Ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior at Debre Berhan University, Ethiopia: the mediating role of workplace happiness

Kebede, Abebe Getaneh; Terefe, Solomon Dubale; Ijigu, Amare Werku Article Ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior at Debre Berhan University, Ethiopia: the mediating role of workplace happiness Cogent Business & Management Provided in Cooperation with: Taylor & Francis Group Suggested Citation: Kebede, Abebe Getaneh; Terefe, Solomon Dubale; Ijigu, Amare Werku (2024) : Ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior at Debre Berhan University, Ethiopia: the mediating role of workplace happiness, Cogent Business & Management, ISSN 2331-1975, Taylor & Francis, Abingdon, Vol. 11, Iss. 1, pp. 1-14, https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2307564 This Version is available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/326017 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. Terms of use: Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your personal and scholarly purposes. You are not to copy documents for public or commercial purposes, to exhibit the documents publicly, to make them publicly available on the internet, or to distribute or otherwise use the documents in public. If the documents have been made available under an Open Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you may exercise further usage rights as specified in the indicated licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Cogent Business & Management ISSN: 2331-1975 (Online) Journal homepage: www.tandfonline.com/journals/oabm20 Ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior at Debre Berhan University, Ethiopia: the mediating role of workplace happiness Abebe Getaneh Kebede, Solomon Dubale Terefe & Amare Werku Ijigu To cite this article: Abebe Getaneh Kebede, Solomon Dubale Terefe & Amare Werku Ijigu (2024) Ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior at Debre Berhan University, Ethiopia: the mediating role of workplace happiness, Cogent Business & Management, 11:1, 2307564, DOI: 10.1080/23311975.2024.2307564 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2307564 © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group Published online: 12 Feb 2024. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 2524 View related articles View Crossmark data Citing articles: 9 View citing articles Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=oabm20 ManageMent | ReseaRch aRticle Cogent Business & ManageMent 2024, VoL. 11, no. 1, 2307564 Ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior at Debre Berhan University, Ethiopia: the mediating role of workplace happiness abebe getaneh Kebedea , solomon Dubale terefeb and amare Werku ijigua aDepartment of Management, Debre Berhan university, Debre Berhan, ethiopia; bDepartment of Logistics and supply Chain Management, Debre Berhan university, Debre Berhan, ethiopia ABSTRACT this study aimed to examine the mediation role of workplace happiness in the link between ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior at Debre Berhan University. in this study, primary data was utilized. Proportional stratified sampling was employed to ensure the representation of respondents from all colleges within the university. subsequently, simple random sampling was used to select respondents from each individual college. Questionnaires were dispatched from 400 faculty members. however, only 343 questionnaires were filled properly and returned. a structural equation model was applied to test the research hypotheses. the results revealed that ambidextrous leadership has a positive and significant effect on workplace happiness. the study also found that ambidextrous leadership has a positive and significant effect on academic staff’s innovative behavior. the study’s findings also showed that workplace happiness contributes a significant role in mediating the link between ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior. the present study suggests that Debre Berhan University management should promote a good workplace environment for innovative behavior through effective leadership and employee well-being initiatives. 1. Introduction the innovative behavior of employees in academic institutions is of utmost importance for driving research and development, enhancing teaching quality, promoting collaboration, and attracting external funding (Farzana & charoensukmongkol, 2023; Jiang et al., 2023). Previous research has shown that when employees are encouraged to think outside the box and come up with new ideas, it fosters a dynamic environment that stimulates creativity and groundbreaking discoveries (Faulks etal., 2021; shafi etal., 2020). additionally, innovative employees are often successful in securing grants, attracting sponsorships, and establishing strategic partnerships, which benefit both the individual researchers and contribute to the financial sustainability and reputation of the academic institution (Qi & Wang, 2020). ambidextrous leadership has been found to have a significant effect on innovative behavior (Oluwafemi et al., 2020; Zacher et al., 2016) Workplace happiness can also lead to enhanced