Leader Empathic Emotion and Pro-Social Behaviour of the Diversified Workforce of Telecommunication Firms in Port-Harcourt

Abstract

This study evaluates leader empathic emotion as a predictor of subordinate prosocial behaviour in five (5) major telecom firms situated in Port-Harcourt. The objective was to investigate the possible correlation between a leader's empathic emotion (the predictor variable) and personal morality, the building of organizational image and psychological identification measures of subordinate prosocial behaviour. The survey design was structured based on a quantitative methodology and data was generated through the distribution of structured questionnaires issued to a sample size of two hundred and ten (210) employees (middle and junior level) of the firms. Analysis revealed that there is a significant relationship between leader empathic emotion and subordinate pro-social behaviour with results indicating a stronger relationship between leader empathic emotion and psychological identification measure of subordinate pro-social behaviour than in the other two instances (personal morality and building of organizational image). In conclusion, we assert that empathy as a tenet should be emphasized within managerial and leadership structures with emphatics on attributes such as patience and genuine concern, especially in day-to-day dealings with subordinates.