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VOL. 12, ISSUE 2 (2026)
Leading with care or control? paternalistic leadership and employee performance in a Nigerian Local Government Council
Authors
Ugbeghene, Josephine, Eromafuru Edward Godbless
Abstract
Paternalistic leadership is characterized by a
patriarchal, totalitarian, and authoritarian style of management. The purpose
of this empirical study was to investigate the relationship between
paternalistic leadership (authoritarian leadership, benevolent leadership, and
moral leadership) and employee performance (task performance and contextual
performance). Data were obtained from 197 employees working at Okpe Local
Government Council, Delta State, Nigeria, randomly selected from a population
of 574 employees. Multiple regression analysis was conducted using STATA 13.0
statistical software. The results reveal that authoritarian leadership negatively
influences both task performance (α1 = -0.112, t = -1.49, p < 0.05) and
contextual performance (β1 = -0.171, t = -2.36, p < 0.05), while benevolent
and moral leadership positively influence both dimensions of employee
performance. The dimensions of paternalistic leadership jointly explained 49.1%
of variance in task performance and 40.4% of variance in contextual
performance. It is concluded that paternalistic leadership significantly
influences employee performance, and leaders are encouraged to emphasize
benevolent and moral leadership behaviors.
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Pages:201-208
How to cite this article:
Ugbeghene, Josephine, Eromafuru Edward Godbless "Leading with care or control? paternalistic leadership and employee performance in a Nigerian Local Government Council". International Journal of Commerce and Management Research, Vol 12, Issue 2, 2026, Pages 201-208
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