COLLOQUIUM SERIES

Employee well-being has been the focus of much research and concern. In contrast, there is very little research on leaders’ well-being and its effects, so much so that the lack of interest in leaders’ psychological well-being might derive from two assumptions: First, it might be assumed that all leaders enjoy a positive state of mental health, as a result of which research would not be needed. Second, it might be assumed that even if all leaders are not psychologically healthy, poor psychological well-being has no negative consequences for their leadership. We question the legitimacy of both of these assumptions. Across two studies of two separate samples of leaders and their subordinates, our findings suggest that leaders’ daytime sleepiness and alcohol consumption have the most pervasive effects on leaders’ own leadership behaviors; leaders’ depression and anxiety predicts younger leaders’ behaviors. Conceptual, empirical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

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