The Role of Orientation Types and Supervisory Styles in Graduate Students’ Research Innovation Behavior: Mediating and Moderating Mechanisms

This study investigates how graduate students' orientation types and supervisory styles influence their research innovation behavior, focusing on the mediating role of self-regulatory fatigue and the moderating role of supervisory styles. Grounded in regulatory focus theory, a two-phase study revealed key findings: (1) Promotion-oriented graduate students exhibit stronger self-regulation, leading to higher levels of research innovation, while prevention-oriented students experience significant self-regulatory fatigue, which hampers their innovative potential. (2) Supervisory styles moderate these dynamics. Charismatic supervisory styles mitigate self-regulatory fatigue in prevention-oriented students, boosting their innovative behavior. Conversely, abusive supervisory styles negatively impact the research innovation of both promotion- and prevention-oriented students. These results enhance understanding of how orientation types and supervisory styles interact to shape graduate students’ research innovation behavior. The findings provide theoretical insights and practical guidance for fostering research innovation in higher education.