Linking active transactional leadership and safety performance in military operations

Safety performance in military special forces is of paramount importance in avoiding fatal accidents and assuring operational effectiveness. The current study analyzes how overall active transactional leadership and its dimensions (contingent reward and active management by exception) affect safety performance behaviors (safety compliance, safety participation, and risky behaviors) in a sample of 161 parachutists from the Hellenic armed forces. A structural equation model revealed that overall active transactional leadership has a significant impact on paratroopers' performance through safety climate. In particular, safety climate was a full mediator between contingent reward and the three performance behaviors, whereas it partially mediated the relationship between active management by exception and these behaviors. Both practical and theoretical implications of these results for safety research are outlined.