Principle-Centered Leadership in Organizations: Pathways to Innovation and Barriers to Implementation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.69569/jip.2025.729Keywords:
Employee innovation, Leadership development, Organizational trust, Principle-centered leadership, Psychological safetyAbstract
As organizations increasingly rely on innovation, understanding how Principle-Centered Leadership (PCL) fosters Employee Innovative Work Behavior (IWB) is essential. This study addresses this gap by synthesizing research on the key mediators—psychological safety and organizational trust—and the practical implementation challenges. A systematic literature review was conducted using the PRISMA framework, analyzing 52 eligible studies. Findings show the PCL-IWB link is rarely direct; it is primarily mediated by psychological safety and organizational trust. The key challenges identified include the difficulty of translating abstract PCL concepts into concrete measurements and the subjective perception of these principles across different corporate cultures. The practical implication is that organizations should invest in leadership development that goes beyond theory. Training must also equip leaders with tangible tools to intentionally build psychological safety and trust deliberately, thereby creating the environment required to unlock employee innovation.
Downloads
References
Alateeg, S., & Alhammadi, A. (2024). The role of employee engagement towards innovative work behavior mediated by leadership in small businesses. International Journal of Advanced and Applied Sciences, 11(2), 145. https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2024.02.016
Bento, A., Sariwulan, T., & Nikensari, I. (2024). Linking ethical leadership to innovative performance: The role of intellectual capital in BUMDes tourism sector in Indonesia. International Journal of Human Capital Management, 3(1), 22-38.
Bao, Y. (2024). A dual mediation model of the association between principal inclusive leadership and teacher innovative behavior. Scientific Report, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-63332-0
Bedenkov, A., Galimov, A., & Muravyev, A. (2021). The 7+ habits of highly effective medical directors. Pharmaceutical Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40290-021-00403-x
Benlahcene, A., Arar, Z., & Alkhawaldeh, M. A. (2022). How poor leadership skills elicit unethical behavior: Evidence from public organizations. Journal of Public Administration and Governance, 12(2), 409–425.
Brahm, N., Kissack, J., Grace, S., & Lundquist, L. (2012). Application of leadership strategies secondary to a book review. Journal of Curriculum and Teaching, 2(1). Sciedu Press. https://doi.org/10.5430/jct.v2n1p27
Brown, M. E., & Treviño, L. K. (2006). Ethical leadership: A review and future directions. The Leadership Quarterly, 17(6), 595–616. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2006.10.004
Bunkaewsuk, P., Uppathampracha, R., Peng, B., & Anwar, M. (2024). Unpacking the relationship between ethical leadership and innovative work behavior: A moderated mediation model. Banks and Bank Systems, 19(2), 184–198. https://doi.org/10.21511/bbs.19(2).2024.15
Dagogo, T., & Barasin, A. (2020). Organizational trustworthiness and employee innovative work behaviour. Journal of Strategic Management, 5(1), 25. https://doi.org/10.47672/jsm.456
Guo, Y., Jin, J., & Yim, S.-H. (2022). Impact of inclusive leadership on innovative work behavior: The mediating role of job crafting. Administrative Sciences, 13(1), 4. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci13010004
Gupta, S., Nawaz, N., Tripathi, A., Chaudhry, S. A., & Agrawal, K. (2022). Impact of inclusive leadership on innovation performance during the Coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak: Mediating role of employee innovation behavior and moderating role of psychological empowerment. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.811330
Hughes, D. J., Lee, A., Tian, A. W., Newman, A., & Legood, A. (2018). Leadership, creativity, and innovation: A critical review and practical recommendations. The Leadership Quarterly, 29(5), 549. Elsevier BV. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2018.03.001
Javed, B., Naqvi, S. M. M. R., Khan, A. K., Arjoon, S., & Tayyeb, H. H. (2017). Impact of inclusive leadership on innovative work behavior: The role of psychological safety. Journal of Management & Organization, 25(1), 117. https://doi.org/10.1017/jmo.2017.3
Li, T., & Tang, N. (2022). Inclusive leadership and innovative performance: A multi-level mediation model of psychological safety. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.934831
Liehr, J., & Hauff, S. (2024). Promoting employees’ innovative work behavior through innovation-specific leader behavior: An AMO-approach. Journal of Management & Organization, 1. https://doi.org/10.1017/jmo.2024.57
Liu, Q., Zhang, Q., & Huang, J. (2023). The influence of ethical leadership and team learning on team performance in software development projects. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1040000.
