Is Shared Leadership Really as Perfect as We Thought? Positive and Negative Outcomes of Shared Leadership on Employee Creativity

ABSTRACT The link between shared leadership and employee creativity has been consistently labeled as positive in prior studies, discounting a possible negative relationship. A parallel mediation model was constructed to establish the favorable and unfavorable outcomes of shared leadership on employee creativity. The model is based on the job demands–resources model that originates from conservation of resource theory. Psychological safety and role stress play positive and negative mediating roles, respectively. The theoretical model was validated using data collected from 232 employees of 42 teams in China. Empirical results demonstrate (a) a positive association between shared leadership and employee creativity through psychological safety and (b) a negative one through role stress. These relationships have theoretical and practical implications.