Crossover in leader-follower relationship: A systematic review

While the crossover of psychological states and experiences has been widely studied between partners and colleagues, crossover within the leader-follower relationship seems to be little investigated. Considering the great importance of leaders’ role in shaping followers’ experience at work and the advancement in Crossover theory, this review explores the studies drawing upon the crossover to explain the influence of leaders on followers. A systematic review was performed following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. A total of 267 articles were retrieved from three databases (Scopus, Web of Science, EBSCO PsychINFO), 35 of which fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Crossover was investigated both considering negative and positive constructs. The indirect process is the most used to explain how crossover occurs, using mediators and moderators about leaders’ leadership styles, characteristics, behaviors, and quality of relationship. The review also reveals a not-so-low number of studies on crossover from followers to leader. Studies on followership and transfer from followers to leaders represent a gap to be bridged. More recent studies are in line with the advancement of Conservation of Resources theory, in which crossover acts as a mechanism able to explain more deeply how transference can occur.