When the Family turns away: Leader family ostracism, work alienation, and the crossover to frontline employees

Research on the workplace implications of leader family ostracism (LFO) remains limited. Drawing on the work–home resources (W-HR) model and the conservation of resources (COR) theory, we develop and test a model explaining how LFO depletes personal resources and shapes both leader and employee outcomes in service settings. In Study 1, an experimental design with hotel managers revealed that leaders experiencing family ostracism reported greater work alienation and engaged in more laissez-faire leadership. Study 2, a multi-wave, multisource field study in the service sector, replicated these findings and extended the model by showing that LFO indirectly undermines frontline employees' customer stewardship behaviour via work alienation and laissez-faire leadership. Moreover, the leader's political skill buffered the negative effects, weakening both the direct and indirect paths. These findings highlight the cross-domain spillover of family-based exclusion into workplace dynamics, emphasizing the critical role of personal resources and leader capabilities in shaping service performance.