Stenling, A., Nielsen, K. orcid.org/0000-0001-9685-9570, Olafsen, A.H. et al. (1 more author) (2024) Need-supportive leadership behaviors and sickness absence among employees: The mediating role of basic psychological need satisfaction. Applied Psychology, 73 (4). pp. 1688-1698. ISSN 0269-994X
Abstract
Research exploring relationships between leadership behaviors and sickness absence is scarce. Grounded in self-determination theory (SDT), the present study examined: (i) the relationship between need-supportive leadership and sickness absence; and (ii) whether satisfaction of the basic psychological needs mediates the relationship between need-supportive leadership and sickness absence. Municipal employees (n = 347, 78% women, age span = 19-66 years) provided baseline data on perceived need-supportive leadership and basic psychological need satisfaction at work eight weeks later. Sickness absence data were obtained from municipality records. Two-part regression models showed that need-supportive leadership was negatively associated with sick days (b = -0.28, 95% CI [-0.45, -0.11]). Need support had an indirect effect on the number of sick days through a composite score of need satisfaction (ab = -1.96, 95% CI [-5.11, -0.12]). Mediation models with each need separately indicated that autonomy (ab = -2.12, 95% CI [-5.33, -0.23]) and relatedness (ab = -1.33, 95% CI [-3.41, -0.11]), mediated the relationship between need support and number of sick days. Need support and need satisfaction at work may function as protective factors that provide followers with opportunities to deal with symptoms of ill health and reduce the risk of prolonged sickness absence.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2024 The Authors. Applied Psychology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association of Applied Psychology. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | interpersonal behaviors; leadership; self-determination theory; sickness absence; Swedish municipal workers |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Management School (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 22 Dec 2023 14:12 |
Last Modified: | 06 Nov 2024 14:59 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Wiley |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1111/apps.12523 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:206790 |