Original Research

Positive organisation: The role of leader behaviour in work engagement and retention

Fallen Mendes, Marius W. Stander
SA Journal of Industrial Psychology | Vol 37, No 1 | a900 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/sajip.v37i1.900 | © 2011 Fallen Mendes, Marius W. Stander | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 19 March 2010 | Published: 06 May 2011

About the author(s)

Fallen Mendes, North-West University, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa
Marius W. Stander, North-West University, South Africa

Abstract

Orientation: The positive organisation creates a framework in which its elements can be investigated in relation to the retention of talent.

Research purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate if leader empowering behaviour can positively impact on role clarity, psychological empowerment and work engagement, with the final outcome being the retention of talent.

Motivation for the study: In the ever changing work environment organisations place great emphasis on their human capital. The positive organisation utilises specific elements to optimise human capital’s potential. It is therefore important to identify the elements contributing to a positive organisation as well as the elements which lead to the retention of talent.

Research design, approach and method: A survey research design was used. A convenience sample (n = 179) was taken from a business unit in a chemical organisation. The Leader Empowering Behaviour Questionnaire, Measures of Role Clarity and Ambiguity Questionnaire, Measuring Empowerment Questionnaire, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale and the Intention to Leave Scale were administered.

Main findings: Leader empowering behaviour, role clarity and psychological empowerment predicted work engagement. Role clarity interacted with competence to affect employees’ dedication and interacted with the development of employees to affect absorption. Work engagement predicted employees’ intention to leave.

Practical/managerial implications: Organisations should foster the elements of a positive organisation if they want to retain their talent.

Contribution/value-add: The results of this research contribute to scientific knowledge about the effects of a positive organisation on retention.


Keywords

Positive organisation, leader empowering behaviour, role clarity, psychological empowerment, employee engagement, intention to leave.

Metrics

Total abstract views: 13513
Total article views: 40609

 

Crossref Citations

1. Does Transactional Leadership Generate Work Engagement in the Hotel Industry? The Role of Motivating Language and Job Prestige
Md Karim Rabiul
Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality & Tourism  vol: 25  issue: 3  first page: 442  year: 2024  
doi: 10.1080/1528008X.2022.2135055

2. Transformational leadership and work engagement
Mohammed Yasin Ghadi, Mario Fernando, Peter Caputi
Leadership & Organization Development Journal  vol: 34  issue: 6  first page: 532  year: 2013  
doi: 10.1108/LODJ-10-2011-0110

3. Leading Volunteer Motivation: How Leader Behaviour can Trigger and Fulfil Volunteers’ Motivations
Amber C Y Tsai, Toby Newstead, Gemma Lewis, Swee-Hoon Chuah
Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations  vol: 35  issue: 2  first page: 266  year: 2024  
doi: 10.1007/s11266-023-00588-6

4. Evaluation of a Servant Leadership Intervention
Michiel Frederick Coetzer, Mark Bussin, Madelyn Geldenhuys
Administrative Sciences  vol: 15  issue: 11  first page: 420  year: 2025  
doi: 10.3390/admsci15110420

5. The Influence Mechanism of Owners’ Safety Management Behavior on Construction Workers’ Safety Citizenship Behavior
Lei Zhang, Yuanxin Liu, Zhenwei Chu
Behavioral Sciences  vol: 13  issue: 9  first page: 721  year: 2023  
doi: 10.3390/bs13090721

6. Human Resource Practices and Employee Retention: The Moderating Effect of Job Engagement
Emmanuel Erastus Yamoah, Isaac Asante Yeboah, Dorcas Nyulnye Nyala
SEISENSE Business Review  vol: 4  issue: 1  first page: 200  year: 2024  
doi: 10.33215/agg17288

7. Transformational Leadership, Energizing Organizational Learning process, and Organizational Performance at Embroidery MSME in District Tasikmalaya
Muhammad Nurdin Yusuf, Aneu Yulianeu
Jurnal Iqra' : Kajian Ilmu Pendidikan  vol: 7  issue: 1  first page: 309  year: 2022  
doi: 10.25217/ji.v7i1.1747

