Despotic leadership and healthcare employees quiet quitting: the roles of ego depletion and perceptions of supervisor organizational embodiment

Purpose Quiet quitting has emerged as a growing concern particularly in healthcare settings where discretionary effort is critical for coordination, resilience and patient care. Against this backdrop, this study examines how despotic leadership (DL) shapes quiet quitting (QQ) in hospital settings. Grounded in conservation of resources theory and self-regulation perspectives, we theorize that DL drains employees’ self-control resources, thereby fostering withdrawal and that supervisor organizational embodiment (SOE) alters the strength of these associations. Design/methodology/approach A sequential, multi-method design was used. Study 1 employed an experiment with healthcare employees in China (N = 137). Study 2 was a time-lagged field study collected in three waves with hospital management units (N = 320). Findings Our analysis reveals that higher DL was associated with stronger QQ. Ego depletion (ED) mediated this relationship in both the experimental and field settings. In Study 2, SOE moderated the indirect path such that the ED pathway from DL to QQ was stronger when employees perceived supervisors as strong embodiments of the organization. Practical implications This study spotlights how DL and SOE shape employees’ willingness to contribute, revealing actionable levers to curb quiet quitting. The findings guide policymakers and employers on supervision, resource protection and identity-safe communication. Originality/value The research reframes quiet quitting as a resource-driven withdrawal response to DL, extending the phenomenon beyond generic disengagement accounts. By integrating COR and self-regulation perspectives with SOE, it offers a coherent process explanation for how and when DL encourages withdrawal.