Why Do They Always Get More? The Hostile Consequences of Leader Favouritism

Abstract

This study investigates how perceived leader favouritism acts as a destructive affective event that triggers workplace jealousy and, in turn, drives retaliatory behaviours, such as social undermining and negative gossip towards favoured colleagues. It also examines the moderating role of dominance, proposing that highly dominant employees, those sensitive to status and power, are more prone to jealousy and hostility when perceiving favouritism. Data were collected from 187 employees working across service-sector organizations in the United Arab Emirates. A two-wave survey design with a 2-week interval was used to mitigate the common method bias. The study employed structural equation modelling to test a moderated mediation model grounded in the social comparison theory and affective events theory. Results indicate that leader favouritism significantly predicts workplace jealousy, which in turn increases both social undermining and negative gossip towards favoured peers. The indirect effects of favouritism through jealousy were stronger among high-dominance employees, confirming that individual differences in status sensitivity amplify emotional and behavioural reactions to unfair leader behaviour. By integrating cognitive (social comparison) and affective (emotional reaction) perspectives, the study positions leader favouritism as a distinct affective workplace event, expanding the understanding of how emotional and personality factors jointly shape destructive workplace behaviour. Practically, the findings highlight the need for leadership fairness, transparent HR policies and emotional intelligence training to mitigate jealousy-driven hostility in leader–member relationships.