productivity and innovation (Mathew, 2023; Rosdaniati & Muafi, 2021). gerlach et al. (2020) explored the effect of different leadership styles, including ambidextrous leadership, on innovation performance in german companies. their findings revealed a positive relationship between ambidextrous leadership and innovation performance. similarly, akıncı et al. (2022) examined the influence of ambidextrous leadership on innovative work behavior in a military organization in norfolk, Virginia, Usa. their study found that ambidextrous leadership was positively related to innovative work behavior. © 2024 the author(s). Published by informa uK Limited, trading as taylor & Francis group CONTACT abebe getaneh Kebede [email protected] Department of Management, Debre Berhan university, P.o. Box 445, Debre Berhan, ethiopia https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2307564 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. the terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent. ARTICLE HISTORY Received 10 august 2023 Revised 15 January 2024 accepted 16 January 2024 KEYWORDS ambidextrous leadership; innovative behavior; workplace happiness; academic staff; Debre Berhan University REVIEWING EDITOR Pablo Ruiz, Universidad de castilla-la Mancha, spain SUBJECTS Organizational Behavior; human Resource Management, strategic Management; leadership 2 a. g. KeBeDe etal. academic institutions are focused on knowledge creation and dissemination, and innovative approaches are crucial for addressing emerging challenges (al-Kurdi etal., 2020; Fitzgerald etal., 2020). however, there is a lack of sufficient innovative practices among academic staff at Debre Berhan University in ethiopia, which hampers the growth and competitiveness of the institution. to excel in their roles and meet the demands of the 21st century higher education landscape, academic staff need to embrace technology-enhanced teaching and learning, promote research collaboration, create inclusive environments, and foster an entrepreneurial mindset (Daniela et al., 2018). Unfortunately, most academic staff at Debre Berhan University did not engage in innovative research and project works, technology-enhanced teaching and learning activities, or intrapreneurship activities (DBU, 2022). therefore, this study aims to examine the mediating role of workplace happiness in the relationship between ambidextrous leadership and academic staff innovative behavior at Debre Berhan University, ethiopia. investigating the mediating role of workplace happiness can provide insights into how ambidextrous leadership influences innovative behavior by impacting employee happiness in the unique context of academic institutions. By focusing on academic staff, this study can contribute to the understanding of the interplay between leadership, workplace happiness, and innovative behavior within academia. Moreover, this research provides valuable insights for educational institutions to adapt and thrive in a rapidly changing society. the rest of our paper is structured as follows: the theoretical literature and hypotheses development, conceptual framework, research methodology, results and discussion, conclusions, recommendations, and future research directions. 2. Literature review this section provides related theoretical literature, empirical literature, hypotheses development, and conceptual framework of the study. 2.1. Theoretical literatures 2.1.1. Definition of key terms 2.1.1.1.Ambidextrous leadership.ambidextrous leadership refers to the capability of a leader to effectively balance and integrate both explorative and exploitative actions simultaneously within an organization. it involves the ability to manage and encourage innovation and creativity while also maintaining stability and efficiency (Jia et al., 2022; Kafetzopoulos, 2022). ambidextrous leaders are skilled at navigating the tensions between exploring new opportunities and exploiting existing resources, fostering an environment that encourages experimentation, learning, and adaptation to changing circumstances (Duwe, 2021; Zabiegalski & Marquardt, 2022) they play a crucial role in creating a work culture that supports both exploration and exploitation, ultimately driving organizational success and growth. 2.1.1.2. Innovative behavior. innovative behavior is the proactive and creative actions exhibited by individuals working in academic settings, such as universities or research institutions, to generate novel ideas, solutions, and practices (elrehail etal., 2018; naranjo-Valencia etal., 2017). it involves the generation, implementation, and dissemination of innovative ideas, processes, or products that contribute to the advancement of knowledge and the improvement of academic practices. it reflects the willingness and ability of academic staff to think outside the box, challenge traditional norms, and contribute to the overall innovation and progress of their respective fields (choi et al., 2017; Zainal & Matore, 2019). academic staff innovative behavior encompasses activities, such as conducting groundbreaking research, developing innovative teaching methods, collaborating with peers on interdisciplinary projects, and engaging in entrepreneurial initiatives within the academic context (Budur et al., 2023; Fuad et al., 2022; Zainal & Matore, 2019). 