Virtuous Creativity: The Effects of Leader Behavioural Integrity on Follower Creative Thinking and Risk Taking

Abstract Despite the preponderance of research concerning creativity and ethical leadership, the possibility of why and how a leader's ethical behaviour may stimulate follower creativity has not been examined. Employing an online experimental design, we applied a virtue ethics framework to examine associations between subordinates' perceptions of their leader's integrity and their intention to think creatively and to engage in risk taking. Subordinates' perceptions of their leader's behavioural integrity positively predicted their sense of psychological safety. Moreover, psychological safety positively predicted followers' intention to think creatively and to take risks. Copyright © 2011 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.