8. Person-environment fit, job satisfaction and intentions to leave: The moderating effect of leader empowering behaviour
Kleinjan Redelinghuys, Elrie Botha
Journal of Psychology in Africa  vol: 26  issue: 1  first page: 11  year: 2016  
doi: 10.1080/14330237.2015.1101273

9. So hard to say goodbye: impact of punitive supervision on turnover intention
Rabbia Zafar, Ghulam Abid, Maryam Rehmat, Muhammad Ali, Qandeel Hassan, Muhammad Farhan Asif
Total Quality Management & Business Excellence  vol: 33  issue: 5-6  first page: 614  year: 2022  
doi: 10.1080/14783363.2021.1882844

10. The validation of the turnover intention scale
Chris F.C. Bothma, Gert Roodt
SA Journal of Human Resource Management  vol: 11  issue: 1  year: 2013  
doi: 10.4102/sajhrm.v11i1.507

11. Empowering leadership and employee creativity: the mediating roles of work engagement and knowledge sharing
Baek-Kyoo Joo, Jeong-Ha Yim, Young Sim Jin, Soo Jeoung Han
European Journal of Training and Development  vol: 47  issue: 9  first page: 881  year: 2023  
doi: 10.1108/EJTD-02-2022-0016

12. Servant leadership and work-related well-being in a construction company
Michiel F. Coetzer, Mark H.R. Bussin, Madelyn Geldenhuys
SA Journal of Industrial Psychology  vol: 43  year: 2017  
doi: 10.4102/sajip.v43i0.1478

13. Leadership in Construction: A Scientometric Review
Wang Peng, Nuzul Azam Haron, Aidi Hizami Alias, Teik Hua Law
Buildings  vol: 12  issue: 11  first page: 1825  year: 2022  
doi: 10.3390/buildings12111825

14. Enhancing employee engagement through integrating leadership and employee job resources: evidence from a public healthcare setting
Giorgos Giallouros, Christos Nicolaides, Elena Gabriel, Mary Economou, Andrea Georgiou, Manolis Diakourakis, Andreas Soteriou, Georgios K. Nikolopoulos
International Public Management Journal  vol: 27  issue: 4  first page: 533  year: 2024  
doi: 10.1080/10967494.2023.2215754

15. The effect of a career development programme based on the Hope-Action Theory: Hope to Work for refugees in British Columbia
Hyung Joon Yoon, Natasha Bailey, Norman Amundson, Spencer Niles
British Journal of Guidance & Counselling  vol: 47  issue: 1  first page: 6  year: 2019  
doi: 10.1080/03069885.2018.1544827

16. Unlocking the power of meaningful work: elevating engagement and satisfaction in the realm of decent jobs
Angela Russo, Andrea Zammitti, Carlotta Catania, Paola Magnano, Giuseppe Santisi
International Journal of Organization Theory & Behavior  vol: 28  issue: 1  first page: 56  year: 2025  
doi: 10.1108/IJOTB-05-2024-0092

17. The impact of work hours on work‐to‐family enrichment and conflict through energy processes: A meta‐analysis
Sunjin Pak, Amit Kramer, Yin Lee, Ki‐Jung Kim
Journal of Organizational Behavior  vol: 43  issue: 4  first page: 709  year: 2022  
doi: 10.1002/job.2595

18. Intention to quit amongst Generation Y academics in higher education
Anecia Robyn, Ronel Du Preez
SA Journal of Industrial Psychology  vol: 39  issue: 1  year: 2013  
doi: 10.4102/sajip.v39i1.1106

19. The Effect of Empowering Leadership Characteristics of School Principals According to Teachers' Perceptions on Teachers' Psychological Ownership and Work Engagement
Esra Töre, Burak Uzun
Participatory Educational Research  vol: 11  issue: 3  first page: 165  year: 2024  
doi: 10.17275/per.24.40.11.3

20. Biographical and demographical variables as moderators in the prediction of turnover intentions
Janine Du Plooy, Gert Roodt
SA Journal of Industrial Psychology  vol: 39  issue: 1  year: 2013  
doi: 10.4102/sajip.v39i1.1070

21. How can personal development lead to increased engagement? The roles of meaningfulness and perceived line manager relations
Luke Fletcher
The International Journal of Human Resource Management  vol: 30  issue: 7  first page: 1203  year: 2019  
doi: 10.1080/09585192.2016.1184177

