Transformational leadership and work engagement: Exploring the mediating role of structural empowerment Ariadna Monje Amor * , Jos  e Pablo Abeal V  azquez, Jos  e Andr  es Faí ~ na Faculty of Economics and Business, Universidade da Coru~ na, Campus de Elvi~ na s/n, 15071, A Coru~ na, Spain article info Article history: Received 21 November 2018 Received in revised form 3 April 2019 Accepted 27 June 2019 Available online xxx Keywords: Transformational leadership Work engagement Structural empowerment Mediation Tourism abstract The purpose of this study is to investigate the mediating role of structural empowerment in the positive relationship between transformational leadership and work engagement. Based on self-reported ques- tionnaires from 240 employees working in the tourism sector in Galicia (northwest of Spain), the findings reveal that the linkage between transformational leadership and work engagement is partially mediated by structural empowerment. These results imply that transformational leaders foster work engagement by enabling access to information, opportunities, support and adequate resources. This empirical study is one of the first to examine the role of structural empowerment as a mediator between transformational leadership and work engagement and may serve as a reference for promoting work engagement in service organizations. A number of contributions and practical implications are discussed. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Work engagement has become a very popular term and a sub- ject of great interest in the field of management and positive psy- chology over the past 20 years. Having an engaged workforce is a competitive advantage for organizations as it is associated with favourable organizational outcomes (Kahn, 1990; Saks, 2006; Schaufeli, Salanova, Gonz alez-Rom a, & Bakker, 2002). Leadership is a critical component that influences the work environment and the way employees perceive their work (Christian, Garza, & Slaughter, 2011). Specifically, transformational leadership behaviours such as intellectual stimulation and indi- vidual consideration may engender a supportive organizational climate that stimulates high levels of work engagement (Avolio & Bass, 1995) and enhances followers' internal motivation (Avolio & Yammarino, 2002). Further, transformational leaders who set clear expectations, praise employees for good performance, are fair, and are concerned about employees may play a part in bringing about feelings of attachment to one's work and psychological safety (Kahn, 1990; Macey & Schneider, 2008). Structural empowerment refers to having access to information, support, enough resources and opportunities to learn and grow at work (Kanter, 1977). Moreover, leaders play an important role in creating empowering workplace conditions that may result in positive personal and organizational outcomes (Cummings et al., 2010). Bakker and Demerouti (2008) suggested that engaged em- ployees are more imaginative, productive and more willing to go the extra mile. Therefore, the embedded understanding of the relationship between transformational leadership and structural empowerment is a key to increasing work engagement in today's highly competitive business environment. The primary purpose of this study is to investigate the medi- ating role of structural empowerment in the positive relationship between transformational leadership and work engagement in the Galician tourism sector (northwest Spain). The tourism sector in Galicia is one of the pillars of the economy, being one of the most powerful industries that generates employment. In the past few years, efforts have focused on the promotion of competitiveness, innovation and the internationalization of this industry, which makes this a relevant context for this study. 2. Theoretical background and hypotheses 2.1. Transformational leadership and structural empowerment Empowerment is a key component of organization effectiveness that may increase when control and power are distributed (Keller & * Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: ariadna.monje@udc.es (A. Monje Amor), j.abeal@udc.es (J.P. Abeal V azquez), fai@udc.es (J.A. Faí ~ na). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect European Management Journal journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/emj https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2019.06.007 0263-2373/© 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. European Management Journal xxx (xxxx) xxx Please cite this article as: Monje Amor, A et al., Transformational leadership and work engagement: Exploring the mediating role of structural empowerment, European Management Journal, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2019.06.007