Is leadership position related to more social inclusion, happiness, and satisfaction with life? The importance of power distance index
Abstract
A leadership position is associated with influence, success, and power, especially in cultures with high power distance (Zheng et al., 2018). Yet, we still know little about leaders’ wellbeing in different cultures. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate if a leadership position is related to more happiness, satisfaction with life and social inclusion.Additionally, it is presumed that this relationship could differ in countries with different power distance scores. European Social Survey (ESS) data from Round 9, edition 2.0 was employed to test research propositions. 23 079 currently working respondents’ data whose main activity was paid work (7130 of them having leadership positions) were analysed. The study results showed that leaders were more satisfied with life, happier, and more socially included than people who did not have a leadership position in their workplace. The power distance index acted as a moderator only in the model of happiness prediction. However, this country related variable had a significant direct negative effect on predicting peoples’ happiness and satisfaction with life, and direct positive effect on social inclusion. Regarding results, a shared leadership perspective could be proposed to have more satisfied with life, happy and socially active members in the organization.
Keyword : leadership position, happiness, satisfaction with life, social exclusion, power distance, European Social Survey (ESS) data
How to Cite
Stelmokienė, A., & Jarašiūnaitė-Fedosejeva, G. (2023). Is leadership position related to more social inclusion, happiness, and satisfaction with life? The importance of power distance index. Business: Theory and Practice, 24(1), 148–159. https://doi.org/10.3846/btp.2023.16705
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
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Li, W. D., Schaubroeck, J. M., Xie, J. L., & Keller, A. C. (2018). Is being a leader a mixed blessing? A dual‐pathway model linking leadership role occupancy to well‐being. Journal of organizational Behavior, 39(8), 971–989. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2273
Lord, R. G., Day, D. V., Zaccaro, S. J., Avolio, B. J., & Eagly, A. H. (2017). Leadership in applied psychology: Three waves of theory and research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(3), 434–451. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000089
Mayungbo, O. A. (2017). The moderating effect of socio-demographic characteristics on subjective wellbeing. International Journal of Social Science Research, 5(1), 120–136. https://doi.org/10.5296/ijssr.v5i1.11009
Marques, J. (2015). The changed leadership landscape: What matters today. Journal of Management Development, 34(10), 1310–1322. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-02-2015-0010
Mittal, R., & Elias, S. M. (2016). Social power and leadership in cross-cultural context. Journal of Management Development, 35(1), 58–74. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-02-2014-0020
Moore, M. M. (2007). Happiness in the catbird set: Conversations with CEOs [Master thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology], Massachusetts, USA.
Norman, G. (2010). Likert scales, levels of measurement and the “laws” of statistics. Advances in Health Sciences Education: Theory and Practice, 15(5), 625–632. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-010-9222-y
Pasa, S. F. (2000). Leadership influence in a high-power distance and collectivist culture. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 21(8), 414–426. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437730010379258
Roche, M., & Haar, J. M. (2013). Leaders life aspirations and job burnout: A self-determination theory approach. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 34(6), 515–531. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-10-2011-0103
Ryan, R. M., Huta, V., & Deci, E. L. (2008). Living well: A self-determination theory perspective on eudaimonia. Journal of Happiness Studies: An Interdisciplinary Forum on Subjective Well-Being, 9(1), 139–170. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9023-4
Schermerhorn, J. R., & Bond, M. H. (1997). Cross‐cultural leadership dynamics in collectivism and high power distance settings. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 18(4), 187–193. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437739710182287
Stavrova, O., & Ren, D. (2021). Is more always better? Examining the nonlinear association of social contact frequency with physical health and longevity. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 12(6), 1058–1070. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550620961589
Steel, P., Taras, V., Uggerslev, K., & Bosco, F. (2018). The happy culture: A theoretical, meta-analytic, and empirical review of the relationship between culture and wealth and subjective well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 22(2), 128–169. https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868317721372
Sutton, A. (2020). Living the good life: A meta-analysis of authenticity, well-being and engagement. Personality and Individual Differences, 153, 109645. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2019.109645
Yukl, G. (2012). Effective leadership behavior: What we know and what questions need more attention. Academy of Management Perspectives, 26(4), 66–85. https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.2012.0088
Wu, H., & Leung S. (2017). Can Likert Scales be treated as Interval Scales? – A simulation study. Journal of Social Service Research, 43(4), 527–532. https://doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2017.1329775
Zheng, W. B., Wang, W. J., Meng, D. U., & Zang, Y. X. (2018). Study on the influence of power distance on leadership behavior. DES Tech Transactions on Social Science, Education and Human Science, 130–139. https://doi.org/10.12783/dtssehs/emass2018/20402
Antonacopoulou, E. P., & Georgiadou, A. (2021). Leading through social distancing: The future of work, corporations and leadership from home. Gender, Work & Organization, 28(2), 749–767. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12533
Awang, Z., Afthanorhan, A., & Mamat, M. (2016). The Likert scale analysis using parametric based structural equation modeling (SEM). Computational Methods in Social Sciences, 4(1), 13–21.
