ArticlePDF Available

The Influence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Effect of Organizational Commitment

Authors:

Abstract and Figures

The main aim of the study to find out whether organizational commitment has any mediation effect on the relationship between servant leadership and organizational citizenship behavior. Data was collected from 432 managers and staff of private commercial banks in Bangladesh. The respondents were selected using the convenience sampling technique. Structural equation modeling was used for analyzing the collected data. The study reveals that servant leadership has a direct influence on organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behavior, as well as organizational commitment has a direct impact on organizational citizenship behavior. It is also revealed that the relationship between servant leadership and organizational commitment is partially mediated by organizational commitment. The main implication of the study is that employees' organizational citizenship behavior can be improved by servant leadership of managers through the indirect effect of organizational commitment of employees. The study also pinpoints some limitations as well as future research directions.
Content may be subject to copyright.
70
Mohammad Harisur Rahman Howladar, Md Sahidur Rahman
Abstract
The main aim of the study to nd out whether organizational commitment has any mediation eect on the
relationship between servant leadership and organizational citizenship behavior. Data was collected from
432 managers and sta of private commercial banks in Bangladesh. The respondents were selected using the
convenience sampling technique. Structural equation modeling was used for analyzing the collected data.
The study reveals that servant leadership has a direct inuence on organizational commitment and organi-
zational citizenship behavior, as well as organizational commitment has a direct impact on organizational
citizenship behavior. It is also revealed that the relationship between servant leadership and organizational
commitment is partially mediated by organizational commitment. The main implication of the study is that
employees’ organizational citizenship behavior can be improved by servant leadership of managers through
the indirect eect of organizational commitment of employees. The study also pinpoints some limitations as
well as future research directions.
Keywords: Organizational commitment, Servant Leadership, Organizational citizenship behavior,
Mediation.
JEL Classication: C31, C88, L29, M10
1. INTRODUCTION
Servant leadership (SL) instigated for change in tradi-
tional ideas of leadership and prepares the organiza-
tions for facing the ambiguous future (McGee-Cooper
and Looper 2001). SL emphasizes the more democratic
and learning-based style of leadership rather than hi-
erarchical and power-oriented leadership (Lloyd 1996).
It is an acceptable theory of leadership for individual
and organizational levels, which increases the perfor-
mance of teams and individuals (Lee et al. 2019; Parris
and Peachey 2013).
In today’s competitive business world managers
need to apply those leadership approaches that can
ensure the committed workforce (Bučiūnienė and
Mohammad Harisur Rahman Howladar, PhD
(corresponding author)
Professor
Department of Management
University of Chittagong, Bangladesh
Email: harisur@cu.ac.bd
Address: University of Chittagong, Chottogram,
Bangladesh
ORCID: https://orcid:org/0000-0003-2302-5561
Md Sahidur Rahman, PhD
Professor
Department of Management
University of Chittagong, Bangladesh
Email: sahidur_cu@yahoo.com
South East European Journal of Economics and Business
Volume 16 (1) 2021, 70-83
DOI: 10.2478/jeb-2021-0006
Copyright © 2021 by the School of Economics and Business Sarajevo
THE INFLUENCE OF SERVANT LEADERSHIP
ON ORGANIZATIONAL CITIZENSHIP BEHAVIOR:
THE MEDIATING EFFECT OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
71South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
Škudienė 2008) and employees who work not only
within their boundary but also proactively out of their
boxes for up-bringing organizations. Committed and
proactive employees can ensure the competitiveness
of the organizations (Yen and Teng 2013). The devel-
opment of favorable working environments is essen-
tial for creating committed teams and their perfor-
mance (Haque, et al. 2019). SL has a positive inuence
on both organizational commitment (OC) (Bobbio,
Dierendonck, and Manganelli 2012; Van Dierendonck
and Nuijten 2011; Zhou and Miao 2014) and organi-
zational citizenship behavior (OCB)(Abid, Gulzar, and
Hussain 2015; Bobbio et al. 2012; Yang and Min 2013).
