From transformational leadership to hybrid entrepreneurial intention: The serial mediating mechanism of work-life balance and self-efficacy
Abstract
Objective: This article aims to explore the interactive mechanism between workplace contextual resources and internal resources that leads to employees’ hybrid entrepreneurial intention.
Research Design & Methods: By integrating conservation of resources theory and Social cognitive career theory, the study proposed a model in which transformational leadership influences hybrid entrepreneurial intention through two mediating variables, work-life balance and self-efficacy for work-venture conflict management. Primary data comprising 479 observations from employees in Viet Nam were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling.
Findings: The results revealed both direct and indirect effects of transformational leadership on hybrid entrepreneurial intention through the two serial mediators.
Implications & Recommendations: Practically, the results offered implications for managers in fostering innovation and supporting employees’ career development.
Contribution & Value Added: Theoretically, the results provided evidence of a resource gain spiral within organisations.
Keywords
hybrid entrepreneurial intention, transformational leadership, work-life balance, self-efficacy, conservation of resources theory, social cognitive career theory
Author Biography
Tuan Tai Nguyen
Lecturer, Faculty of Business Administration, Academy of Policy and Development, Vietnam. He is currently a PhD candidate at the National Economics University, Vietnam. His research interests include entrepreneurship, human resource management, green consumption, and ESG.
Cong Doanh Duong
Associate Professor, PhD, MBA, MSc, and lecturer at the Faculty of Business Management, National Economics University, Vietnam, since 2011. He coordinates the SEAMIS programme and studies entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, and sustainable development. His research interests include entrepreneurship, sustainable development, and organizational behaviors. His work has appeared in leading journals such as Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Personality and Individual Differences, Management Decision, and The International Journal of Management Education. He also serves as associate editor or editorial board member for several journals, including The International Journal of Management Education, Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, Oeconomia Copernicana, and International Entrepreneurship Review.
Ngoc Huyen Nguyen
Associate Professor, PhD, and faculty member at the Faculty of Business Management, National Economics University, Vietnam. His research interests include entrepreneurship and sustainability, with scholarly work published in reputable international journals, including Acta Psychologica (SSCI/Scopus Q1). His academic interests reflect a strong commitment to advancing knowledge on entrepreneurial development and sustainable business practices.
References
- Afsar, B., Badir, Y. F., Saeed, B. B., & Hafeez, S. (2016). Transformational and transactional leadership and employee’s entrepreneurial behavior in knowledge–intensive industries. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 28(2), 307-332. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2016.1244893 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2016.1244893
- Albrecht, N., Reinecke, P. C., Baum, M., Isidor, R., & Boddington, M. I. (2026). Perceived Pain or Gain: Role Identity, Gratification, and the Well-Being of Hybrid Entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. https://doi.org/10.1177/10422587261419463 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/10422587261419463
- Ardianti, R., Obschonka, M., & Davidsson, P. (2022). Psychological well-being of hybrid entrepreneurs. Journal of Business Venturing Insights, 17, e00294. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbvi.2021.e00294 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbvi.2021.e00294
- Bandura, A. (2006). Guide for constructing self-efficacy scales. Self-Efficacy Beliefs of Adolescents, 5(1), 307-337. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-60752-837-120251015 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-60752-750-320251002
- Brändle, L., & Kuckertz, A. (2022). Staged entrepreneurship: the formation of hybrid and spawning entrepreneurial intentions. Journal of Business Economics, 92(6), 955-996. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11573-021-01074-5 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11573-021-01074-5
- Brough, P., Timms, C., O’Driscoll, M. P., Kalliath, T., Siu, O.-L., Sit, C., & Lo, D. (2014). Work–life balance: a longitudinal evaluation of a new measure across Australia and New Zealand workers. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 25(19), 2724-2744. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2014.899262 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2014.899262
- Brown, S. D., & Lent, R. W. (2019). Social Cognitive Career Theory at 25: Progress in Studying the Domain Satisfaction and Career Self-Management Models. Journal of Career Assessment, 27(4), 563-578. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072719852736 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072719852736
