Leader compassion in the workplace

Leader compassion in the workplace is more than a visible emotional display; it is a meaning-laden social signal whose implications depend on subordinates’ cognitive schemas and attributional processes. Rather than responding to compassionate cues in a purely objective or affective manner, subordinates interpret such displays by comparing them against implicit compassion prototypes and expectations about how leaders should feel and act. This dissertation examines the phenomenon of leader compassion at work by investigating how perceptual factors, individual beliefs, leader follower relationships, psychological safety, and emotional intelligence converge to shape critical followership outcomes. Drawing on the career experiences of employees in the United Kingdom and the United States, this research explores how perceptions of leader compassion interact with subordinates’ individual differences to influence leadership effectiveness and employee well-being. At the heart of this inquiry lies the questions: (a) What we know and do not know about leader compassion; (b) How do perceptions of leader compassion, in combination with individual differences (i.e., instrumentality beliefs) and follower psychological safety, influence subordinate relational energy? (c) How do perceptions of leader compassion, together with a relational factor (i.e., leader member exchange) and subordinate emotional intelligence, affect subordinate job engagement and flourishing in the workplace? These central questions are addressed through three interconnected studies that illuminate the multifaceted dynamics linking leader compassion, leadership development, and subordinate well-being.