Relationship between leadership behaviors and task performance: The mediation role of job satisfaction and the moderation role of social distance

The aims of this study were to investigate the relationship between transformational, transactional leadership and task performance and to clarify the mediating effects of job satisfaction. Besides, we examined the effects of the moderating effects of social distance on transformational, transactional leadership and job satisfaction. Two hundred and sixty six employees from 43 electronic companies in Taiwan participated in this study. The results showed that transformational and transactional leadership had a significant positive relationship with task performance. Job satisfaction was a mediator of the relationship between transformational, transactional leadership and task performance. Finally, we found that social distance had negative moderating effects: When the degree of social distance was high, the positive relationship between transactional leadership and job satisfaction was weaker; on the other hand, when the degree of social distance was low, the negative relationship between transactional leadership style and task performance was stronger.. But social distance did not have significant moderating effects on transformational leadership.