Self-rated transformational leadership and perceived project success: The mediating role of psychological empowerment and the moderating role of individual Islamic work ethics

Abstract

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractProject-based organizations operate under uncertainty and coordination pressures, increasing the importance of leadership for project outcomes. This study examines whether project managers’ self-rated transformational leadership is associated with perceived project success through psychological empowerment, and whether this indirect association varies by individual Islamic work ethics. Data were collected from 482 project managers in Tunisia through a cross-sectional online survey conducted between June and December 2025, with all constructs evaluated in relation to one project completed within the previous two years. Regression-based mediation, moderation, and moderated mediation analyses were performed using Minitab 19 and 10,000 bootstrap resamples. Self-rated transformational leadership was positively associated with perceived project success (B = 0.52, p < 0.001) and psychological empowerment (B = 0.49, p < 0.001). Psychological empowerment was positively associated with perceived project success (B = 0.64, p < 0.001) and partially mediated the leadership and success association (indirect effect = 0.31, 95% CI [0.24, 0.38]). Individual Islamic work ethics strengthened the association between self-rated transformational leadership and psychological empowerment (B = 0.21, p < 0.001), and the index of moderated mediation was significant (0.13, 95% CI [0.06, 0.23]). The findings integrate psychological empowerment as a mediating mechanism and individual Islamic work ethics as a boundary condition.