Energy crossover from leader to followers: A time-lagged study of the effects of energy discrepancy and leadermember exchange. Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 36 (2), 135-146 — vol. 36, n. 2 (August 2020) · 2020

This study investigates the effects of the difference between leaders' and followers' level of subjective energy on the change in subordinates' energy one year later, and on customer-oriented citizenship behaviors. Building mainly on the crossover model, our time-lagged model also examines the moderating role of leader-member exchange. Results of polynomial regression and response surface analyses performed with a sample of 277 dyads in the retail sector indicate that the effect of the energy gap is asymmetrical, such that followers paired with a more energetic leader gain energy one year later, whereas those matched with less energetic leaders experience energy depletion. As expected, a high-quality relationship buffers the de-energizing effect of leaders with lower energy and augments the gain of energy triggered by more energetic leaders.