Transformational Leadership and Perceived Overqualification: A Career Development Perspective

Area of Science:

• Organizational Behavior
• Human Resource Management
• Social Psychology

Background:

• Perceived overqualification can negatively impact employee attitudes and behaviors.
• Understanding the role of leadership and interpersonal relationships is crucial for managing employee perceptions.
• Career growth opportunities are vital for employee development and job satisfaction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the indirect effect of transformational leadership on perceived overqualification through career growth opportunities.
• To examine the moderating role of supervisor-subordinate guanxi in this relationship.
• To provide insights into reducing employee overqualification in organizational settings.

Main Methods:

• Survey data collected from 351 employees in China over three time waves.
• Statistical analysis using mediation and moderation models.
• Application of social information processing theory and career development perspective.

Main Results:

• Transformational leadership positively influenced career growth opportunities.
• Career growth opportunities mediated the relationship between transformational leadership and perceived overqualification.
• Supervisor-subordinate guanxi moderated the positive association between transformational leadership and career growth opportunities, amplifying the indirect effect.

Conclusions:

• Transformational leadership can mitigate perceived overqualification by fostering career growth.
• The strength of supervisor-subordinate relationships significantly influences the effectiveness of leadership interventions.
• Organizations should focus on developing transformational leadership and supportive relationships to manage employee overqualification.