22. Typische Profile digitaler Kompetenzen: Eine clusteranalytische Untersuchung digitaler Kompetenzen im Arbeitskontext
Robin Merchel, Kathleen Kampschulte, Kathrin Nauth, Jens Pöppelbuß
HMD Praxis der Wirtschaftsinformatik  vol: 61  issue: 1  first page: 159  year: 2024  
doi: 10.1365/s40702-023-01030-7

23. The nexus between reward management and competitive advantage. A Kenya commercial bank's perspective
Justus Nyongesa Wesonga, Johan Van Der Westhuizen
EUREKA: Social and Humanities  issue: 6  first page: 13  year: 2023  
doi: 10.21303/2504-5571.2023.003114

24. Leadership empowering behaviour, psychological empowerment, organisational citizenship behaviours and turnover intention in a manufacturing division
Janie Bester, Marius W. Stander, Llewellyn E. Van Zyl
SA Journal of Industrial Psychology  vol: 41  issue: 1  year: 2015  
doi: 10.4102/sajip.v41i1.1215

25. Employee engagement: Do practitioners care what academics have to say – And should they?
Catherine Bailey
Human Resource Management Review  vol: 32  issue: 1  first page: 100589  year: 2022  
doi: 10.1016/j.hrmr.2016.12.014

26. The psychological well-being manifesting among master’s students in Industrial and Organisational Psychology
Frans Cilliers, Aden-Paul Flotman
SA Journal of Industrial Psychology  vol: 42  issue: 1  year: 2016  
doi: 10.4102/sajip.v42i1.1323

27. Talent management practices and work-related outcomes for South African academic staff
Musawenkosi Donia Saurombe, Emmerentia Nicolene Barkhuizen
Journal of Psychology in Africa  vol: 32  issue: 1  first page: 1  year: 2022  
doi: 10.1080/14330237.2021.2002033

28. The Influence of Dual Missions on Employees’ Meaning of Work and Turnover Intention in Social Enterprises
Jonghun Sun, Young Woo Sohn
Sustainability  vol: 13  issue: 14  first page: 7812  year: 2021  
doi: 10.3390/su13147812

29. The Meaning, Antecedents and Outcomes of Employee Engagement: A Narrative Synthesis
Catherine Bailey, Adrian Madden, Kerstin Alfes, Luke Fletcher
International Journal of Management Reviews  vol: 19  issue: 1  first page: 31  year: 2017  
doi: 10.1111/ijmr.12077

30. Effect of positive organizational behaviour (POB) characteristics on construction employees’ turnover in Uyo City of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria
Amaka Chinweude Ogwueleka, Stanley Nnamdi Ogbonna
African Journal of Science, Technology, Innovation and Development  vol: 10  issue: 2  first page: 159  year: 2018  
doi: 10.1080/20421338.2017.1412610

31. Does meaningful work mediate the relationship between empowering leadership and mental health? Evidence from Malaysian SME employees
Muhammad Farhan Jalil, Bilal Tariq, Azlan Ali
Frontiers in Sociology  vol: 8  year: 2023  
doi: 10.3389/fsoc.2023.1138536

32. Spanish Validation of the Leader Empowering Behavior Questionnaire (LEBQ)
Tomas Bonavia, Juan A. Marin-Garcia
Frontiers in Psychology  vol: 10  year: 2019  
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02368

33. Leader–Member Exchange, Work Engagement, and Psychological Withdrawal Behavior: The Mediating Role of Psychological Empowerment
Arun Aggarwal, Pawan Kumar Chand, Deepika Jhamb, Amit Mittal
Frontiers in Psychology  vol: 11  year: 2020  
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00423

34. Manager relations, psychological need satisfaction and intention to leave in the agricultural sector
Sebastiaan Rothmann, Elsabé Diedericks, Johannes P. Swart
SA Journal of Industrial Psychology  vol: 39  issue: 2  year: 2013  
doi: 10.4102/sajip.v39i2.1129

35. The Relationship between Job Demands and Positive Emotions on Work Engagement among Academic Staff in Algeria: A Conceptual Paper
Abderrahmane Elkheloufi, Tan Fee Yean
South Asian Journal of Social Science and Humanities  vol: 3  issue: 3  first page: 1  year: 2022  
doi: 10.48165/sajssh.2022.3301

