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Can authentic leaders reduce the spread of negative workplace gossip? The roles of subordinates' perceived procedural justice and interactional justice

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 July 2021

Jin Cheng Open the ORCID record for Jin Cheng [Opens in a new window] ,
Muhammad Usman Open the ORCID record for Muhammad Usman [Opens in a new window] ,
Haiqing Bai Open the ORCID record for Haiqing Bai [Opens in a new window]  and
Yuqing He
Jin Cheng
Affiliation:
School of Management, Xiamen University, 422 Siming South Road, Xiamen 361005, P. R. China
Muhammad Usman
Affiliation:
School of Management, Xiamen University, 422 Siming South Road, Xiamen 361005, P. R. China
Haiqing Bai*
Affiliation:
School of Journalism and Communication, Xiamen University, 422 Siming South Road, Xiamen 361005, P. R. China
Yuqing He
Affiliation:
School of Management, Xiamen University, 422 Siming South Road, Xiamen 361005, P. R. China
*
*Corresponding author. E-mail: haiqing.bai@xmu.edu.cn
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Abstract

Many studies suggest that leaders should discourage or prevent the spread of negative workplace gossip (NWG), but yet little is understood about the relationship between leaders and their subordinates' NWG. This study interprets the linkage between authentic leadership and two types of NWG via individuals' perceptions of justice based on fairness heuristic and justice views. The data were collected in a three-stage process from a large information technology corporation in China. The findings revealed that interactional justice mediated authentic leadership and NWG's relationship with supervisors and the relationship between authentic leadership and NWG about coworkers. The procedural justice mediated the relationship between authentic leadership and NWG about supervisors, while it didn't mediate the relationship between authentic leadership and NWG about coworkers. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Keywords

Authentic leadershipfairness heuristic viewinteractional justicenegative workplace gossipprocedural justice
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Management & Organization , Volume 28 , Issue 1 , January 2022 , pp. 9 - 32
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2021

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