Towards engaged employees: A quantitative research on the effects of inclusive leadership on work engagement and the roles of leader trust and psychological safety
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2025-07-08
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en
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This study aims to examine the relationship between inclusive leadership and employee work engagement, with a specific focus on the mediating roles of leader trust and psychological safety. Grounded in social exchange theory (SET), the research suggests that inclusive leadership raises a supportive work environment that strengthens employees’ trust in their leader and enhances psychological safety, which in turn promotes greater work engagement. A cross-sectional design (n = 333) was used to collect data from employees across various industries. Regression analysis was conducted using PROCESS (Model 4) to test the proposed parallel mediation model. The results reveal that inclusive leadership is positively associated with work engagement and that this relationship is significantly mediated by both leader trust and psychological safety. These findings highlight the importance of inclusive leadership in creating trusting and psychologically safe work environments that promote work engagement. This study contributes to the literature on inclusive leadership and work engagement by clarifying the underlying psychological mechanisms, and it offers practical insights for organizations aiming to improve employee well-being and performance through inclusive leadership practices.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen