The role of female managers in enhancing employee well-being: A path through workplace resources

Abstract

Abstract Following the job demands-resources theory, this study explores how female managers affect employee well-being through multiple levels of workplace resources, including task, group, and worksite levels. The test is based on a large-scale job stress survey of around 96,000 employee-year observations from 2017 to 2019. The structural equational model is applied to construct the latent variables of workplace resources at each level and test the mediating effects. The findings give supporting evidence for the transformational leadership behaviors of female managers. The female presence at the management level is associated with better workplace resources and employee well-being, especially workplace cohesiveness, work engagement, and occupational stress. Workplace resources significantly mediate these relationships, which shed light on the underlying mechanisms. Notably, the positive indirect effects via workplace resources could offset the negative direct effects of female managers. Female middle managers present more substantial impacts than top managers, providing further implications for gender diversity issues in management teams.