An examination of the relationship between authentic leadership and psychological well-being and the mediating role of meaningfulness at work

Abstract

Previous studies have examined the relationship between charismatic-types of leadership and well-being but not specifically authentic leadership which gives importance to how leaders are intrinsically composed rather than mere behaviours. This study explored whether authentic leadership and well-being are related and whether meaningfulness of work mediates this relationship. Well-being was measured from two perspectives namely hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. 123 participants completed a questionnaire survey while correlational and mediation analyses, using the Sobel Z test with bootstrapped samples, were used to answer the research questions. Results revealed that authentic leadership is both related to subjective well-being and to flow. In addition, meaningfulness of work partially mediated the relationship between leadership and subjective well-being but fully mediated the relationship with flow. The results are discussed in view of their theoretical and practical implications. Finally, a series of limitations are provided to secure the interpretative boundaries of the results obtained.