Transformational leadership and work engagement : the moderating role of intrinsic motivation

Grah, Barbara (author), Dimovski, Vlado (author), Perić, Marko (author), Colnar, Simon (author), Penger, Sandra (author)

We examine the moderating role of intrinsic motivation in the relationship between transformational leadership and work engagement. In a sample of 168 tourism and hospitality employees in the quantitative section, Study 1, we found that the highest level of work engagement is identified when the level of intrinsic motivation is highest. Intrinsically motivated employees then exhibit engaged behaviors at work. In Study 2, we opted for a descriptive design to better understand the findings of Study 1, using interviews with three experts and a three-phase coding analysis. We found that increasing intrinsic motivation further promotes engaged work behavior. This article provides insight into the benefit of intrinsic motivation on work engagement and offers practical guidance to tourism and hospitality stakeholders by demonstrating how intrinsic motivation functions as an essential management concept in adapting after the coronavirus pandemic.

• Language: English
• Keywords: transformational leadership, work engagement, intrinsic motivation, moderation, tourism and hospitality industry
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: EF - School of Economics and Business
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2024
• Number of pages: Str. 32-44
• Numbering: Vol. 26, iss. 1, article no. 3
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-164664
• UDC: 331.108
• ISSN on article: 2335-4216
• DOI: 10.15458/2335-4216.1334
• COBISS.SI-ID: 187820035
• Publication date in RUL: 06.11.2024

GRAH, Barbara, DIMOVSKI, Vlado, PERIĆ, Marko, COLNAR, Simon and PENGER, Sandra, 2024, Transformational leadership and work engagement : the moderating role of intrinsic motivation. Economic and business review [online]. 2024. Vol. 26, no. 1,  3, p. 32–44. [Accessed 18 May 2025]. DOI 10.15458/2335-4216.1334. Retrieved from: https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/IzpisGradiva.php?lang=eng&id=164664

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Economic and business review
• Publisher: Ekonomska fakulteta
• ISSN: 2335-4216
• COBISS.SI-ID: 268649216

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
• Description: The most restrictive Creative Commons license. This only allows people to download and share the work for no commercial gain and for no other purposes.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: turizem, vodenje, management, motivacija

Projects

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: P5-0364
• Name: Vpliv upravljanja, organizacijskega učenja in managementa znanja ter inovacij na organizacije v starajočih se družbah