Transformational Leadership, Cohesion Perceptions, and Employee Cynicism About Organizational Change

Abstract

The impact of supervisors' transformational leadership (TFL), informational and interpersonal justice, and group cohesion perceptions on employee cynicism about organizational change (CAOC) was investigated in a sample of 469 employees from a large Chinese organization undergoing major organizational change. Results indicate that (a) TFL is negatively related to employee CAOC; (b) employee perceptions of group cohesion moderate the relationship between TFL and CAOC such that the higher the cohesion perceptions, the stronger the influence of TFL on employee CAOC; (c) the moderating effect of cohesion perceptions on the TFL—CAOC relationship is fully mediated by interpersonal justice; and (d) informational and interpersonal justice partially mediate the TFL—CAOC relationship. The theoretical and practical implications of the process by which TFL impacts CAOC are discussed.