Leadership styles and turnover intentions of employees in the Indian hospitality industry: the mediation roles of regulatory focus and emotional exhaustion

This study assessed the influence of leadership styles on employee turnover intentions directly and indirectly via regulatory focus and emotional exhaustion. A total of 435 employees in Indian hospitality industry were surveyed in three rounds. The results show that transactional leadership negatively influences employee turnover intention by stimulating their work-prevention focus, which augments emotional exhaustion. On the other hand, transformational leadership reduces employee turnover intentions by evoking a work-promotion focus attitude, which subsequently results in a decrease in emotional exhaustion. These findings can be employed to decrease emotional exhaustion and turnover intentions in organizational settings.