EMOTIONALLY INTELLIGENT LEADERSHIP AND WORKPLACE HAPPINESS IN HYBRID WORK: ROLES OF HYBRID AUTONOMY, VIRTUAL FATIGUE AND IMPOSTOR SYNDROME

The expansion of hybrid work has intensified the psychological demands associated with digitally mediated environments and gained interest by raised questions about how leadership influences employee well-being in such contexts. Through the Job Demands–Resources (JDR) model and Affective Events Theory (AET), this research examines the role of emotionally intelligent leadership (EIL) in shaping workplace happiness and investigates the effects of hybrid autonomy, virtual fatigue and impostor syndrome. Using a quantitative cross-sectional survey design, data from 113 participants were analysed through Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). The findings indicate that emotionally intelligent leadership positively influences hybrid autonomy and directly enhances workplace happiness. However, EIL does not significantly reduce virtual fatigue or impostor syndrome. Instead, virtual fatigue emerges as a key strain mechanism that increases impostor syndrome, which in turn strongly and negatively affects workplace happiness. These results identify impostor syndrome as a central pathway through which digital strain translates into diminished well-being in hybrid work settings. The study advances understanding by distinguishing between relational leadership resources and structurally embedded digital job demands. While emotionally intelligent leadership sustains positive affective experiences, technology-driven strain operates independently of leadership buffering effects. The findings highlight the need for organisations to address digital overload structurally while fostering emotionally intelligent leadership to promote sustainable hybrid work environments.