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Purpose This research aims to examine how leadership behaviors shape collective behavioral responses during crises while accounting for the influence of national culture and perceived corruption. Drawing on signaling theory, the authors investigate how charismatic and humane-oriented leadership operated within different cultural and institutional contexts to influence community mobility during the pre-vaccine phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach Using cross-national data from 59 countries, the authors use partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to assess relationships among national culture dimensions, leadership styles, leadership effectiveness and community mobility. To interpret heterogeneous and counterintuitive effects, the authors conduct post hoc importance–performance map analysis (IPMA) and finite mixture PLS. Findings Leadership – particularly humane-oriented leadership – plays a central mediating role in shaping collective quarantine behavior. IPMA results indicate that charismatic leadership demonstrates high performance but comparatively lower importance, suggesting that its behavioral influence diminishes without relational grounding. IPMA results further reveal that national culture exerts differentiated effects depending on the construct examined within the model: specifically, while cultural dimensions have limited direct influence on community mobility, several other dimensions constrain leadership effectiveness. Moreover, masculinity supports leadership effectiveness but is less conducive to collective behavioral restraints. Research limitations/implications This study advances leadership and cross-cultural research by integrating signaling theory with PLS-SEM to explore how leadership styles and cultural dimensions influence crisis behavior. It offers a quantitative framework for future studies on leadership effectiveness in high-uncertainty, global contexts. Practical implications Effective crisis management depends on leadership communication, trust-building and cultural alignment. Policymakers should consider cultural boundary conditions when designing public health interventions. Social implications Trustworthy and culturally aware leadership helps reduce public anxiety and fosters solidarity during crises. Effective leadership communication can combat misinformation, encourage compliance with health measures and ultimately protect vulnerable populations. Building social trust through leadership is essential for resilience in future global health emergencies. Originality/value This research offers a novel signaling theory perspective on crisis leadership by combining cross-national quantitative analysis with advanced PLS-based techniques to explain how leadership shapes collective behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic.