Leadership’s dark pathway in the garment industry of Bangladesh: a model of psychological distress and organizational support

Purpose This study examines the relationship between exploitative leadership and workplace incivility, focusing on the mediating role of psychological distress and the moderating role of perceived organizational support within the frameworks of social exchange theory and conservation of resources theory. It aims to deepen understanding of how negative leadership behaviors impact employee well-being and interpersonal conduct within organizational contexts. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from employees in Bangladesh’s garment industry using validated scales to measure exploitative leadership, workplace incivility, psychological distress, and perceived organizational support. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to analyze the data and test the hypothesized relationships among the variables. Findings The results revealed that exploitative leadership significantly and positively predicts workplace incivility. Psychological distress was found to play a strong mediating role in this relationship, indicating that leaders’ exploitative behaviors increase employees’ psychological strain, which in turn fosters incivility. Furthermore, perceived organizational support demonstrated a significant moderating effect, buffering the positive relationship between exploitative leadership and workplace incivility. These findings emphasize the crucial role of supportive organizational environments in mitigating the adverse outcomes of exploitative leadership. Originality/value This study extends the application of social exchange theory and conservation of resources theory by incorporating psychological distress as a mediating mechanism and perceived organizational support as a buffering mechanism in the linkage between exploitative leadership and workplace incivility. By focusing on Bangladesh’s garment industry, the study provides novel empirical evidence from a developing-country context and offers valuable insights for enhancing organizational health and leadership practices.