Supervisor humor styles and employee advocacy: A serial mediation model

•Affiliative humor of supervisors was positively associated with employee advocacy.•Aggressive humor of supervisors was negatively associated with employee advocacy.•Supervisor humor has a significant effect on perceived supervisor authenticity.•Supervisor authenticity is positively associated with the quality of EOR.•The quality of EOR is positively associated with employee advocacy. This study examines how supervisor humor styles influence employee advocacy by building the linkage between affiliative humor, aggressive humor, supervisor authenticity, employee-organization relationships, and employee advocacy. Through a quantitative survey with 350 employees who work for a variety of organizations, the study’s results indicated that the relationship between supervisor humor style and employee advocacy is fully mediated by supervisor authenticity and employee-organization relationships. Significant theoretical and practical implications are discussed.