What was the main hypothesis of Jia Hu and colleagues regarding workplace leaders and humility?

• A. Leaders who avoid mistakes display more humility.
• B. Humility is unrelated to reflection on past mistakes.
• C. Leaders who reflect on past mistakes exhibit more humility than those who don't.
• D. Humility increases with experience.

Answer: (C)

The idea being tested is that leaders who reflect on past mistakes exhibit more humility. In the study by Jia Hu and colleagues, the hypothesis is that reflection on past mistakes is positively associated with leadership humility: leaders who actively think about and learn from their errors are more likely to show humility, by being self-aware, open to feedback, and willing to acknowledge what they don’t know. This makes sense because humility involves owning up to limitations and valuing others’ contributions, and reflecting on mistakes is a concrete way to demonstrate that process.

This is the best fit because it ties a specific behavior—reflecting on past mistakes—to a trait often defined as humility in leadership research. It goes beyond vague notions of experience or success and points to a mechanism (self-awareness and learning from errors) that would manifest as humility in how leaders interact with others. The other statements miss this direct link: avoiding mistakes isn’t the same as showing humility, claiming no relation contradicts the proposed idea, and humility increasing with experience suggests a general trend rather than the specific reflection-based path examined here.