Examining the double-edged sword effect of stretch goals on employee radical creativity

While team stretch goals are intended to stimulate employee radical creativity, emerging research suggests their
actual impact is paradoxical. Drawing on the dualistic model of passion, we reconcile competing perspectives by
examining how and when stretch goals stimulate or harm employee radical creativity. Across two comple-
mentary studies employing diverse methods and data sources—one three-wave survey (N = 268 employees
nested within 54 teams) and one preregistered vignette experiment (N = 398)—we found that when team
mastery climate is high, team stretch goals are positively associated with employee harmonious work passion,
which in turn facilitates radical creativity. When team performance climate is high, however, team stretch goals
trigger employee obsessive work passion, which subsequently harms radical creativity. Taken together, our
findings illuminate the motivational internalization processes through which team stretch goals influence
employee radical creativity, as well as the critical role of team motivational climates in shaping these processes.