The multilevel correlates, contributions, and consequences of leader humility in humanitarian aid work

Edward B Davis; Kelly Barneche; Jamie D Aten; Laura R Shannonhouse; David C Wang; Daryl R Van Tongeren; Don E Davis; Joshua N Hook; Zhuo Job Chen; G Tyler Lefevor; Stacey E McElroy-Heltzel; Emilie L Elick; Leif Van Grinsven; Ethan K Lacey; Tyler R Brandys; Philip K Sarpong; Sophia A Osteen; Kati Shepardson

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1188109

The multilevel correlates, contributions, and consequences of leader humility in humanitarian aid work

Front Psychol. 2023 Dec 13:14:1188109. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1188109. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Edward B Davis¹, Kelly Barneche², Jamie D Aten³, Laura R Shannonhouse⁴, David C Wang⁵, Daryl R Van Tongeren⁶, Don E Davis⁴, Joshua N Hook⁷, Zhuo Job Chen⁸, G Tyler Lefevor⁹, Stacey E McElroy-Heltzel¹⁰, Emilie L Elick¹, Leif Van Grinsven¹, Ethan K Lacey¹, Tyler R Brandys¹, Philip K Sarpong¹, Sophia A Osteen¹, Kati Shepardson¹

Affiliations

¹ School of Psychology, Counseling, and Family Therapy, Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL, United States.
² Medair, Ecublens, Switzerland.
³ Humanitarian Disaster Institute, Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL, United States.
⁴ Department of Counseling and Psychological Services, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, United States.
⁵ School of Psychology and Marriage and Family Therapy, Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA, United States.
⁶ Psychology Department, Hope College, Holland, MI, United States.
⁷ Psychology Department, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, United States.
⁸ School of Nursing, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, United States.
⁹ Department of Psychology, Utah State University, Logan, UT, United States.
¹⁰ Department of Psychological and Quantitative Foundations, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, United States.

Abstract

Objective: Leader humility has been linked to many positive outcomes but not examined in humanitarian aid work. Three studies examined the multilevel correlates, contributions, and consequences of leader humility in Medair-a large, multinational, faith-based aid organization. Study 1 examined correlates of leader humility in a sample of 308 workers and 167 leaders. Study 2 explored multilevel contributions of leader humility in 96 teams comprised of 189 workers. Study 3 utilized a subsample (50 workers, 34 leaders) to explore consequences of Time 1 leader and team humility on outcomes 6 months later.

Method: Participants completed measures of humility (general, relational, team), leader and team attributions (e.g., effectiveness, cohesion, and growth-mindedness), organizational outcomes (e.g., job engagement and satisfaction; worker and team performance), and psychological outcomes (e.g., depression, anxiety, compassion satisfaction, and flourishing).

Results: Leader and team humility contributed to multilevel positive attributions about leaders (as effective and impactful), teams (as cohesive, psychologically safe, and growth-minded), and oneself (as humble), and those attributions contributed to organizational and psychological outcomes. Teams' shared attributions of their leader's humility contributed to higher worker job satisfaction and team performance. Longitudinally, for workers and leaders, leader and team humility were associated with some positive organizational and psychological outcomes over time.

Conclusion: In humanitarian organizations, leader humility seems to act as an attributional and motivational social contagion that affects aid personnel's positive attributions about their leaders, teams, and themselves. In turn, these multilevel positive attributions contribute to several positive team, organizational, and psychological outcomes among workers and leaders.

Keywords: humanitarian aid; humility; leadership; nonprofit organizations; personnel.

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the grants #60622 and #61865 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this manuscript are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.