Investigating the Impact of Despotic Leadership on Healthcare Workers’ Psychological Well-Being in Pakistan: Mediating Role of Emotional Exhaustion and Interaction Avoidance
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29145/jmr.131.04Keywords:
despotic leadership, emotional exhaustion, healthcare workers, interaction avoidance, psychological well-being, PakistanAbstract
This research explores the complex mechanisms through which despotic leadership affects the mental health of paramedical staff in Pakistan's healthcare sector, drawing on the Social Exchange Theory. In an attempt to find the truth behind the effect of despotic leadership on employees, the paramedical staff from the health sector was chosen from public hospitals of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. A total of 154 respondents filled the self-administered questionnaire. Simple linear regression was applied to check Hypothesis 1 (which was accepted). Mediation and moderation analyses, including the estimation of total, direct, and indirect effects, were conducted using PROCESS Models 4 and 1, respectively. The results of both mediation and moderation analysis showed partial mediation and moderation. Exploring the managerial context, an investigation is needed to understand the mechanism of despotic leadership through training such leaders and instilling an essence of ethical leadership. The results of this study may shed light on how to improve the mental well-being of paramedical staff and reduce the negative outcomes of despotic leadership through training, mentoring, and counseling. Both the HR and HRD managers can hire employees properly and can also train them in future to create a better working environment. Shedding light upon the social exchange theory, this research uses the mediating role of emotional exhaustion to check the effect of despotic leadership on employees’ psychological well-being and interaction avoidance as a coping and buffering mechanism to check the effect of despotic leadership on emotional exhaustion.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Jaweria Tariq, Hafsah Zahur, Muhammad Ahsan Iqbal, Muhammad Imran Janjua
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