Role of AL on Employees’Organizational Citizenship Behavior : The Mediating Role of Work-life Balance and the Moderating Effect of Adversity Quotient and Positive Psychological Capital

In organizational behavior, the impact of leadership in organizations and employees’ organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) have been two hot topics studied by scholars. However, previous studies have predominantly examined the organizational citizenship behavior of various generational groups. In the context of China’s socialist market economy, it is necessary to study the OCB of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Furthermore, employees’ work-life balance in the context of SOEs’ unique organizational cultures has also attracted much attention. Scholars have discovered that employees respond well to authentic leadership (AL). Although this observation has a theoretical basis, empirical research remains insufficient. Therefore, this study examined whether AL effectively promotes OCB among employees in SOEs. Additionally, we examined the mediating role of work-life balance and the moderating role of the adversity authentic and positive psychological capital. The research hypotheses were tested using 390 valid questionnaires from 60 teams using MPLUS 8.0. The results of the MPLUS study confirmed that AL promotes OCB. Work-life balance positively mediated between AL and OCB, adversity quotient positively moderated AL and work-life balance, while positive psychological capital positively mediated the impact of work-life balance on OCB. These findings provide empirical support for applying social exchange, adversity quotient, and resource conservation theories. Moreover, this study provides certain managerial insights through which managers can more effectively improve employees’ professional behavior in SOEs.