Kepemimpinan dalam hubungan relasional terjadi ketika terdapat klaim dari seorang individu bahwa dirinya mampu memimpin dan klaim tersebut didukung (dalam bentuk pemberian endorsement) oleh individu lain. Dengan menggunakan social identity theory of leadership, penelitian ini bertujuan menguji faktor pemimpin dan bawahan yang memengaruhi pembentukan leader endorsement. Dengan menggunakan teknik convenience sampling, sampel penelitian yang terkumpul adalah 186 pekerja swasta di Indonesia. Data dikumpulkan melalui online survey dengan alat ukur yang memiliki reliabilitas 0.7-0.9.Hasil analisa moderated regression menunjukkan: (1) bawahan memberikan endorsement kepada pemimpin yang prototipikal, (2) bawahan dengan organizational identification akan memberikan leader endorsement, (3) efektivitas pemimpin memperlemah hubungan positif antara leader prototypicality dengan leader endorsement. Hasil ini menunjukkan pemimpin dengan prototipikalitas yang rendah tetap berkesempatan mendapatkan endorsement, jika menampilkan perilaku efektif. Penelitian ini berkontribusi menjelaskan bagaimana persepsi atas karakteristik pemimpin dan identifikasi bawahan terhadap organisasinya dapat membentuk leader endorsement. Penelitian ini juga berkontribusi menjelaskan perilaku seperti apa yang sebaiknya ditampilkan pemimpin untuk mendapatkan dukungan dari bawahan.

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Relational leadership will be formed when there is a claim from a person that he/she is capable to lead and that claim is supported in the form of endorsement from other person. By using social identity theory of leadership, this study aims to determine what factors from leaders and followers that possibly have an impact on the construction of leader endorsement. By using convenience sampling technique, samples that were collected are 186 private workers across Indonesia. Data were collected through online survey with scales reliability ranging from 0.7-0.9.

Moderated regression analysis shows that: (1) followers will give their endorsement towards prototypical leaders, (2) followers with organizational identification will formed an endorsement towards their leaders, (3) leader effectiveness will weakened the positive relations between leader prototypicality and leader endorsement.

This result indicates that low prototypical leader still has an opportunity to be endorsed if they are showing effective behavior. This study contributes to explain how followers perception towards their leaders prototypicality and followers identification towards their organization will formed leader endorsement. This study also contributes to explain what kind of leadership behavior that could get followers endorsement.