ESCAPING THE TOXIC WORKPLACE: THE ROLE OF AUTHENTIC LEADERSHIP IN REDUCING BULLYING-INDUCED COGNITIVE WEARINESS AND TURNOVER

Abstract

Workplace bullying is a critical concerned matter, especially in the Pakistani public sector, which is leading to chronic issues relating to psychological and behavioral outcomes among employees. How  psychological resources of employees are destroyed this has been investigated with the help of Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, and which in result create cognitive weariness and increased turnover intention. Besides this it has been examined also that either authentic leadership acts as a buffering resource and leads to mitigate these negative effects. Data was collected from 270 employees, were working across various public sector organizations in Pakistan by using a structured questionnaire. The findings suggests that workplace bullying significantly causes turnover intention and partially this relationship is mediated by cognitive weariness. Besides this, authentic leadership moderates the intervening effect of bullying on turnover, so that the negative impact diminishes when employees observe their leaders as authentic. This study leads to the literature by highlighting the psychological mechanisms and leadership conditions which affect employees’ responses to toxic work environments in the public sector. The practical implications highlight the need for leadership development and anti-bullying policies to reduce employee turnover and protect employee’s well-being.