An intriguing paradox in organizational management is that authoritarian leadership continues to prevail, particularly in high power distance contexts, despite recurring adverse research outcomes. To better clarify this puzzle, this study integrated cultural and active leader-choice perspectives and proposed a comprehensive framework to illustrate how power distance shapes leaders’ social cognition and motivation toward authoritarian leadership, causing variations in its distribution within and between cultures. Drawing from two distinct studies conducted in China and the USA, the data showcases that leaders’ power distance boosts their belief in the effectiveness of discipline-focused authoritarian leadership and need for power, resulting in the manifestation of discipline- or dominance-focused authoritarian leadership, respectively. In addition, as anticipated, Chinese leaders exhibited higher power distance scores and stronger beliefs in the effectiveness of authoritarian leadership than US leaders. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