36. The effects of leadership satisfaction on employee engagement, loyalty, and retention in the hospitality industry
Laura Book, Anthony Gatling, Jungsun (Sunny) Kim
Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism  vol: 18  issue: 3  first page: 368  year: 2019  
doi: 10.1080/15332845.2019.1599787

37. The influence of leadership behaviours on talent retention: An empirical study
Michelle R. Mey, Paul Poisat, Carmen Stindt
SA Journal of Human Resource Management  vol: 19  year: 2021  
doi: 10.4102/sajhrm.v19i0.1504

38. Spiritual leadership and work engagement: a mediating role of spiritual well-being
Joanna Samul
Central European Management Journal  vol: 32  issue: 3  first page: 421  year: 2024  
doi: 10.1108/CEMJ-05-2023-0223

39. Organizational Leaders’ and Staff Members’ Appraisals of Their Work Environment Within a Children’s Social Service System
David A. Patterson Silver Wolf (Adelv unegv Waya), Catherine Dulmus, Eugene Maguin, John Keesler, Byron Powell
Human Service Organizations Management, Leadership & Governance  vol: 38  issue: 3  first page: 215  year: 2014  
doi: 10.1080/23303131.2014.884032

40. The Organizational Commitment of Public Administrative Leaders and Their Subjective Career Success: Case of the Saudi Irrigation Organization
Yahdih Semlali, Musaddag Elrayah
Administrative Sciences  vol: 12  issue: 4  first page: 125  year: 2022  
doi: 10.3390/admsci12040125

41. Creating an effective self-managed service climate for frontline service employees
Patrick van Esch, Denni Arli, Mahnaz Haji Gheshlaghi
Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services  vol: 57  first page: 102204  year: 2020  
doi: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2020.102204

42. Exploring the Leadership–Engagement Nexus: A Moderated Meta-Analysis and Review of Explaining Mechanisms
Anouk Decuypere, Wilmar Schaufeli
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health  vol: 18  issue: 16  first page: 8592  year: 2021  
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18168592

43. AKADEMİDE ANLAM KAYNAKLARI ENVANTERİ: BİR ENVANTER GELİŞTİRME ÇALIŞMASI
Sema POLATCI, Ali Murat ALPARSLAN, Seher YASTIOĞLU
Ege Akademik Bakis (Ege Academic Review)  year: 2022  
doi: 10.21121/eab.1078018

44. Evaluating the evidence on employee engagement and its potential benefits to NHS staff: a narrative synthesis of the literature
Catherine Bailey, Adrian Madden, Kerstin Alfes, Luke Fletcher, Dilys Robinson, Jenny Holmes, Jonathan Buzzeo, Graeme Currie
Health Services and Delivery Research  vol: 3  issue: 26  first page: 1  year: 2015  
doi: 10.3310/hsdr03260

45. Necessities and Ways of Combating Dissatisfactions at Workplaces Against the Job-Hopping Generation Y Employees
MD Mahamudul Hassan, Manimekalai Jambulingam, Elangkovan Narayanan Alagas, Md. Uzir Hossain Uzir, Hussam Al Halbusi
Global Business Review  vol: 24  issue: 6  first page: 1276  year: 2023  
doi: 10.1177/0972150920926966

46. Enhancing the well-being of support services staff in higher education: The power of appreciation
Laurika Van Straaten, Annelize Du Plessis, S.P. Fanus Van Tonder
SA Journal of Industrial Psychology  vol: 42  issue: 1  year: 2016  
doi: 10.4102/sajip.v42i1.1301

47. Nepotism and Related Threats to Security and Sustainability of the Country: The Case of Lithuanian Organizations
Svajone Bekesiene, Audrone Petrauskaite, Rolanda Kazlauskaite Markeliene
Sustainability  vol: 13  issue: 3  first page: 1536  year: 2021  
doi: 10.3390/su13031536

48. A Cross-Lagged Panel Study Examining the Reciprocal Relationships Between Positive Emotions, Meaning, Strengths use and Study Engagement in Primary School Students
Sylvia Y C L Kwok, Siqi Fang
Journal of Happiness Studies  vol: 22  issue: 3  first page: 1033  year: 2021  
doi: 10.1007/s10902-020-00262-4