Date of Award

5-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

College/School

College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Department/Program

Psychology

Thesis Sponsor/Dissertation Chair/Project Chair

Michael Bixter

Committee Member

Manuel Gonzalez

Committee Member

Cheryl Gray

Abstract

This study explored the relationship between informal learning behaviors and leadership emergence in workplace settings while also looking at the moderating roles of occupational self-efficacy and learning climate. Using a correlational, cross-sectional design, data was collected from 361 working professionals through an online survey with 341 being the final sample size. Participants completed validated self-report measures assessing informal learning behaviors, occupational self-efficacy, learning climate, and leadership emergence. Correlational and moderation analyses were performed to test the study hypotheses. Results showed that informal learning behaviors was positively and significantly related to leadership emergence. Moreover, occupational self-efficacy and learning climate both were also positively associated with leadership emergence. However, the interaction effects were not significant, indicating that occupational self-efficacy and learning climate did not moderate the relationship between informal learning behaviors and leadership emergence. The findings suggest that informal learning behaviors are associated with leadership emergence, regardless of individuals’ confidence in their abilities or perceptions of the learning environment.

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