- Carless, S. A., Wearing, A. J., & Mann, L. (2000). A short measure of transformational leadership. Journal of Business And Psychology, 14(3), 389-405. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022991115523 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022991115523
- Carr, J. C., Marshall, D. R., Michaelis, T. L., Pollack, J. M., & Sheats, L. (2023). The role of work-to-venture role conflict on hybrid entrepreneurs’ transition into entrepreneurship. Journal of Small Business Management, 61(5), 2302-2325. https://doi.org/10.1080/00472778.2022.2082455 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00472778.2022.2082455
- Cinamon, R. G. (2006). Anticipated work‐family conflict: Effects of gender, self‐efficacy, and family background. The Career Development Quarterly, 54(3), 202-215. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.2006.tb00152.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.2006.tb00152.x
- Crider, C. J., Aghaey, A., Lortie, J., Peake, W. O., & Digan, S. (2024). Hybrid entrepreneurship, job satisfaction and the spillover effect of creativity. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 30(5), 1197-1223. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-07-2022-0629 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-07-2022-0629
- Demir, C., Werner, A., Kraus, S., & Jones, P. (2020). Hybrid entrepreneurship: a systematic literature review. Journal of Small Business & Entrepreneurship, 34(1), 29-52. https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2020.1764738 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2020.1764738
- Domagalska-Grędys, M., Sagan, A., & Piecuch, K. (2025). Identification and direction of changes in work-life balance dimensions in Visegrad Group countries. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 13(2), 191-209. https://doi.org/10.15678/EBER.2025.130211 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15678/EBER.2025.130211
- Drnovšek, M., Slavec, A., & Aleksić, D. (2023). “I want it all”: exploring the relationship between entrepreneurs’ satisfaction with work–life balance, well-being, flow and firm growth. Review of Managerial Science, 18(3), 799-826. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11846-023-00623-2 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11846-023-00623-2
- Farrugia, D., Patouras, S., Churchill, B., & Allen, K. (2026). Youth side-hustles: Enterprise culture and the post-Fordist work ethic. The Sociological Review. https://doi.org/10.1177/00380261261440738 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/00380261261440738
- Ferreira, C. C. (2020). Experiential learning theory and hybrid entrepreneurship: factors influencing the transition to full-time entrepreneurship. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 26(8), 1845-1863. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijebr-12-2019-0668 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-12-2019-0668
- Folta, T. B., Delmar, F., & Wennberg, K. (2010). Hybrid entrepreneurship. Management Science, 56(2), 253-269. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1090.1094 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1090.1094
- Hair, J. F., Risher, J. J., Sarstedt, M., & Ringle, C. M. (2019). When to use and how to report the results of PLS-SEM. European Business Review, 31(1), 2-24. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBR-11-2018-0203 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/EBR-11-2018-0203
- Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of The Academy Of Marketing Science, 43(1), 115-135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8
- Hobfoll, S. (2014). Resource caravans and resource caravan passageways: A new paradigm for trauma responding. Intervention Journal of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Conflict Affected Areas, 12(4), 21-32. https://doi.org/10.1097/WTF.0000000000000067 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/WTF.0000000000000067
- Hobfoll, S. E. (1989). Conservation of resources: a new attempt at conceptualizing stress. American Psychologist, 44(3), 513. https://doi.org/ 10.1037/0003-066X.44.3.513 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.44.3.513
- Kurczewska, A., Mackiewicz, M., Doryń, W., & Wawrzyniak, D. (2020). Peculiarity of hybrid entrepreneurs–revisiting Lazear’s theory of entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 21(1), 277-300. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2020.11959 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2020.11959
- Kuske, J., Schulz, M., & Schwens, C. (2025). Hybrid Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurs’ Well-Being: The Moderating Effect of Role Demands Outside Entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 49(3), 750-781. https://doi.org/10.1177/10422587241288108 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/10422587241288108
- Lam, B. Q., Tran, H. Y. ., Nguyen, K. A. ., Nguyen, K. T. ., & Pham, M. (2025). Digital competence and digital entrepreneurial intention: A social cognitive approach. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 13(2), 139-153. https://doi.org/10.15678/EBER.2025.130208 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15678/EBER.2025.130208
- Lent, R. W., & Brown, S. D. (2013). Social cognitive model of career self-management: toward a unifying view of adaptive career behavior across the life span. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 60(4), 557. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0033446 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/a0033446
- Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., & Hackett, G. (1994). Toward a unifying social cognitive theory of career and academic interest, choice, and performance. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 45(1), 79-122. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.1994.1027 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.1994.1027
- Liñán, F., & Chen, Y. W. (2009). Development and Cross–Cultural Application of a Specific Instrument to Measure Entrepreneurial Intentions. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 33(3), 593-617. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2009.00318.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2009.00318.x
- Maleki, M., Rezaei-Moghaddam, K., & Fatemi, M. (2025). Hybrid entrepreneurship: Bridging the gap between employment and innovation for young graduates. Industry and Higher Education, 40(2), 213-228. https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222251339314 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222251339314
- Moriano, J. A., Molero, F., Topa, G., & Lévy Mangin, J.-P. (2011). The influence of transformational leadership and organizational identification on intrapreneurship. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, 10(1), 103-119. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-011-0196-x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-011-0196-x
- Newman, A., Obschonka, M., Schwarz, S., Cohen, M., & Nielsen, I. (2019). Entrepreneurial self-efficacy: A systematic review of the literature on its theoretical foundations, measurement, antecedents, and outcomes, and an agenda for future research. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 110, 403-419. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2018.05.012 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2018.05.012
- Nguyen, T. T. M. (2021). An investigation into the relationship between materialism and green purchase behavior in Vietnam and Taiwan. Journal of Economics and Development, 21(1), 247-258. https://doi.org/10.1108/JED-10-2019-0044 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JED-10-2019-0044
- O’brien, R. M. (2007). A caution regarding rules of thumb for variance inflation factors. Quality & Quantity, 41(5), 673-690. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-006-9018-6 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-006-9018-6
- Petrova, K. (2012). Part-time entrepreneurship and financial constraints: evidence from the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics. Small Business Economics, 39, 473-493. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-010-9310-7 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-010-9310-7
- Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Moorman, R. H., & Fetter, R. (1990). Transformational leader behaviors and their effects on followers’ trust in leader, satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behaviors. The Leadership Quarterly, 1(2), 107-142. https://doi.org/10.1016/1048-9843(90)90009-7 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/1048-9843(90)90009-7
- Raffiee, J., & Feng, J. (2014). Should I quit my day job?: A hybrid path to entrepreneurship. Academy of Management Journal, 57(4), 936-963. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2012.0522 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2012.0522
- Ratinet, E., Guilbert, L., Auzoult, L., Bosselut, G., Fouquereau, E., Chevalier, S., & Priolo, D. (2025). Transformational leadership and work–life balance: a moderated mediation model. Psychologie Française, 70(1), https://doi.org/81-95.10.1016/j.psfr.2025.01.003 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psfr.2025.01.003
- Roche, M. K., Daskalova, P., & Brown, S. D. (2016). Anticipated Multiple Role Management in Emerging Adults. Journal of Career Assessment, 25(1), 121-134. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072716658654 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072716658654
- Shahriar, A. Z. M., Shepherd, D. A., & Zaman, R. A. (2026). Loss Aversion and Hybrid Entrepreneurship: Economic Insecurity, Low-Income Wage Work, and Side Hustles. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. https://doi.org/10.1177/10422587261419795 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/10422587261419795
- Shevchuk, A., Strebkov, D., & Bögenhold, D. (2024). Work values and hybrid careers in the gig economy: The evidence from an online labor market. Economic and Industrial Democracy, 45(1), 138-163. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143831X221140153 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0143831X221140153
- Solesvik, M. Z. (2017). Hybrid entrepreneurship: how and why entrepreneurs combine employment with self-employment. Technology Innovation Management Review, 7(3). https://doi.org/10.22215/timreview1063 DOI: https://doi.org/10.22215/timreview/1063
- Thorgren, S., Nordström, C., & Wincent, J. (2014). Hybrid entrepreneurship: the importance of passion. Baltic Journal of Management, 9(3), 314-329. https://doi.org/10.1108/bjm-11-2013-0175 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/BJM-11-2013-0175
- Yong, P., & Zhang, J. (2025). How transformational leadership reduces teachers’ role stress: dual mediation of affective commitment and job satisfaction. Frontiers in Psychology, 16. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1634303 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1634303
