Social support as a mediator in the relationship between the leadership style and professional well-being

The study of non-linear relationships between leadership characteristics and the professional well-being of employees opens the way to understanding the psychological determinants of this phenomenon and the perspective of effective prevention of its violations. The purpose of this study is to determine the nature of the relationship between leadership style, social support, and professional well-being of an individual, and, in particular, to empirically test the mediating role of social support in the relationship between leadership characteristics and professional well-being. In accordance with the purpose of this study, a cross-sectional method was applied using Perceived leadership assessment scale of Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ, form 5X-Short), Need Satisfaction Questionnaire (NSQ), Job Satisfaction Scale (JSS), Scale social support. The participants of the survey were 85 teachers at higher schools of Ukraine. Statistical analysis included mediation analysis, correlation analysis. According to the results of the study, it was established that the influence of leadership style on professional well-being is carried out through the mediation of social support and the satisfaction of psychological needs of employees. It was found that the relative contribution of social support in predicting professional well-being increases with a decrease in the positive nature of leadership. Thus, social support moderates the impact of negative leadership characteristics on employee wellbeing by compensating for the frustration of certain psychological needs. The identified mediating effects expand the existing ideas about the psychological mechanisms of the formation of the professional well-being of employees and directions for its correction in management practice.