Innovative Behavior in Local Government: Exploring the Impact of Organizational Learning Capacity, Authentic Leadership, Psychological Empowerment, and the Moderating Role of Intrinsic Motivation
Innovative Behavior in Local Government: Exploring the Impact of Organizational Learning Capacity, Authentic Leadership, Psychological Empowerment, and the Moderating Role of Intrinsic Motivation
Leana Polston-Murdoch | 2015
Abstract
While conventional wisdom may consider innovation in public service a paradoxical concept, an organizational cultural shift that supports knowledge sharing, learning, and exploration is essential to meet the increasing needs and demands of stakeholders. The pace of innovation is increasing in local government as a result of forward-thinking and risk-taking government leaders who partner with subject-matter experts and academic researchers who continue to transform the historical risk-adverse bureaucratic leadership to a culture that cultivates innovative behavior. This study set out to investigate cognitive and contextual factors that influence innovation in local government. The overarching purpose of this study was to investigate how organizational learning capacity, authentic leadership, psychological empowerment, and intrinsic motivation influence innovative behavior within local governments. This framework offers multitheoretical support to understand innovative behavior in local government. Through the lens of social cognitive theory, this research brings into focus how the environment, behavior, and cognitive factors contribute toward innovative behavior within local government. Drawing from self-determination theory, this study examined how psychological empowerment influences innovative behavior. Authentic leadership theory explains how employees’ perception of authentic leaders influences innovative behavior. Self-determination theory clarifies how intrinsic motivation influences the relationships between organizational learning capacity, psychological empowerment, and authentic leadership with innovative behavior. This study used a single-period cross-sectional design. Hierarchical regression analysis was applied to examine survey responses from a sample of 302 local government employees within the United States.