When leadership turns covert: conceptualizing and developing a scale for Leader’s Manipulative Workplace Behavior

This research conceptualizes and operationalizes Leader’s Manipulative Workplace Behavior (LMWB), defined as a leader’s conscious attempt to alter a subordinate’s perception of reality and self-concept to achieve mental control and fulfill selfish goals. A scale measuring the LMWB was developed and validated through multiple empirical samples. In Study 1, items were developed, and their content validity was assessed through two samples of subject matter experts. In Study 2, following item analysis and an initial exploratory factor analysis (EFA) on Sample 2a (N = 249), a 10-item scale was developed. Subsequently, Sample 2b (N = 695) was used in the second EFA to verify the validity of the retained items. In Study 3, Sample 3a (N = 200) was used for confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and reliability testing, and Sample 3b (N = 256) was used to assess convergent validity, discriminant validity, nomological network, predictive validity, and incremental validity. The results confirmed the scale’s reliability and validity and demonstrated that LMWB uniquely predicts employee outcomes beyond the effects of abusive supervision and exploitative leadership. This study provides the first measurement tool for this covert form of psychological manipulation and discusses its significant theoretical and practical implications.