2.1.1.3.Workplace happiness.Workplace happiness refers to the positive emotional state experienced by employees within their work environment (Mathew, 2023)it encompasses feelings of satisfaction, contentment, and fulfillment in relation to one’s job and the overall work setting. Workplace happiness is characterized by a sense of joy, enthusiasm, and engagement in one’s work, as well as positive relationships with colleagues and a supportive organizational culture (Joo & lee, 2017; Rosdaniati & cOgent BUsiness & ManageMent 3 Muafi, 2021). Research has shown that workplace happiness has numerous benefits, including increased productivity, higher levels of employee well-being, reduced turnover rates, and improved organizational performance. it is associated with factors, such as job satisfaction, work-life balance, autonomy, recognition, and opportunities for growth and development (Bellet et al., 2020; Joo & lee, 2017). 2.1.2. Theoretical framework the study incorporated several theories, namely social exchange theory, Job Demands-Resources theory, and self-Determination theory. according to social exchange theory, individuals are more likely to exhibit innovative behavior when they perceive a positive and supportive workplace environment. this can be achieved through increased social exchanges between leaders and employees, thus fostering workplace happiness (cropanzano & Mitchell, 2005; nazir et al., 2018). Job Demands-Resources theory suggests that employees’ work engagement and innovative behavior are influenced by the balance between job demands and resources. By implementing ambidextrous leadership, academic staff can experience reduced job demands and improved access to key resources, which in turn contributes to increased workplace happiness and subsequent innovative behavior (Koroglu & Ozmen, 2022; Kwon & Kim, 2020). in addition, self-Determination theory proposes that individuals are more likely to engage in innovative behaviors when they have autonomy, competence, and a sense of relatedness in their work environment (Wang et al., 2021). ambidextrous leadership, which emphasizes both exploration and exploitation, plays a pivotal role in enhancing employees’ self-determination and subsequently fostering innovative behavior (liu et al., 2019; Ma et al., 2019; Wang et al., 2021). 2.2. Empirical literatures and hypotheses development 2.2.1. Ambidextrous leadership and innovation behavior Jiang et al. (2023) found that ambidextrous leadership on the employee innovative behavior in chinese manufacturing enterprises. similarly, akıncı et al. (2022) study revealed that ambidextrous leadership has a significant effect on employees’ innovative work behavior in a military organization a study by Kung etal. (2020) also confirmed the significant impact of ambidextrous leadership on employees’ innovative behaviors in public museums. Usman et al. (2022) results revealed that ambidextrous leadership sparks innovative work behaviors among employees of the telecom sector of Pakistan. Berraies (2023) examined the effect of leadership styles promote ambidextrous innovation in case of knowledge-intensive firms and he found ambidextrous leadership affects positively ambidextrous innovation. Based on the above evidence, we develop the first hypothesis (h1): ambidextrous leadership has a positive and significant effect on academic staff innovative Behavior. 2.2.2. Ambidextrous leadership and workplace happiness ambidextrous leadership results in improved workplace happiness, which can have positive impacts on employee retention and productivity (Berraies, 2023). Ma et al. (2019) noted that ambidextrous leadership can improve job satisfaction among employees by providing opportunities for growth and learning, while also ensuring that current tasks are accomplished efficiently. Furthermore, ambidextrous leadership helps promote a positive organizational culture that values innovation and adaptation to change (ijigu et al., 2022; liu et al., 2019). By fostering a culture that supports exploration and experimentation, employees are more likely to feel engaged and motivated to contribute to the organization’s success. this enhances workplace happiness and job satisfaction, as employees feel that they are making meaningful contributions to the company’s overall goals and objectives. ambidextrous leadership is increasingly recognized as a beneficial approach in modern organizations, allowing leaders to simultaneously explore new opportunities while also optimizing existing operations (ahlers & Wilms, 2017; Usman et al., 2022). academic staff also play an important role in promoting workplace happiness. encouraging positive relationships with colleagues, as well as promoting a sense of autonomy and personal control, have also been shown to contribute to academic staff happiness and well-being (al-husseini et al., 2021; Jia et al., 2022; Kleebbua & lindratanasirikul, 2021). thus, we proposed the second hypothesis (h2): ambidextrous leadership has positive and significant effect on academic staff workplace happiness. 