The roles of leader-member exchange and resistance to change in shaping organisational learning and citizenship behaviours

Purpose Drawing on the organisational learning theory, this study explored the mediating role of leader-member exchange (LMX) in the relationship between organisational learning (OL) and organisational citizenship behaviours (OCB). Additionally, this study examined the moderating role of resistance to change (RTC) in the LMX and OCB link. We further developed a moderation mediation model to unpack the complex relationships. Design/methodology/approach Data was collected at three points of measurement from a sample of 250 employees from five public transportation logistics companies in Nigeria. We tested our hypotheses using structural equation modelling and hierarchical regression analysis. We further tested the moderated mediation hypotheses using PROCESS Macro with a biased-corrected bootstrapping method. Findings We found empirical support for our hypothesised relationships. OL had a positive effect on LMX, which in turn was positively related to employees’ OCB. Moreover, LMX mediated the relationship between OL and OCB. Additionally, RTC moderated the positive relationship between LMX and OCB such that the positive relationship was stronger when RTC was low than when it was high. Originality/value This study contributes to the existing knowledge on OL and OCB by theorising a learning-based model through the lens of OLT by demonstrating that LMX mediated the relationship between OL and OCB, and high RTC frustrates investments in OL by organisations.