It was also found that when the employees are com-
mitted they show their intention to do extra for the or-
ganizations (Lawrence, Ott, and Bell 2012; Naja el al.
2011; Ng and Feldman 2011).
Most of the studies on SL, OC, and OCB were con-
ducted in the Western context. Only a few studies
(Abid et al. 2015; GÜÇEL and Begec 2012; Mathur
and Negi 2014; Newman et al. 2017) were found in
Asian countries. There were no studies found in India
(Carroll and Patterson 2016; Kashyap and Rangnekar
2014), Turkey (Cerit 2009; Koyuncu et al. 2014), China
(CH Chan and Mak 2014; Liu, Hu, and Cheng 2015),
Malaysia (Le Ng, Choi, and Soehod 2016; Ramli and
Desa 2014) and Singapore (Zhang, Lin, and Fong
Foo 2012) that focused on SL, OC and OCB together.
Additionally, so far as our knowledge goes such stud-
ies are not found in Bangladesh.
Banking is one of the larger service sectors in
Bangladesh, where most of the sta are highly educat-
ed. Dealing with highly educated and technical peo-
ple is very crucial for the success of organizations. SL
can be the best option for managers of dierent banks
to deal with competent banking sta. SL studies in
any South Asian country did not include the banking
sector as their context. Most of the studies focused on
IT employees (Carroll and Patterson 2016), teaching
sta (Cerit 2009; Zhang et al. 2012) private employees
(CH Chan and Mak 2014), and public employees (Liu
et al. 2015).
Moreover, some studies revealed the direct inu-
ence of SL on OC and OCB, while other studies found
a direct inuence of OC on OCB. The question arises,
whether the relationship between SL and OCB can be
mediated by OC. Surprisingly, the impact of OC on the
association between SL and OCB is not adequately
examined. Hence, this research gap motivates the re-
searchers to expose whether the impact of SL on OCB
can be mediated by OC.
The present study can contribute by advancing
the existing knowledge in numerous ways. First, this
study will unearth the impact of SL on OC and OCB in
the developing countries’ context more specically
in Bangladesh. Second, the present study examines
the suitability of SL for the managers in the banking
sector in developing countries like Bangladesh to in-
crease commitment and extra-role behavior. Third, the
existing literature is loaded with a discussion on the
role of SL on OC and OCB. This study tends to reveal
whether the inuence of SL on OCB can be mediated
by OC, which is not tested elsewhere by the research-
ers according to our knowledge.
2. LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Servant leadership (SL)
Going beyond one’s self-interest is the main charac-
teristic of SL (Greenleaf 1970). Servant leaders are not
looking for power rather they are inspired by serving
others (Luthans and Favolio 2003). Servant leaders
outstrip self-interest.
Servant leaders are developing people, sharing
leadership, displaying authenticity, valuing people,
providing leadership, and building community (Laub
1999). Similarly, Wong and Page (2003) mentioned
that SL is visionary leadership, servanthood, respon-
sible leadership, courageous leadership, as well as
they are emphasizing honesty, authenticity, power,
and pride ( vulnerability and humidity) and develop-
ing and empowering others. To lead a team eectively
SL provides accountability, gives support, emphasizes
true self-evaluation, fosters collaboration, provides
clear information, and values the people (Irving and
Longbotham 2007).
Moreover, empowerment, standing back, account-
ability, forgiveness, courage, authenticity, humility,
and stewardship are the constructs of SL which are
conrmed by Van Dierendonck and Nuijten (2011). The
operational denition of SL given by Van Dierendonck
and Nuijten is adopted in this study.
2.2 Organizational commitment (OC)
Organizational commitment is the relative strength
of a person’s identication with and participation in a
certain organization (Porter et al. 1974).
