Happy and helpful: relationship of authentic leadership with employees helping behaviors: the mediating role of hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing among nursing staff.
5 affiliations
- 1Department of Psychology, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Mardan, 23200, Pakistan. [email protected].
- 2Department of Psychology, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Mardan, 23200, Pakistan.
- 3Faculty of Economics and Administration, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia.
- 4Information Systems Department, College of Computer and Information Sciences, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU), Riyadh, 11432, Saudi Arabia.
- 5Department of Sociology, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Mardan, 23200, Pakistan.
Abstract
Purpose
Authentic leadership plays a pivotal role in fostering helping behaviours among nursing staff within healthcare settings. Drawing on social learning theory, this study examines the impact of authentic leadership on nurses' helping behaviours and investigates the mediating roles of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being in this relationship, contributing to the growing body of nursing leadership and workforce well-being research.Design/methodology/approach
Utilising a three-wave time-lagged design, data were collected from 230 nursing staff in large hospitals, to empirically test the proposed hypotheses.Findings
The results indicate that authentic leadership positively influences employees' helping behaviors as well as both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Furthermore, the study found that both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being positively mediated the relationship between authentic leadership and employees' helping behaviors.Originality/value
These findings contribute to the literature by highlighting the importance of authentic leadership in fostering positive employee behaviors and well-being, and by identifying the underlying mechanisms through which this influence occurs.Practical implications
The study further offers practical implications for nursing staff, healthcare administrators, and nursing workforce policymakers, emphasising the need to cultivate authentic leadership practices and prioritise nurses' psychological well-being as foundational strategies for enhancing helping behaviours, strengthening team cohesion, and improving overall clinical and organisational effectiveness.
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BibTeX
@article{farid2026happy,
title = {{Happy and helpful: relationship of authentic leadership with employees helping behaviors: the mediating role of hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing among nursing staff.}},
author = {Tahir Farid and Sadaf Iqbal and Mohammad A Algarni and Mohammad Raheem and Zahid Ullah and Syed Rashid Ali},
journal = {BMC nursing},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1186/s12912-026-05441-x},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42850607},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Happy and helpful: relationship of authentic leadership with employees helping behaviors: the mediating role of hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing among nursing staff.
AU - Tahir Farid
AU - Sadaf Iqbal
AU - Mohammad A Algarni
AU - Mohammad Raheem
AU - Zahid Ullah
AU - Syed Rashid Ali
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/05
JO - BMC nursing
DO - 10.1186/s12912-026-05441-x
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42850607
AB - Purpose Authentic leadership plays a pivotal role in fostering helping behaviours among nursing staff within healthcare settings. Drawing on social learning theory, this study examines the impact of authentic leadership on nurses' helping behaviours and investigates the mediating roles of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being in this relationship, contributing to the growing body of nursing leadership and workforce well-being research.Design/methodology/approach Utilising a three-wave time-lagged design, data were collected from 230 nursing staff in large hospitals, to empirically test the proposed hypotheses.Findings The results indicate that authentic leadership positively influences employees' helping behaviors as well as both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Furthermore, the study found that both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being positively mediated the relationship between authentic leadership and employees' helping behaviors.Originality/value These findings contribute to the literature by highlighting the importance of authentic leadership in fostering positive employee behaviors and well-being, and by identifying the underlying mechanisms through which this influence occurs.Practical implications The study further offers practical implications for nursing staff, healthcare administrators, and nursing workforce policymakers, emphasising the need to cultivate authentic leadership practices and prioritise nurses' psychological well-being as foundational strategies for enhancing helping behaviours, strengthening team cohesion, and improving overall clinical and organisational effectiveness.
SN - 1472-6955
ER -