Purpose

Based on the social penetration theory and affect theory of social exchange, this study aims to examine the relationship between authentic leadership (AL) and workplace loneliness (WL), as well as the mediating effect of interactional justice (IJ) on this relationship during the COVID-19 pandemic in the US higher education sector.

Design/methodology/approach

An online, self-administrated questionnaire was distributed to full-time employees working at higher education institutions in the USA. A total of 464 employees participated in the survey, with structural equation modeling being used to analyze the data.

Findings

The outcomes provide evidence that AL is positively related to IJ, whereas the latter is negatively associated with WL. Moreover, IJ fully mediates the relationship between AL and WL. Overall, the findings underline the importance of IJ in affecting employee WL.

Practical implications

The outcomes provide valuable insights for higher education leaders and HR professionals in reducing employee WL. In particular to this end, it is recommended that organizations focus on improving employee IJ and AL perceptions. Furthermore, higher education organizations need to select and promote leaders who exhibit IJ behaviors and AL characteristics. In addition, organizations could offer IJ and AL training to their current leaders.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the limited literature on WL by offering a unique research model that examines IJ as a mediating variable between AL and WL. In addition, it adds to the literature by investigating WL in the context of US higher education sector, which is an understudied area in this research context.

中文翻译：

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COVID-19大流行期间真实领导力与工作场所孤独感之间的关系：互动正义的中介作用

目的

本研究基于社会渗透理论和社会交换情感理论，探讨真实领导力（AL）与职场孤独感（WL）之间的关系，以及互动正义（IJ）在这种关系中的中介作用。 COVID-19 在美国高等教育领域大流行。

设计/方法论/途径

向美国高等教育机构的全职员工分发了一份在线自填问卷。共有 464 名员工参与了调查，并使用结构方程模型对数据进行分析。

发现

结果证明 AL 与 IJ 呈正相关，而后者与 WL 呈负相关。而且，IJ充分调解AL和WL之间的关系。总体而言，研究结果强调了 IJ 在影响员工 WL 方面的重要性。

实际影响

研究结果为高等教育领导者和人力资源专业人士提供了减少员工工作寿命的宝贵见解。为此，建议组织重点关注改善员工 IJ 和 AL 认知。此外，高等教育组织需要选择和提拔表现出 IJ 行为和 AL 特征的领导者。此外，组织可以为其现任领导者提供 IJ 和 AL 培训。

原创性/价值

本研究通过提供一种独特的研究模型，将 IJ 作为 AL 和 WL 之间的中介变量进行检验，为有关 WL 的有限文献做出了贡献。此外，它还通过在美国高等教育部门的背景下调查 WL 来补充文献，这是本研究背景下一个尚未研究的领域。