4 a. g. KeBeDe etal. 2.2.3. Work place happiness and innovation behavior Vuong et al. (2023) found that a positive work environment, characterized by supportive colleagues and supervisors, was positively associated with innovative behavior (Rosdaniati & Muafi, 2021) found that workplace happiness was positively associated with job satisfaction and work engagement. Workplace happiness has a significant and positive relationship with academic staff innovative behavior (Khan & abbas, 2022). similarly, el-sholkamy and Fischbach (2019) workplace happiness was found as a driving force behind increased creativity and innovation. Positive emotions at work contribute to employees’ engagement in innovative behavior. happy employees are more likely to engage in creative and innovative behavior (al-hawari et al., 2019; Bani-Melhem et al., 2018). al-shami et al. (2023) and etikariena (2018) also found workplace happiness was found to have a significant and positive effect on employees’ innovative behavior. By considering the given empirical evidences, we formulated the third hypothesis (h3): Work place happiness has positive and significant effect on academic staff innovative behavior. 2.2.4. The mediation effect of workplace happiness Zhao et al. (2023) stated that leaders who possess both explorative and exploitative qualities, known as ambidextrous leaders, contribute to a positive work environment that enhances workplace happiness. this, in turn, fosters innovative behavior among employees. Jiang et al. (2023) also found that leaders who are able to balance exploration and exploitation behaviors positively influence the innovative behavior of their subordinates by promoting workplace happiness. these findings align with previous studies that emphasize the importance of workplace happiness in fostering innovation (Usman et al., 2022). Research has consistently shown that workplace happiness plays a crucial role in employee well-being and productivity. One approach to promoting workplace happiness is through ambidextrous leadership, which combines explorative and exploitative leadership behaviors to balance innovation and efficiency (liu et al., 2019). the results confirmed the role of al comprising closed and open leadership behaviors in enhancing the sc, which is an important element to cultivate creative behavior amongst employees. in addition, the role of well-being is found to be critical for enhancing creative work behavior (Jain, 2023). ambidextrous leaders have the ability to create a work environment that fosters happiness, which in turn supports more innovative behavior (Kung et al., 2020). Based on the literature discussed above, we propose the fourth hypothesis (h4): Workplace happiness mediates the relationship between ambidextrous leadership and academic staff’s innovative behavior. 2.3. Conceptual framework of the study this manuscript constructed a mediation model in which ambidextrous leadership influences innovative behavior of academic staff through work place happiness, as shown in Figure 1. 3. Methods 3.1. Research design according to Kothari (2004), a research design that establishes causal relationships between variables is referred to as explanatory. therefore, this study primarily employed an explanatory research design Figure 1. Conceptual framework of the study. Source: adapted from previous literatures (Jiang etal., 2023; Liu et al., 2019; Rosdaniati & Muafi, 2021). cOgent BUsiness & ManageMent 5 because its objective was to analyze the causal factors affecting employees’ performance in the specific organizational context. additionally, the researcher utilized a cross-sectional design as the data was collected at a single point in time. a cross-sectional design involves sampling various population segments at a specific moment (Davidavičienė, 2018). 3.2. Research approach Quantitative research approach allows researchers to measure relationships and associations between different variables which aid in establishing causal relationships (creswell, 2014). hence, a quantitative research approach was used in the study. 3.3. Target population target population is the specific, conceptually bounded group of potential participants to whom the researcher may have access that represents the nature of the population of interest (casteel & Bridier, 2021). there were 1273 active academic staff at Debre Berhan University in the year 2022 (DBU, 2022). thus, the target population of this study was those 1273 academic staff. 