Gesund führen im Change. Die Pufferwirkung von Health-oriented Leadership auf Unsicherheit und Widerstand

Abstract

Organizational change frequently triggers psychological uncertainty among employees which can manifest as destructive resistance. Utilizing the concept of health-oriented leadership (staff-care), this article investigates the extent to which health-oriented leadership behavior can act as a buffer to mitigate the negative effects of uncertainty on active and passive resistance during change processes. Within a quantitative research design, an online survey was conducted, resulting in a finalized net sample of N = 121 employees. The statistical testing of the hypothesized moderation effects was carried out using Hayes’ PROCESS macro (model 1). The regression analyses provided highly consistent results across the three examined dimensions of staff-care (awareness, value, behavior). No significant interaction effects buffering mechanisms could be detected. Consequently, the moderation hypotheses had to be rejected. However, explorative post-hoc analyses revealed a significant mediation effect (PROCESS, model 4). Staff-care directly reduces organizational uncertainty, which in turn leads to a significant decrease in both active and passive resistance. These findings suggest that health-oriented leadership does not operate reactively as a buffer once uncertainty has manifested. Rather, the statistical mediation pattern illustrates the role of health-oriented leadership as a lever that directly reduces the emergence of uncertainty. For business psychology practice, this study highlights the crucial importance of implementing health-oriented leadership early on to actively reduce uncertainties and minimize resistance in change management.