lower-level leaders.

Keywords

leader humility team performance trickle-down effect authority centralization skip-level leader

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