Liu, X., Huang, Y., Kim, J., & Na, S. (2023). How ethical leadership cultivate innovative work behaviors in employees? Psychological safety, work engagement, and openness to experience. Sustainability, 15(4), 3452. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043452
Lythreatis, S., El-Kassar, A.-N., Smart, P., & Ferraris, A. (2022). Participative leadership, ethical climate, and responsible innovation perceptions: Evidence from South Korea. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 41(3), 1285. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-022-09856-3
Meriweather, L. (2024). Leadership and innovation: A framework for organizational change through servant leadership constructs. Regent Research Roundtables. Pp. 322–369. https://tinyurl.com/2b27tpcb
Murcio, R., & Scalzo, G. (2021). Person-centered leadership: The practical idea as a dynamic principle for ethical leadership. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 708849. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.708849
Obuba, M. O. (2023). Evaluating the moral components of authentic leadership on employees' productivity: A literature review. Open Journal of Leadership, 12(1), 89-115. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojl.2023.121007
Oshame, D., & Maureen, O. E. (2023). Critical analysis of four leadership theories and principles. World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 17(1), 1387. https://doi.org/10.30574/wjarr.2023.17.1.0187
Pangayom, A. I. T., & Kusmaningtyas, A. (2023). Ethical leadership and authentic leadership for improving innovative work behavior. International Journal of Science and Research Archive, 9(1), 679. https://doi.org/10.30574/ijsra.2023.9.1.0509
Qi, L., Liu, B., Wei, X., & Hu, Y. (2019). Impact of inclusive leadership on employee innovative behavior: Perceived organizational support as a mediator. PLoS ONE, 14(2). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0212091
Rahimizhian, S., & Irani, F. (2021). Investigating the antecedents of innovative behaviors in the hotel industry of Turkey. Tourism & Management Studies, 17(4), 45. https://doi.org/10.18089/tms.2021.170404
Riza, M. F., Hutahayan, B., & Chong, H. (2025). Fostering high-performing organizations in higher education: The effect of participative leadership, organizational culture, and innovation on organizational performance and commitment. Cogent Education, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186x.2024.2448884
Saleem, A., Bhutta, M. K. S., Abrar, M., Bari, M. W., & Bashir, M. (2024). Leader’s ethical behavior: A precursor to employees’ well-being through emotion management. Acta Psychologica, 249, 104453. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2024.104453
Saleem, F., Zhang, Y., & Ullah, H. (2024). Ethical leadership and innovative behavior: Mediating role of voice behavior and moderated mediation role of psychological safety. Sustainability, 14(9), 5125. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095125
Sharma, L., Agarwal, P., Joshi, B. P., Kumar, N., & Tiwari, S. (2023). A study of the impact of inclusive leadership on innovative behaviors and diversity at the workplace. Environment and Social Psychology, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.54517/esp.v9i1.1721
Shiundu, T. W. (2024). Ethical leadership and its implications on decision-making in organizations: A literature review. Journal of Human Resource & Leadership, 8(1), 59–67. https://doi.org/10.53819/81018102t30131
Slåtten, T., Mutonyi, B. R., & Lien, G. (2020). The impact of individual creativity, psychological capital, and leadership autonomy support on hospital employees’ innovative behaviour. BMC Health Services Research, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-020-05954-4
Usman, M., & Hameed, W. U. (2017). Corruption, fast or slow? Ethical leadership interacts with Machiavellianism to influence intuitive thinking and corruption. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 578419.
Wang, H., Chen, M., & Li, X. (2021). Moderating multiple mediation models of the impact of inclusive leadership on employee innovative behavior. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.666477
Zhu, J., Zhi, W., & Fang, Y. (2025). Ethical leadership, organizational learning, and corporate ESG performance: A moderated mediation model. International Review of Economics & Finance, 98(C), 103966. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iref.2025.103966
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Journal of Interdisciplinary Perspectives
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
