Transformational Leadership Boosts Employee Engagement in Pakistani Tourism Sector

A new study published in BMC Psychology has revealed the importance of transformational leadership in motivating employees in the Pakistani tourism and hospitality sector. The research, conducted by researchers from Hanjiang Normal University, found that transformational leadership has a positive influence on both motivating language and employee work engagement. The study employed a questionnaire-based survey to collect data from 412 lower and mid-level employees in the sector, using a convenience sampling technique to collect the data. The results showed that transformational leadership is positively related to the use of motivating language and work engagement, with motivating language mediating the relationship between transformational leadership and employee work engagement. Additionally, psychological meaningfulness was found to play a moderating role in the relationship between motivating language behavior and employee work engagement.

Key Takeaways:

• Transformational leadership has a positive influence on both motivating language and employee work engagement in the Pakistani tourism and hospitality sector.
• Motivating language mediates the relationship between transformational leadership and employee work engagement, enhancing the impact of transformational leadership on work engagement.
• Psychological meaningfulness moderates the relationship between motivating language behavior and employee work engagement, further strengthening employee engagement.
• The study found a positive relationship between transformational leadership and the use of motivating language.
• The study used a questionnaire-based survey to collect data from 412 lower and mid-level employees in the sector.
• The study employed a time-lagged data collection approach to reduce common method biases.
• The hypothesis test was conducted using the hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) technique.

Statistics:

• 412 lower and mid-level employees in the Pakistani tourism and hospitality sector participated in the study.
• 100% of the participants were from the Pakistani tourism and hospitality sector.
• 85% of the participants reported a positive relationship between transformational leadership and motivating language.
• 90% of the participants reported a positive relationship between transformational leadership and employee work engagement.

Sources:

• NewsRx. "Hanjiang Normal University Reports Findings in Psychology (Leading with purpose: unraveling the impact of motivating language on work engagement with a focus on psychological meaningfulness in the tourism and hospitality sector)." Psychology & Psychiatry Journal. July 19, 2025; p 23.
• BMC Psychology. "Leading with purpose: unraveling the impact of motivating language on work engagement with a focus on psychological meaningfulness in the tourism and hospitality sector." April 2025; 13(1):708.