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https://doi.org/10.62836/emi.v5i2.0009
Ma, C., & Sathappan, M. (2026). A Study on the Influencing Factors of Followership Among China’s New Generation Employees. Economics & Management Information, 5(2), 0009. https://doi.org/10.62836/emi.v5i2.0009
Volume 5, Issue 2, June 2026
Copyright (c) 2026 Chunli Ma, Malini Sathappan
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

A Study on the Influencing Factors of Followership Among China’s New Generation Employees

As the post-80s, post-90s, and post-00s generations—referred to as the new generation of employees—have become the main workforce in organizations, their unique values and behavioral patterns have posed challenges to traditional management approaches. Followership, defined as the psychological and behavioral manifestation of employees’ active support for leaders and organizational goals, plays a significant role in team cohesion and organizational effectiveness. This study focuses on the new generation of employees and constructs a multidimensional analytical model integrating followership theory and social exchange theory, which encompasses leadership style, organizational support, work values, and individual traits. A mixed-method research approach was adopted, using a single case study of a private higher education institution in Yunnan Province. Empirical analysis was conducted through semi-structured interviews with 12 current and former new-generation faculty and staff members, document analysis, and participant observation. The findings reveal that followership among new generation employees is currently constrained by several factors: an inadequate organizational support system, a disconnect between leadership communication and behavioral patterns, a lack of well-designed work and development opportunities, and insufficient activation of individual potential. In response to these issues, this study proposes countermeasures in four areas—improving leadership behaviors, enhancing the support system, redesigning job structures, and activating individual potential—aiming to provide both theoretical and practical references for enhancing followership among the new generation of employees.

new generation employees followership influencing factors private higher education institution mixed-methods research

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Supporting Agencies

  1. Funding: This research received no external funding.