From the relationship point of view, OC refers to
the condition in which an employee identies him-
self/herself with the organization and its goals and
desires to continue the aliation in the organization
(Miller 2003). There is another approach to dening
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
72 South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
OC is behavior (Morrow 1993). According to the be-
havioral approach, OC is the visible behavior of an
individual when he/she is committed to the existing
group within the organization (Reichers 1985).
OC has three dimensions (Mayer and Allen 1991).
These dimensions (Aective, continuance, and norma-
tive commitment) are distinguishable and can feel by
the employee with varying degrees (Meyer and Allen
1991). Multidimensionality of OC and its measure-
ment was held up by a Meta-analysis (Allen and Meyer
1996). This study adapted Meyer and Allens concept
of OC.
2.3 Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB)
Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) is not the
portion of the ocial job behavior but useful for the
organization (Smith, Organ, and Near 1983). Besides,
D. Organ (1988) mentioned that this is an optional be-
havior of a person, not rewarded formally, but in total,
this upholds the organizational eectiveness.
The ve dimensions of OCB suggested by D. Organ
(1988) are altruism, sportsmanship, conscientious-
ness, courtesy, and civic virtue. The scale of OCB devel-
oped by Podsako et al. (1990) has ve subscales for
each dimension given by Organ. This ve-dimensional
scale was adopted by the current study.
OCB-I and OCB-O are two dierent dimensions of
OCB (Williams and Anderson 1991). OCB-I is citizen-
ship behavior focused on individuals. Helping oth-
ers when people are in a heavy workload, helping
new people to understand their jobs, are examples
of OCB –I. On the other hand, OCB-O is the extra-role
behavior focused on the organization. When employ-
ees not complaining to others at work, protecting
the organizational resources for the organizational
wellbeing, then these activities of the employees are
under OCB–O. In other cases, behavior-based OCB tax-
onomies are proposed and operationalized by many
researchers (Borman and Motowidlo 1993; Morrison
1994; Vandyne, Cummings, and Parks 1995). But the
behavior-based OCB taxonomies are overlapping with
each other and with Organ’s (1988) OCB dimensions
(Coleman and Borman 2000).
2.4 Servant leadership and organizational
citizenship behavior
A good number of studies revealed that SL has a sig-
nicant positive relationship with OCB (Abid et al.
2015; Bobbio et al. 2012; Yang and Min 2013). Liden
et al. (2008) developed 28 items of SL instrument and
ensured validity by showing that SL caused more vari-
ance in OCB than other leadership styles. Some other
empirical studies in India (Mathur and Negi 2014),
Kenia (Walumbwa, Hartnell, and Oke 2010), China
(Newman et al. 2017), and Turkey (GÜÇEL and Begec
2012) revealed a signicant direct inuence of SL on
OCB. From the above discussions and the summary of
the ndings, it is postulated that SL has a direct inu-
ence on OCB. Therefore, we can develop the hypoth-
esis as follows:
H1: There is a direct inuence of SL on OCB.
2.5 Servant leadership and organizational
commitment
In the western countries’ context, some empirical stud-
ies (Bobbio et al. 2012; Lapointe and Vandenberghe
2018; Newman et al. 2018) revealed that there is a
positive inuence of SL on OC. Conversely, Drury
(2004) found that there is an inverse inuence of SL
on OC. Miao et al. (2014) revealed that aective and
normative commitment is positively aected by SL,
but SL has no inuence on continuance commitment.
Awee et al. (2014) and Ramli and Desa (2014) studied
in Malaysia and revealed that SL has a positive inu-
ence on OC. Though there are some controversies in
dierent ndings, many studies showed a positive
inuence of SL on OC. From the above discussions,
it can be perceived that there is a direct inuence of
SL on OC. Hence, the hypothesis can be developed as
follows:
H2: There is a direct inuence of SL on OC.