Beausaert, S., Froehlich, D. E., Riley, P., & Gallant, A. (2021). What about school principals’ well-being? The role of social capital. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 51(2), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143221991853
Bernerth, J. B., & Hirschfeld, R. R. (2016). The subjective well-being of group leaders as explained by the quality of leader–member exchange. The Leadership Quarterly, 27(4), 697–710. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2016.04.003
Clark, M. A., Stevens, G. W., Michel, J. S., & Zimmerman, L. (2016). Workaholism among leaders: Implications for their own and their followers’ well-being. In The role of leadership in occupational stress (Research in occupational stress and well-being) (Vol. 14, pp. 1–31). Emerald Group Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-355520160000014001
Daniels, M. A., & Greguras, G. J. (2014). Exploring the nature of power distance: Implications for micro-and macro-level theories, processes, and outcomes. Journal of Management, 40(5), 1202–1229. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206314527131
Edelmann, C. M., Boen, F., & Fransen, K. (2020). The power of empowerment: Predictors and benefits of shared leadership in organizations. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 582894. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.582894
European Social Survey. (2019). ESS (2018/2019). European social survey Round 9 Data, Edition 2.0. https://www.europeansocialsurvey.org/data/download.html?r=9
Ghasemi, A., & Zahediasl, S. (2012). Normality tests for statistical analysis: A guide for non-statisticians. International Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, 10(2), 486–489. https://doi.org/10.5812/ijem.3505
Gravetter, F., & Wallnau, L. (2014). Essentials of statistics for the behavioral sciences (8th ed.). Wadsworth.
Grint, K., Jones, O. S., Holt, C., & Storey, J. (2016). What is leadership: Person, result, position or process, or all or none of these? In J. Storey, J. Hartley, J. L. Denis, P. t’Hart, & D. Ulrich (Eds.), The Routledge companion to leadership (pp. 3–20). Routledge.
Hayes, A. F. (2018). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis. A regression-based approach. The Guilford Press.
Hetland, H., Hetland, J., Andreassen, C. S., Pallesen, S. & Notelaers, G. (2011). Leadership and fulfillment of the three basic psychological needs at work. Career Development International, 16(5), 507–523. https://doi.org/10.1108/13620431111168903
Hofstede Insights. (n.d.). Compare countries. https://www.hofstede-insights.com
House, R. J., Hanges, P. J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., & Gupta, V. (2004). Culture, leadership, and organizations: the GLOBE study of 62 societies. Sage.
Hupert, F., Clark, A., Frey, B., Marks, N., & Sielgrist, J. (2005). ESS3 Personal and social wellbeing module proposal. https://www.europeansocialsurvey.org/data/themes.html?t=wellbeing
Islam, T. U. (2019). Ranking of normality tests: An appraisal through skewed alternative space. Symmetry, 11(7), 872–886. https://doi.org/10.3390/sym11070872
Kaluza, A. J., Boer, D., Buengeler, C., & van Dick, R. (2020). Leadership behaviour and leader self-reported well-being: A review, integration and meta-analytic examination. Work & Stress, 34(1), 34–56. https://doi.org/10.1080/02678373.2019.1617369
Kaminska, O. (2020). Guide to using weights and sample design indicators with ESS Data. European Social Survey. https://www.europeansocialsurvey.org/docs/methodology/ESS_weighting_data_1_1.pdf
Kaplan, R. E., Drath, W. H., & Kofodimos, J. R. (1991). The Jossey-Bass management series. Beyond ambition: How driven managers can lead better and live better. Jossey-Bass.
Kifer, Y., Heller, D., Perunovic, W. Q. E., & Galinsky, A. D. (2013). The good life of the powerful: The experience of power and authenticity enhances subjective well-being. Psychological Science, 24(3), 280–288. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797612450891
Kim, H. Y. (2013). Statistical notes for clinical researchers: Assessing normal distribution using skewness and kurtosis. Restorative Dentistry & Endodontics, 38(1), 52–54. https://doi.org/10.5395/rde.2013.38.1.52
Kossek, E. E., Huang, J. L., Piszczek, M. M., Fleenor, J. W., & Ruderman, M. (2017). Rating expatriate leader effectiveness in multisource feedback systems: Cultural distance and hierarchical effects. Human Resource Management, 56(1), 151–172. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21763
Lambert, L., Lomas, T., van de Weijer, M. P., Passmore, H. A., Joshanloo, M., Harter, J., Ishikawa, Y., Lai, A., Kitagawa, T., Chen, D., Kawakami, T., Miyata, H., & Diener, E. (2020). Towards a greater global understanding of wellbeing: A proposal for a more inclusive measure. International Journal of Wellbeing, 10(2), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.5502/ijw.v10i2.1037
Lanaj, K., Foulk, T. A., & Jennings, R. E. (2022). Improving the lives of leaders: The beneficial effects of positive leader self-reflection. Journal of Management. https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063221110205
Lanaj, K., Johnson, R. E., & Lee, S. M. (2016). Benefits of transformational behaviors for leaders: A daily investigation of leader behaviors and need fulfilment. Journal of Applied Psychology, 101(2), 237–251. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000052
Li, W. D., Schaubroeck, J. M., Xie, J. L., & Keller, A. C. (2018). Is being a leader a mixed blessing? A dual‐pathway model linking leadership role occupancy to well‐being. Journal of organizational Behavior, 39(8), 971–989. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2273
Lord, R. G., Day, D. V., Zaccaro, S. J., Avolio, B. J., & Eagly, A. H. (2017). Leadership in applied psychology: Three waves of theory and research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(3), 434–451. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000089
Mayungbo, O. A. (2017). The moderating effect of socio-demographic characteristics on subjective wellbeing. International Journal of Social Science Research, 5(1), 120–136. https://doi.org/10.5296/ijssr.v5i1.11009
Marques, J. (2015). The changed leadership landscape: What matters today. Journal of Management Development, 34(10), 1310–1322. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-02-2015-0010
Mittal, R., & Elias, S. M. (2016). Social power and leadership in cross-cultural context. Journal of Management Development, 35(1), 58–74. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-02-2014-0020
Moore, M. M. (2007). Happiness in the catbird set: Conversations with CEOs [Master thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology], Massachusetts, USA.
Norman, G. (2010). Likert scales, levels of measurement and the “laws” of statistics. Advances in Health Sciences Education: Theory and Practice, 15(5), 625–632. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-010-9222-y
Pasa, S. F. (2000). Leadership influence in a high-power distance and collectivist culture. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 21(8), 414–426. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437730010379258
Roche, M., & Haar, J. M. (2013). Leaders life aspirations and job burnout: A self-determination theory approach. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 34(6), 515–531. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-10-2011-0103
Ryan, R. M., Huta, V., & Deci, E. L. (2008). Living well: A self-determination theory perspective on eudaimonia. Journal of Happiness Studies: An Interdisciplinary Forum on Subjective Well-Being, 9(1), 139–170. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9023-4
Schermerhorn, J. R., & Bond, M. H. (1997). Cross‐cultural leadership dynamics in collectivism and high power distance settings. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 18(4), 187–193. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437739710182287
Stavrova, O., & Ren, D. (2021). Is more always better? Examining the nonlinear association of social contact frequency with physical health and longevity. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 12(6), 1058–1070. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550620961589
Steel, P., Taras, V., Uggerslev, K., & Bosco, F. (2018). The happy culture: A theoretical, meta-analytic, and empirical review of the relationship between culture and wealth and subjective well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 22(2), 128–169. https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868317721372
Sutton, A. (2020). Living the good life: A meta-analysis of authenticity, well-being and engagement. Personality and Individual Differences, 153, 109645. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2019.109645
Yukl, G. (2012). Effective leadership behavior: What we know and what questions need more attention. Academy of Management Perspectives, 26(4), 66–85. https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.2012.0088
Wu, H., & Leung S. (2017). Can Likert Scales be treated as Interval Scales? – A simulation study. Journal of Social Service Research, 43(4), 527–532. https://doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2017.1329775
Zheng, W. B., Wang, W. J., Meng, D. U., & Zang, Y. X. (2018). Study on the influence of power distance on leadership behavior. DES Tech Transactions on Social Science, Education and Human Science, 130–139. https://doi.org/10.12783/dtssehs/emass2018/20402