Leadership and Innovation: A Qualitative Review of Psychological Factors Influencing Organizational Creativity

In increasingly innovation-dependent organizations, leadership plays a central role in shaping the psychological conditions that facilitate employee creativity. This qualitative study investigates how leadership behaviors influence key psychological enablers of creativity — namely, psychological safety, trust and empowerment, intrinsic motivation, and self-efficacy — within medium to large organizations in Bangladesh. Drawing on Amabile's Componential Theory of Creativity and Transformational Leadership Theory, the research employed a phenomenological approach, conducting in-depth semi-structured interviews with 15 leaders from sectors including technology, manufacturing, education, and public health. Thematic analysis revealed that leaders who promote open dialogue, delegate meaningful responsibility, reinforce purpose, and recognize contributions foster environments where creative risk-taking can thrive. These findings not only affirm existing theoretical models but also offer context-sensitive insights into how leadership functions within hierarchical and culturally embedded organizational settings. The study highlights the importance of psychological leadership — where influence extends beyond structural management to nurturing the emotional and motivational states that enable innovation. Practical implications include the need for leadership development programs that emphasize trust-building, autonomy support, and motivational communication. The study contributes to a deeper understanding of how leadership can activate the internal drivers of creativity, with recommendations for future longitudinal and cross-cultural research to extend these insights.