How Inclusive Leadership Influences Voice Behavior in Construction Project Teams: A Social Identity Perspective

Abstract

Voice behavior of project team members (PTMs), defined as the process in which PTMs proactively share ideas, concerns, and opinions about work-related issues to improve the status quo of projects, is pivotal but underexplored in construction projects. Using social identity theory, this study investigated how inclusive leadership influences PTMs’ voice behavior with survey data from 232 construction PTMs. The results indicated that inclusive leadership predicts PTMs’ promotive and prohibitive voice behavior, whereas project identification mediates both relationships. Team coordination strengthens such indirect impacts of inclusive leadership on PTMs’ prohibitive voice. Theoretical and practical implications of these empirical findings are discussed.