Narcissistic leadership and unethical pro-behaviors: can religiosity serve as a buffer?

This study examines the influence of narcissistic leadership on both unethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB) and unethical pro-leadership behavior (UPL) and investigates whether religiosity serves as a boundary condition in these relationships. Drawing on self-regulatory theory of narcissism, we propose that leaders’ narcissistic tendencies increase followers’ willingness to engage in unethical conduct intended to benefit either the organization or the leader. Data were collected from 232 subordinates who rated their leaders’ narcissistic behaviors and self-reported their own unethical behaviors. Hayes’ PROCESS Macro was used to test the proposed model while accounting for measurement validity and common method bias issues. The findings indicated that narcissistic leadership positively influenced both UPB and UPL, with a stronger influence on subordinates’ UPL, revealing that followers may be particularly motivated to engage in misconduct that directly benefits their leader. Furthermore, the study found that religiosity did not moderate these relationships. However, religiosity showed a negative relationship with both unethical behaviors. This study extends previous research on destructive leadership and employees’ unethical behavior by investigating the influence of narcissistic leadership on UPB and UPL, and presenting religiosity as a protective individual factor that reduces unethical conduct in organizational contexts.