The Impact of Shared Leadership on Innovative Behavior and Affective Organizational Commitment: The Mediating Role of Knowledge Sharing

Drawing on social network theory, this study examined the effects of shared leadership on innovative behavior and affective organizational commitment, focusing on the mediating effect of knowledge sharing. For this research, employees from three five-star hotels in Seoul, South Korea, were selected, and a total of 297 employees from companies A, B, and C participated. By employing structural equation modeling, we found that shared leadership had a significant positive effect on innovative behavior, affective organizational commitment and knowledge sharing. Knowledge sharing was found to not only have a positive effect on innovative behavior and affective organizational commitment but also exhibit partial mediating effects in the relationship between shared leadership and innovative behavior, and between shared leadership and affective organizational commitment. The results of this study empirically demonstrated that shared leadership positively affects innovative behavior and affective organizational commitment, and that knowledge sharing has a mediating effect in these relationships. This study expands the research on shared leadership and validates the mediating effect of knowledge sharing in the influence relationships on innovative behavior and affective organizational commitment. The research suggests the importance of human resource development to foster shared leadership and knowledge sharing, to encourage open communication culture, and to implement systems that promote continuous learning and innovation within organizations.