리더겸손이 부하 적응수행에 미치는 영향: 심리적 안전감의 매개효과 및 리더 역량의 조절효과

In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, organizations face unprecedented challenges that demand agility and adaptability from their workforce. As a result, subordinates' adaptive performance—their ability to adjust behaviors in response to new challenges and changing work conditions—has emerged as a critical indicator of organizational success. This study investigates the impact of leader humility on sub ordinates' adaptive performance, a relationship that has gained significant attention in recent leadership research but remains understudied in non-Western contexts. Drawing on social information processing theory, which posits that individuals use environmental cues to interpret events and determine their behavior in the workplace, this research examines the mechanisms through which leader humility influences subordinates' adaptive performance. Specifically, we propose and test a model in which leader humility affects adaptive performance both directly and indirectly through the mediating mechanism of psychological safety. Furthermore, we explore the potential moderating role of leader competence on these relationships, considering the unique cultural context of China where both humility and authority are highly valued. To test our hypotheses, we conducted a survey among 268 employees residing in China. Data were analyzed using Hayes' PROCESS macro, allowing for simultaneous examination of mediation and moderation effects. Our results reveal several key findings: 1. Leader humility demonstrates a significant positive direct effect on subordinates' adaptive performance, supporting the notion that humble leadership behaviors can directly enhance employees' ability to adapt to changing work environments. 2. The relationship between leader humility and adaptive performance is partially mediated by psychological safety. This finding suggests that humble leaders create an environment where subordinates feel psychologically safe, which in turn facilitates their adaptive behaviors. 3. Contrary to our expectations, the hypothesized moderating effect of leader competence was not statistically significant. This implies that the positive influence of leader humility on subordinates' adaptive performance remains consistent regardless of perceived leader competence levels. These findings make several important contributions to the leadership and organizational behavior literature. First, they extend our understanding of how leader humility operates in non-Western contexts, specifically in China. Second, by illuminating the mediating role of psychological safety, this research provides insight into the psychological mechanisms through which leader humility translates into improved adaptive performance. Third, the non-significant moderation of leader competence challenges assumptions about the interplay between humility and perceived capability in leadership effectiveness. In conclusion, this study contributes to our understanding of how leader humility influences subordinates' adaptive performance in the Chinese cultural context. By highlighting the role of psychological safety and challenging assumptions about leader competence, it provides a nuanced view of humble leadership's effects. As organizations continue to navigate increasingly complex and dynamic environments, the insights from this research can inform more effective leadership practices aimed at enhancing employee adaptability.