Cross-Level Effect of Team Paternalistic Leadership and Team Challenge Stressor on Employee's In-Role Performance

Most previous studies investigated the impact of paternalistic leadership and challenge stressor on employee's in-role performance in the individual level. In this study, we focused on the impact in group level. Data were collected from 208 employees within 35 research and design work teams of real estate company and architecture design institute in 7 cities of mainland China. Team paternalistic leadership and team challenge stressor were rated by employees whereas in-role performance was assessed by their immediate supervisors. We found that team paternalistic leadership had a cross-level positive effect on employee's in-role performance which was mediated by team challenge stressor. Specifically, in terms of three dimensions of team paternalistic leadership, only team benevolence leadership and team moral leadership showed indirect effects on employee's in-role performance mediated by team challenge stressor.