Leader knowledge sharing behavior and follower creativity: the role of follower acquired knowledge and prosocial motivation

Abstract

Purpose: Although leaders play a vital role in motivating the creative performance of followers, a paucity of research has examined specific behaviors of leaders. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of leader knowledge sharing behavior on followers’ creative performance. Design/methodology/approach: To decrease the potential of the common method bias, this research conducted a time-lagged study to gather data from 319 employees working at information technology companies in Vietnam. This study used the hierarchical regression analysis to test the hypotheses. Findings: The results showed that leader knowledge sharing behavior had a positive impact on follower creativity. Moreover, follower-acquired knowledge partially mediated this relationship. Furthermore, follower prosocial motivation positively moderated the effects of leader knowledge sharing behavior and follower-acquired knowledge on followers’ creative performance. Originality/value: The findings contribute to the creativity literature by providing evidence that leader knowledge sharing behavior could stimulate follower creativity directly and indirectly through follower-acquired knowledge. This research also confirmed the moderating role of prosocial motivation in reinforcing the influence of leader behaviors and employee ability on employee creativity.