Abstract To address when and to what extent leaders enact directive behaviour, we integrate adaptive leadership theory with trait‐activation theory to conceptualize directive leadership as a social adaptation process shaped by leader–team interactions. We propose that leader core self‐evaluation (CSE) represents a motivational and flexible potential for directive behaviour, which is activated or inhibited by two distinct yet complementary team signals: aggregate team CSE (a trait‐like team psychological signal) and team past performance (a state‐like team feedback signal). Results from a multi‐source, three‐wave field study of 203 leaders and 1520 team members supported both the two‐way and three‐way interaction hypotheses. The relationship between leader CSE and directive leadership was contingent on aggregate team CSE: the relationship was positive when aggregate team CSE was lower but turned negative when it was higher. Team past performance further qualified this interaction, such that the negative moderating effect of aggregate team CSE was stronger when team past performance was higher than when it was lower. Our findings advance leadership theory by elucidating how directive leadership emerges from the interplay among leader traits, team psychological resources, and outcome feedback cues, offering a nuanced account of when leaders calibrate their directive behaviour in response to team contexts.
Li et al. (Thu,) studied this question.