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Articles

Vol. 1 No. 2 (2026): September

Mitigating Social Loafing in Work Teams: The Critical Role of Transformational Leadership Style

Submitted
June 22, 2026
Published
2026-06-26

Abstract

Abstract
Purpose – This study aims to investigate and prove the impact of a transformational leadership style on mitigating social loafing behavior within work teams.
Methodology – A quantitative approach with an associative design was employed. Data were gathered through likert scale questionnaires distributed to staff and non-staff employees at the company of the author. Using simple random sampling, a sample of 30 respondents was selected. The analysis involved descriptive statistics, classical assumption tests, and simple linear regression analysis via statistical software.
Findings – The results demonstrate that transformational leadership does not have a statistically significant negative influence on social loafing behavior within the studied work teams. While descriptive analysis shows a high implementation of transformational leadership and a corresponding low level of social loafing, the inferential model fails to support a direct causal link, suggesting that the reduction of social laziness is driven by factors beyond leadership style alone, such as strong baseline peer accountability and small team visibility metrics.
Implications – From a managerial perspective, simply relying on a transformational leadership style is insufficient to automatically eliminate the diffusion of responsibility. Organizations should avoid treating leadership as a standalone panacea and instead design integrated structural frameworks that combine leadership training with transparent individual tracking systems and formal peer evaluation mechanisms to prevent productivity drops.
Originality – Unlike prior macro level performance studies, this research offers localized, micro level empirical scrutiny, revealing the boundary conditions of transformational leadership effectiveness when applied within tightly knit, small functional work teams.

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