• Xun Xin, Wenjing Cai, Wenxia Zhou, Sabrine El Baroudi, and Svetlana N Khapova.
• Business School, Southwest University of Political Science & Law, Chongqing 401120, China.
• Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Jan 31; 17 (3).

AbstractThis study seeks to examine how and when job crafting trickles down from leaders to followers in a team context. Drawing on social learning theory, we hypothesize that team leaders' job resources mediate the relationship between team leaders' job crafting and team members' job crafting. Empowering leadership is proposed to strengthen the mediation effect, such that under a stronger (higher) empowering leadership style the relationship between team leaders' job resources and team members' job crafting is further strengthened, thereby positively influencing the overall mediated relationship. We tested our multilevel moderated mediation model with leader-subordinate paired data from 64 work teams in seven Chinese enterprises over two time periods. The results support our hypothesized mediated relationship; however, contrary to our prediction, we find that empowering leadership negatively moderates the relationship between team leaders' job resources and team members' job crafting, and weakens the mediation effect of team leaders' job resources. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

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