Influence of resonant leadership on creative performance: the mediating role of affective trust

This paper aims to put forth a model that examines the underlying mechanism through which resonant leadership (RL) impacts creative performance (CP). The study further aims to investigate the role of affective trust (AT) in mediating the relationship between resonant leadership and creative performance. The study adopted a cross-sectional research design and was conducted amongst 387 middle-level managers of various Indian Information Technology (IT) firms with the help of an online questionnaire survey. The data collected was analysed using the Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) method. The study found that resonant leadership positively influences affective trust and creative performance. Furthermore, the results show that affective trust mediates the relationship between resonant leadership and creative performance. The findings of this study offer guidance to executives and practitioners to promote the virtues of a resonant leader, such as emotional intelligence, compassion and shared vision, which would foster creative performance. This study contributes to the existing literature by establishing the impact of resonant leadership on creative performance and the mediating influence of affective trust in the backdrop of social exchange theory.