Narcissistic leadership and dispositional fear of retaliation as predicators of unethical pro-organizational behaviour among academicians in Libya

Purpose This study aims to investigate the relationship between narcissistic leadership and unethical pro-organizational behaviour among academicians working in Libyan higher education, analysing the mediating role of the dispositional fear of retaliation in this relationship. Design/methodology/approach A total of 212 academic staff members from private universities in Libya participated in the study by assessing their heads of department's narcissistic leadership and self-reporting their own dispositional fear of retaliation and unethical pro-organizational behaviour. Covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM) was employed in a two-step approach to analyse the proposed model, with appropriate procedures implemented to address potential common method bias. Findings The study revealed that narcissistic leadership positively influences unethical pro-organizational behaviour by heightening academicians' dispositional fear of retaliation. Practical implications Universities need to monitor the prevalence of narcissistic leadership among their academic leaders because of its negative impact on the ethics and integrity of academic staff. It is crucial to acknowledge that this leadership style can induce fear among academics, leading them to engage in unethical, pro-organizational conduct. Originality/value This study makes a unique contribution to the literature on dark leadership by examining narcissistic leadership as an antecedent of unethical pro-organizational behaviour (UPB) and highlighting the mediating role of dispositional fear of retaliation. To the best of our knowledge, this mediator has not previously been considered in explaining how narcissistic leadership fosters UPB, thereby offering a novel perspective on the existing body of research.