Impact of emotional contagion on organizational communication among employees in NGOs working toward sustainable development

The study provides important empirical evidence of the role of emo- tional contagion (a socio-psychological mechanism by which mental states are transmitted to other people) to motivate the staff of social non-profit organizations with limited financial resources. The research goal was to identify the mechanisms through which emotional contagion in management communications affects the motivation of employees at social non-profits in the context of achieving sustainable development principles. The study adopted a mixed-methods design. Validated quantitative methods were applied to assess emotional contagion, intrinsic motivation, value fit, and leadership styles among 267 employees from 18 non-profits. Following this, 15 indepth interviews with managers and six focus groups with employees were conducted to gain a deeper understanding of the results. Statistical analysis was conducted with nonparametric methods: Spearman’s correlation, the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal- Wallis tests, and mediation and moderation analysis with bootstrapping. The qualitative data underwent thematic analysis. Emotional contagion was concluded to be an effective mechanism for motivating the staff of social non-profit organizations, acting through value fit and enhanced by transformational leadership. The results provide practical guidelines for the development of HR strategies for the nonprofit sector, particularly for organizations focused on social work (e.g., involving volunteer work). These strategies can contribute to the achievement of sustainable development goals by increasing employee motivation and the quality of social services.