Socially responsible human resource management and employee proactive work behaviour: A moderated serial mediation model of work meaningfulness, organizational pride and leader gender

Abstract

Drawing from sensemaking theory, this study investigates how socially responsible human resource management (SRHRM) influences employee proactive work behaviour (EPWB) through underlying psychological processes and contextual factors. While prior research suggests SRHRM enhances positive employee outcomes, limited attention has been paid to the mechanisms through which employees interpret and internalize SRHRM practices, and how these interpretations drive proactive behaviours. Using a time-lagged survey of 756 employees in multinational companies in Southeast Vietnam, the study tests a serial mediation model where work meaningfulness and organizational pride sequentially transmit the effects of SRHRM to EPWB. Structural equation modelling results reveal that SRHRM does not directly predict EPWB but operates entirely through this psychological chain. Furthermore, multi-group analysis shows that leadership gender moderates the indirect pathway: female leaders amplify the positive effects of SRHRM on employees’ sensemaking and subsequent behaviours, while male leaders weaken them. These findings contribute to human resource management and organizational behaviour literature by advancing sensemaking theory in explaining how socially responsible practices translate into discretionary employee actions and identifying leadership gender as a critical contextual variable. Practical implications suggest organizations should design SRHRM interventions that foster meaningful work experiences and strategically leverage leadership characteristics to enhance employee proactivity.