Abandoning good and following evil
A study on the dark side effect of self-sacrificial leadership—from the perspective of moral licensing
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21620113 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Hao Chen (0000-0002-8873-8266, Affiliated Hospital of Youjiang Medical University for Nationalities), Jiaying Bao (0000-0001-9625-685X, Affiliated Hospital of Youjiang Medical University for Nationalities), Jiajia Wang (0009-0004-5064-5859, East China University of Science and Technology), Liang Wang (0009-0009-7673-7272, Wuxi Vocational Institute of Commerce) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 36 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 1-19 |
| Publication date | 2025-01-02 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Conflict Management (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1044-4068 • E-ISSN: 1758-8545 |
| Publisher | Emerald (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1108/ijcma-11-2023-0228 |
| OpenAlex | W4396230785 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 34 |
Purpose Based on the moral licensing theory, this study aims to reveal the mechanism of self-sacrificial leadership inducing abusive supervision from two paths of leader moral credit and leader moral credential. At the same time, it also discusses the moderating effect of leader behavioral integrity on the two paths. Design/methodology/approach In this study, 434 employees and their direct leaders from six Chinese companies were investigated in a paired survey at three time points, and the empirical data was analyzed using Mplus 7.4 software. Findings Self-sacrificial leadership has a positive effect on leader abusive supervision through the mediating role of leader moral credit and leader moral credential. In addition, this study also finds that leader behavioral integrity is the “gate” for self-sacrificial leadership to promote abusive supervision, and the leader behavioral integrity has a moderating effect on the process of self-sacrificial leadership influencing on leader moral credit and leader moral credential. Originality/value This study explores the evolution of self-sacrificial leadership from “good” to “bad” from the perspective of moral licensing and broadens the research on the mechanism and boundary conditions of self-sacrificial leadership. At the same time, it also provides important reference value for preventing the negative effects of self-sacrificial leadership in organizations
Aesthetics · Art · Great Rift · Law and economics · Physics · Sociology · Visual arts · Ethics in Business and Education · Management Theory and Practice · Philosophy · Psychology · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment · Social Psychology
When ethical leader behavior breaks bad
Moral Self‐Licensing
From Good Soldiers to Psychologically Entitled
Striving for the Moral Self
Speaking up in groups
Psychological License
Why is a modest gentleman cruel and ruthless? A study on the dark side effect of humble leadership – from the perspective of low-status compensation theory
Helpful or hurtful? A study on the behavior choice of bystanders in the context of abusive supervision
Self-sacrificial leadership and employee creativity
How self-evaluations relate to being liked by others
The development of altruistic behavior
The Gray Side of Creativity
Moral credentials and the expression of prejudice
The self-importance of moral identity
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |