Leader's Green Humility and Frontline Hotel Employees' Green Task Crafting: A Theory of Planned Behavior Perspective

Abstract

To date, the leader's green humility (LGH) and green task crafting (GTC) have received little to no attention. Drawing on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), the present study examines the impact of an LGH on employees’ attitudes, perceived behavioral control, subjective norms, and moral obligations, which further influence hospitality employees' intention toward GTC (IGTC). Data was collected from frontline employees working in the 3–5-star hotels. A total of 217 samples were collected. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to test the hypothesized theoretical framework. LGH is found to be the strong predictor of employees’ subjective norms and moral obligation, whereas employees’ attitudes proved to be a strong predictor of employees' intention toward GTC followed by perceived behavioral control, moral obligation, and finally, subjective norms. The present study attempts to contribute to the TPB in the context of environmental sustainability by suggesting an important contributor (LGH) to increase employees' pro-environmental behaviors (GTC). Thus, this is the first study that conceptualizes LGH and GTC and empirically validates it. Additionally, the study adds value to TPB by incorporating moral obligations as one of the factors that play a significant role in predicting employees' intention toward pro-environmental behavior.