Psychological mechanisms linking authentic leadership to workplace bullying: the roles of safety, self-esteem, and organizational identification

This quantitative survey study investigates how authentic leadership reduces workplace bullying through the sequential mediating roles of psychological safety and employee self-esteem, with organizational identification as a moderator. Drawing on social identity, victim precipitation, and self-determination theories, we hypothesized that authentic leadership mitigates workplace bullying by fostering a psychologically safe environment that enhances employees’ self-esteem. Data were collected from 568 employees working in hotels, restaurants, and tourist guiding operating in Sinop, Turkiye. The proposed hypotheses were tested using mediation and moderation analyses. Results reveal that authentic leadership is negatively associated with workplace bullying. Psychological safety and self-esteem serially mediate this relationship, explaining how leadership behaviors translate into reduced bullying experiences. Furthermore, organizational identification strengthens the negative association between authentic leadership and workplace bullying, indicating that employees who strongly identify with their organization are more responsive to authentic leadership. By integrating leadership, psychological, and organizational identity perspectives, this study extends workplace bullying research and provides practical insights for developing leadership practices and organizational policies aimed at minimizing bullying in high-stress service environments such as the hospitality sector.