Paradoxical Leadership and Employee Task Performance: A Sense-Making Perspective

Wei Zhang; Shudi Liao; Jianqiao Liao; Quanfang Zheng

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.753116

Paradoxical Leadership and Employee Task Performance: A Sense-Making Perspective

Front Psychol. 2021 Dec 16:12:753116. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.753116. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Wei Zhang¹, Shudi Liao^{2

3}, Jianqiao Liao¹, Quanfang Zheng⁴

Affiliations

¹ School of Management, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
² Business School, Hubei University, Wuhan, China.
³ Hubei Center for Studies of Human Capital Development Strategy and Policy, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Science of Hubei Province, Wuhan, China.
⁴ School of Business Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China.

Abstract

Paradoxical leadership has received increasing research attention in recent years. Yet, questions remain as to why and when paradoxical leadership is effective in promoting employee work outcomes. Drawing upon the sense-making perspective, we propose that paradoxical leadership enhances employee task performance by increasing employees' adaptability, and paradoxical leadership is more effective when employees have higher levels of Zhong Yong thinking and organizational identification. To test our hypotheses, we conducted a multi-source and multi-wave survey study among 235 employees and their supervisors in southern China. The results of the regression analyses fully support our hypotheses. In general, our findings shed light on the underlying mechanisms, as well as the boundary conditions, of the effect of paradoxical leadership. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Keywords: Zhong Yong thinking; adaptability; organizational identification; paradoxical leadership; sense-making; task performance.