3.4. Sample size and sampling technique structural equation modeling technique uses a chi-square statistic to assess the model goodness of fit. the statistic is sensitive to high sample sizes, that is the larger the sample size, the higher the likelihood the model will fail (hair, 2009). thus, the sample size of 100–400 subjects is suggested for models that require the use of structural equation modeling (hair, 2009). Using the rule of thumb, a sample size of 400 subjects was considered adequate hence used in this study. there are nine colleges in Debre Berhan University. stratified sampling is a research method used to improve the accuracy of representing the population under study and reduce sampling errors. having established the overall sample size for the study, the sample size for each stratum (college) was calculated proportionally to their respective population sizes, employing the proportional sample allocation method devised by Pandey and Verma (2008). consequently, the sample size for each stratum was determined as outlined below nk NK N n =    * Where; nk=sample size of kth stratum Nk= Population size of the kth stratum N=total population size n =total sample size. the summary of the population and sample of the study are shown in table 1 below. the sample respondents from each college (stratum) were selected using the simple random sampling technique, specifically the lottery method, which involved using the sample respondents’ iD numbers for selection. Table 1. summary of the population and sample of the study. strata Population size of each college (Nk)sample size of each college(nK engineering 272 85 Computing 67 21 natural and computational 158 50 agriculture 83 26 Business and economics 97 30 social science and humanities 139 44 Law 21 7 education 9 3 Health 427 134 total 1273 400 Source: DBu (2022) and own computation (2023). 6 a. g. KeBeDe etal. 3.5. Method of data collection Questionnaires were used for this quantitative research since it is a preferred method for finding out the different aspects of participants’ behavior. Questionnaire method increases the speed of data collection, cost-effectiveness, and higher levels of objectivity compared to other data collection methods (Kothari, 2004). Responses were measured mainly by close-ended questions based on a five-point likert scale, ranging from strongly agree (5) to strongly disagree (1). 3.6. Measures academic staff innovative behavior was operationalized via a six-item scale was adapted from Qi et al. (2019). Workplace happiness was operationalized via a 10-item scale from albano (2009). ambidextrous leadership was measured with 14-item items adopted from scales developed by Rosing etal. (2011) including opening leader behaviors and closing leader behaviors. We used 5-point likert scale: strongly disagree = 1 to strongly agree = 5 for all variables used in the study. a reliability test was done via cronbach’s alpha to understand the internal consistency of the instrument. in this study, result estimation will be produced by testing hypotheses. the mediator (workplace happiness) provides more evidence about why or how ambidextrous leadership and innovative behavior are interrelated. 3.7. Reliability and validity Validity test was also performed. as a requirement for structural equation model, confirmatory factor analysis was conducted, and discriminant validity analyses were done. cronbach’s alpha, explorative factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis were implemented to assess the validity and reliability of variables. 3.8. Method of data analysis sPss 23.0 was used to describe the demographic characteristics of respondents and aMOs 23.0 was used for structural equation modeling. aMOs software is preferable software used to confirm a theory since it uses the Ml estimation techniques in the seM analysis. structural equation modeling (seM) enables to estimate path coefficients for proposed relationships (hair et al., 2021). thus, seM was used in the study. Moreover, to investigate the mediating effect workplace happiness, the researchers applied the bootstrapping method, because it is more effective than sobel test if using original data (Özdil & Kutlu, 2019). the maximum likelihood method was used to estimate the covariance matrix and bootstrap testing was used to evaluate direct and indirect effects. Five fit indices were used to determine how well the hypothetical model fit the data: a chi-square/degrees of freedom ratio (χ2/df) <5; a standardized root mean square residual (sRMR) <0.05; a root mean square error of approximation (RMsea) <0.08; a goodness-of-fit index (gFi) >0.9; and a normed fit index (nFi) >0.9 (hair et al., 2017). 4. Results 4.1. Demographic characteristics of respondents among 400 sampled faculty members, only 343 academic staff appropriately filled out and returned the questionnaires. thus, the response rate was 85.75%. the demographic characteristics of the respondents are displayed below (see table 2). Regarding gender, the dominating number of academic staff were male (73.76%); concerning age, faculty members were up to 35 years old which implies the university has more young academic staff. the majority of the faculty members were master’s degree holders (85.13%). lastly, the majority of respondents had work experience between 6 and 10 years. cOgent BUsiness & ManageMent 7 4.2. Test of reliability and validity any element with low factor loading and cross-loading would be eliminated to verify a model’s uni-dimensionality. to achieve this, factor analysis on 30 items: 14 of al, 10 of hWP, and six of ePh was carried out using sPss V 23. Due to the low factor loading values, 11 items: five items of al, four items of WPh, and two items of ePh: were disregarded from further analysis. given that the KMO value was 0.887, which is higher than the 0.5 cutoff criteria, the data were eligible for factor analysis. the Bartlett’s test of sphericity sPss result is 0.000. the researcher can therefore