Healthy Leadership Between Leaders

26 Februar 2026

17 February 2026

How does health-oriented leadership unfold when leaders themselves are being led? This question is addressed in a recent study by Susanne Beyerlein and Hendrik Hüttermann together with Annika Krick and Jörg Felfe from Helmut-Schmidt-Universität Hamburg, now published in the Zeitschrift für Arbeits- und Organisationspsychologie.

The study centers on the concept of Health-Oriented Leadership. This framework comprises two core components: SelfCare, referring to leaders’ mindful management of their own health, and StaffCare, referring to health-related support for employees. While the positive effects of health-oriented leadership on employees are well established, little has been known about the conditions under which such leadership emerges and, in particular, how it is transmitted across hierarchical levels.

The findings show that health-oriented leadership at higher management levels influences subordinate leaders not directly, but indirectly. A crucial mechanism is the subordinate leaders’ SelfCare: only when leaders take care of their own health are they able to consistently support their employees’ well-being. Moreover, the results indicate that stigmatizing attitudes toward workplace health promotion can undermine these transfer processes.

Overall, the study provides important insights into the mechanisms of health-oriented leadership beyond simple “trickle-down” assumptions and highlights the importance of organizational conditions for sustainable health promotion in companies.

The full text of the study is freely available.