The effects of core self‐evaluations and transformational leadership on organizational commitment

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the joint effects of employees’ core self‐evaluations and perceived transformational leadership of their supervisors on employees’ affective commitment to the organization. Design/methodology/approach – Subjects were drawn from a Fortune Global 500 company in Korea. Descriptive statistics and hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used to explain the variance in organizational commitment. Findings – Core self‐evaluations and transformational leadership positively influenced employees’ organizational commitment. In terms of effect size, organizational commitment was more related to transformational leadership than core self‐evaluations. As for transformational leadership, employees exhibited the highest organizational commitment when their leaders articulated the vision, promoted group goals, and provided intellectual stimulation. Research limitations/implications – The sample of this study is likely restricted to a certain group with similar demographic characteristics (e.g. male junior managers with relatively high education levels). This study, like most organizational commitment studies, relied on self‐reported and cross‐sectional survey method. Practical implications – Since core self‐evaluations tend to be stable over time, HR professionals need to recruit and select those with higher core self‐evaluations. HR/OD professionals can help managers change their leadership in a transformative fashion (vision articulation, group goal promotion, and intellectual stimulation) by providing relevant training programs and developmental relationships such as coaching and mentoring. Originality/value – This study took an integrative approach that encompasses personal and contextual factors in a study. It found not only a significant relationship between core self‐evaluations and organizational commitment, but also the interaction effects of core self‐evaluations and one of the dimensions of transformational leadership.