continue to execute a factor analysis. We employed cronbach’s alpha coefficient to test reliability. all results are higher than the cutoff value of 0.7 (table 3). Besides, we compute composite reliability (cR) and average variance extracted (aVe) to estimate reliability. table 2 presents the outcomes. the cR values are higher than 0.857, and the aVe findings are over 0.505. as a result, the study’s variables are reliable within acceptable limits, which shows how well the measurement instruments are holding together to measure their factor. confirmatory factor analysis (cFa) relies on key measures like factor loading, composite reliability (cR), average variance extracted (aVe), maximum shared squared variance (MsV), and maximum reliability Table 2. Demographic characteristics of respondents. no Characteristics Frequency (%) 1 gender Male 253 (73.76) Female 90 (26.23) total 343 (100) 2age category up to 35 182 (53.06) above 35 161 (46.93) total 343 (100) 3academic qualification Ba (Bsc) 28 (8.16) Ma (Msc) 292 (85.13) PhD and above 23 (6.71) total 343 (100) 4Work experience Below a year 35 (10.2) 1–5 years 76 (22.16) 6–10 years 196 (57.14) above 10 years 36 (10.5) total 343 (100) source: survey result (2023). Table 3. Reliability and validity test results. Construct items Factor loading Validity and reliability aL aL2: encouraging experimentation with different ideas 0.775 α = 0.901, CR = 0.901, aVe = 0.505, MsV = 0.346, MaxR (H) = 0.905 aL1: allowing different ways of accomplishing a task 0.772 aL13: sanctioning errors 0.757 aL11: Controlling adherence to rules 0.740 aL6: allowing errors 0.718 aL7: encouraging error learning 0.695 aL10: taking corrective action 0.680 aL9: establishing routines 0.678 aL3: Motivating to take risks 0.663 WPH WPH7: My work means a lot to me 0.801 α = 0.864, CR = 0.867, aVe = 0.524, MsV = 0.306, MaxR (H) = 0.881 WPH4: i am always learning new things at work 0.796 WPH2: i receive clear and consistent guidance for my work 0.794 WPH1: My boss helps me get ahead 0.710 WPH8: i find my work personally satisfying 0.704 WPH9: i understand how this organization works 0.687 eiB eiB6: at work, i come up with innovative and creative notions 0.794 α = 0.853, CR = 0.857, aVe = 0.601, MsV = 0.346, MaxR (H) = 0.866 eiB5: at work, i try to propose my own creative ideas and convince others 0.788 eiB4: at work, i try to secure the funding and resources needed to implement innovations 0.770 eiB2: overall i consider myself a creative member of my team 0.719 source: survey result (2023). 14 a. g. KeBeDe etal. Ruiz, P., Ruiz, c., & Martínez, R. (2011). the cascading effect of top management’s ethical leadership: supervisors or other lower-hierarchical level individuals? African Journal of Business Management, 5(12), 4755. shafi, M., Zoya, lei, Z., song, X., sarker, M. n. i. (2020). the effects of transformational leadership on employee creativity: Moderating role of intrinsic motivation. Asia Pacific Management Review, 25(3), 166–176. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.apmrv.2019.12.002 Usman, M., ghani, U., islam, Z. U., gul, h., & Mahmood, K. (2022). ambidextrous leadership and innovative work behaviors: Workplace thriving as a mediator. Journal of Public Affairs, 22(1), e2321. https://doi.org/10.1002/pa.2321 Vuong, B. n., tushar, h., & hossain, s. F. a. (2023). the effect of social support on job performance through organizational commitment and innovative work behavior: Does innovative climate matter? Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration, 15(5), 832–854. https://doi.org/10.1108/aPJBa-06-2021-0256 Wang, s., eva, n., newman, a., & Zhou, h. (2021). a double-edged sword: the effects of ambidextrous leadership on follower innovative behaviors. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 38(4), 1305–1326. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s10490-020-09714-0 Wang, Z., gao, M., & Panaccio, a. (2021). a self-determination approach to understanding individual values as an interaction condition on employees’ innovative work behavior in the high-tech industry. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 55(1), 183–198. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.444 Zabiegalski, e., & Marquardt, M. J. (2022). action learning and the ambidextrous organization. Journal of Work-Applied Management, 14(2), 170–183. https://doi.org/10.1108/JWaM-11-2021-0062 Zacher, h., Robinson, a. J., & Rosing, K. (2016). ambidextrous leadership and employees’ self-reported innovative performance: the role of exploration and exploitation behaviors. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 50(1), 24–46. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.66 Zainal, M. a., & Matore, M. e. e. M. (2019). Factors influencing teachers’ innovative behaviour: a systematic review. Creative Education, 10(12), 2869–2886. https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2019.1012213 Zhao, F., hu, W., ahmed, F., & huang, h. (2023). impact of ambidextrous human resource practices on employee innovation performance: the roles of inclusive leadership and psychological safety. European Journal of Innovation Management, 26(5), 1444–1470. https://doi.org/10.1108/eJiM-04-2021-0226