Although sustainability has been a priority for organizations, there is still a lack of research on how leaders with a stakeholder perspective can motivate employees to adopt green behavior for sustainability in a complex and changing environment. This paper introduced social cognitive theory to describe two mechanisms by which responsible leadership predicts employee green behavior. Our research considers felt obligation for constructive change and stakeholder value as mediations with cognitive perspective in this process. Additionally, we consider the moderating effects of positive emotion and the superior-subordinate relationship. Our model received support from the investigation and research. By emphasizing the significance of perceived responsible leadership and proposing a new way of perceiving employee green behavior that ensures guidance from responsible leadership along the cognition perspective, the present research contributes to our understanding of the incentive effect of responsible leadership on employee green behavior.

In today’s uncertain organizational environment, employee creativity has become the key driver of enterprise sustainability. Although previous studies have found the influence of responsible leadership on employee creativity, there remains a lack of study on how responsible leadership promotes employee creativity via intrinsic motivation mechanisms and what situational factors may moderate this process. This paper aims to construct a moderate-mediation model to examine the impact of responsible leadership and employee creativity through social cognitive theory and situational strength theory. The authors conducted a multi-source, time-lagged data collection between June and July 2023. At Time 1, subordinates assessed responsible leadership and psychological empowerment. At Time 2, conducted 4 weeks later, the same subordinates evaluated the leader’s encouragement of creativity and their employee creativity. In total, 1,126 participants completed both waves of data collection. The results suggest that responsible leadership has a positive effect on both psychological empowerment and employee creativity. Moreover, psychological empowerment partially mediates the relationship between responsible leadership and employee creativity. The extent to which a leader promotes creativity can influence how responsible leadership and psychological empowerment contribute to employee creativity. This study reveals the internal psychological mechanisms and situational boundaries through which responsible leadership influences employee creativity, thereby enriching the theoretical foundation of leadership and creativity research. The findings indicate that organizations should prioritize the development of responsible leadership, strengthening psychological empowerment mechanisms, and promoting a supportive, creative environment. This includes encouraging creativity, promoting fault-tolerant experimentation, and implementing recognition systems to fully unlock employees’ creative potential.

Grounded in social cognitive theory and social exchange theory, this study investigates how and under what conditions responsible leadership promotes employee voice behavior. Drawing on data from two waves of surveys involving 677 employees in China’s technology industry, we tested a moderated mediation model using structural equation modeling. Our findings reveal that (a) responsible leadership is positively associated with voice behavior; (b) the four dimensions of psychological empowerment, meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact, partially mediate this relationship; (c) supervisor-subordinate guanxi moderates the effect of responsible leadership on psychological empowerment; and (d) guanxi strengthens the indirect effect of responsible leadership on voice behavior primarily through the meaning dimension of psychological empowerment. These findings highlight the crucial role of psychological empowerment and relational context in promoting proactive employee behaviors that align with responsible leadership. Practical implications for leadership development and organizational practices are also discussed.

This study examines whether leader humor can mitigate employee job burnout and investigates the underlying mechanisms and boundary conditions of this relationship. Drawing on Conservation of Resources (COR) theory and Cognitive Appraisal Theory (CAT), we propose a moderated mediation model. Psychological capital mediates the link between leader humor and job burnout, while positive reciprocity belief moderates the direct effect of leader humor on burnout. Data were collected from 239 employees of small and medium-sized enterprises in Mainland China using a two-wave survey design. Our findings reveal that leader humor is negatively associated with job burnout and positively associated with psychological capital, which in turn reduces burnout. Moreover, the negative relationship between leader humor and job burnout is amplified when employees hold stronger beliefs in positive reciprocity. However, the moderated mediation effect was not statistically supported. Theoretical contributions and practical implications for leadership development and employee well-being are discussed.

Purpose: This study investigates how paradoxical leadership (PL) influences employees' ambidextrous innovation through the mediating role of harmonious work passion (HWP). It further examines whether variability in perceived PL weakens this mediation path. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on the self-determination theory and the social information processing theory, we tested a cross-level moderated mediation model using matched data from 125 supervisors and 611 employees across a high-tech enterprise in China. Findings: Results indicate that PL positively predicts both exploitative and exploratory innovation via enhanced HWP. However, variability in perceived PL did not significantly moderate this mediation effect. Practical implications: Our results show that leaders can boost employees' ability to improve existing processes and explore new ideas by supporting autonomy, offering clear guidance while allowing flexibility and encouraging genuine enjoyment in work. Consistent leadership behaviors help employees feel secure and motivated to balance efficiency and innovation goals. Originality/value: This study advances PL theory by uncovering the motivational pathway through HWP and clarifying the limited role of within-team perceptual variability. It offers a novel contribution to understanding how leaders navigate competing demands to promote dual innovation in dynamic work contexts.