Humble leadership perspective on creative performance : the mediating role of psychological safety climate and the moderating effect of LMX

Abstract

This study aimed to explore how humble leadership influences creative performance through the mediation of the psychological safety climate and to examine the moderating role of leader-member exchange (LMX). The research hypothesized that humble leadership could positively foster a psychological safety climate, thereby enhancing creative performance, while LMX was expected to strengthen this positive effect of humble leadership. Using quantitative research methods, this study surveyed 684 ordinary white-collar employees in China and analyzed the collected data using structural equation modeling and multiple linear regression. The results supported all hypotheses: humble leadership showed a positive relationship with both creative performance and psychological safety climate; a positive link between psychological safety climate and creative performance was also established; psychological safety climate played a mediating role between humble leadership and creative performance; and lastly, LMX demonstrated a moderating role within this mediating relationship, particularly when the level of LMX was high, where the positive impact of humble leadership on psychological safety climate became more significant. The conclusions of this study indicate that humble leadership is an effective means to promote employees' creative performance as it operates through shaping a psychologically safe work environment, while high-quality LMX relationships can further enhance this effect