The Mediating Role of Trust in the Relationship between Transformational and Transactional Leadership and Affective Commitment: The Comparative Study of Korean and Filipino Employees

Based on social exchange theory, the present study examines the mediating effect of trust in the leader in the relationships between both transformational and transactional leadership and affective commitment among Korean and Filipino employees. Also, to test whether both leadership styles are similarly effective among Korean and Filipino employees as both countries are same cultural cluster, called ‘Asia’, this study examines the moderating role of country in the relationships between both transformational and transactional leadership and trust in the leader. A data was obtained from 625 from a variety industry of Korea and the Philippines. The findings of this study showed that trust in the leader was fully mediated in the relationships between both transformational and transactional leadership and affective commitment among Korean and Filipino employees. Moreover, this study found that the effectiveness of transformational leadership was universally positive in both Korea and the Philippines. In contrast, the positive moderating effect of transactional leadership was stronger for Korean employees than Filipino employees. Showing that only ttransformational leadership is effective across Asian countries. The results of study highlight the important role of trust in the leader as it translates both transformational and transactional leadership into positive affective commitment among Korean and Filipino employees. This study also emphasizes that the effectiveness of transformational and transactional leadership can be different even Korea and The Philippines are categorized into same cultural cluster.