Linking empowering leadership with workplace proactivity: the mediating role of psychological safety and knowledge sharing

Purpose This study aims to explore the association between empowering leadership and workplace proactivity. Design/methodology/approach The data have been collected through questionnaires from both the medical and non-medical staff members working in four National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare (NABH)–accredited private hospitals in India. Confirmatory factor analysis has employed test reliability and validity and PROCESS MACRO (model 6) to test the proposed serial mediation model. Findings The results support the proposed hypotheses of the serial mediation model. Additionally, the authors have also found that psychological safety is a strong mediating variable than knowledge sharing between empowering leadership and workplace proactivity. Research limitations/implications The findings should be interpreted by considering the cross-sectional research design and self-reported measures. Practical implications An organization can use the findings to promote employee proactivity at the workplace. Originality/value The study makes an attempt to explore the underdeveloped relationship between empowering leadership and workplace proactivity in the context of Indian NABH-accredited hospitals based on the self-determination theory.