Transformational leadership and employee creativity across cultures

Purpose The study compares the impact of four components of transformational leadership (TL), namely, idealized influence (II), inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation (IS), and individualized consideration (IC) on employee creativity (EC) at the workplace between Turkey and Algeria, taking into account the mediating effect of employee's creative role identity (CRI). Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 688 managers working for conglomerate companies in both countries and the analysis was performed using a two-stage structural equation modeling (SEM) for model and hypothesis testing. Findings The findings highlighted that managers from both countries have divergent stances toward TL's impact on EC; Algerian managers recognized the impact relationship between CRI and EC. Meanwhile, Turkish managers believed in the efficiency of every component independently. Social implications The findings provided insights into elevating and strengthening a mere formal leader-member relationship to a personally satisfying and mutually beneficial social bond. Originality/value Throughout literature, the light was shed on the fundamental, yet, infrequently discussed link between TL components and employee CRI. The comparative nature and findings of our study could be considered building blocks for further academic research about leadership in both countries.