2.6 Organizational commitment and
organizational citizenship behavior
Moorman, Nieho, and Organ (1993) revealed that
OC has a signicant positive impact on OCB. Meyer
et al. (2002) demonstrated that one of the outcomes
of OC is OCB. Another study in a university environ-
ment found that OC inuences OCB (Mirabizadeh and
Gheitasi 2012). Chen and Francesco (2003) revealed
that aective commitment (AC) is positively related
to OCB, but continuance commitment (CC) and OCB
are negatively correlated. In a study, Zeinabadi (2010)
revealed that commitment mediates the association
between job satisfaction and OCB. Some studies in
Bangladesh also found that OC has a positive impact
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
73South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
on OCB (Ferdus and Kabir 2018; Jahangir, Akbar, and
Begum 2006). Some recent studies (Obedgiu, Bagire,
and Mafabi 2017; op den Buijs et al. 2019; Pooja, De
Clercq, and Belausteguigoitia 2016) found the similar
results. Thus, it can be perceived that OC can positive-
ly inuence OCB. Therefore, we can suggest the fol-
lowing hypothesis:
H3: There is a direct inuence of OC on OCB.
2.7 Servant leadership, Organizational citizen-
ship behavior, and organizational commitment
Empirical studies in the area of OCB, SL, and OC gave
attention to nd out the association between SL and
OC (Bobbio et al. 2012; Lapointe and Vandenberghe
2018; Newman et al. 2018) and the inuence of SL on
OCB (Abid et al. 2015; Bobbio et al. 2012; Newman et
al. 2017). Many studies revealed that SL has a positive
inuence on OCB and OC. No study revealed the me-
diating inuence of OC on the association between
SL and OCB. Walumbwa et al. (2010) showed that em-
ployees’ commitment to their supervisor mediates the
association between SL and OCB. Since SL can posi-
tively inuence both OC and OCB, and OC is one of the
antecedents of OCB (Lawrence et al. 2012; Naja et al.
2011; Ng and Feldman 2011; D. W. Organ, Podsako,
and MacKenzie 2005), then it can be perceived that
OC can mediate the relationship between SL and OCB.
Hence, we can develop the following hypothesis:
H4: OC can mediate the relationship between SL
and OCB.
Based on the previous hypotheses, the following
research model can be developed(Cheung and Lau
2008; Hopwood 2007):
Figure 1. Research model
3. RESEARCH METHODS
3.1 Sample and data collection
All the managers and sta working in private com-
mercial banks (PCBs) of Bangladesh are involved in
the population of this study. The total number of
managers and sta serving the PCBs is more than
one hundred thousand (Ahmed and Rahman 2020).
For collecting primary data from the sample of man-
agers and sta, the convenience sampling method is
supposed to be the best t. To save time and money
convenience sampling is commonly used in social re-
search and organizational studies (Bryman 2016).
Accordingly, PCBs are selected using the quota
sampling technique. Quota sampling is used for con-
rming the presence of respondents from diverse
categories of PCBs (traditional interest-based banks,
Islami sharia-based banks, etc.). Selected banks and
branches are chosen using quota sampling and then
respondents from dierent banks and branches are
reached using a convenient sampling method.
Sample size 321 is appropriate for the population
of 100.000 at 95% condence level and error +/- 5%
is allowed (Zikmund et al. 2013). On the other hand,
Saunders, Lewis, and Thornhill (2009) mentioned that
the sample size should be 384 in the same situation.
Methods used for data analysis also inuence the
choice of sample size. A large sample size is expected
for the use of Structural equation modeling (SEM). The
sample size should be 150 – 400 for better results of
SEM (Hair et al. 2012). The sample size 400 was con-
sidered most appropriate for this study on the ground
that population size is more than 100,000 and collect-
ed data was analyzed using SEM.
Data was collected from the respondents with
a time gap to avoid the common method variance
(CMV). In the rst stage, personal data and data re-
lated to SL were collected. After three weeks, the re-
spondents were supplied the second part of the sur-
vey instrument to measure OC and OCB.
A team of ten graduate students was used for col-
lecting data from dierent PCBs situated at dierent
geographical areas after giving appropriate training.
The authors of the current study provided all sorts of
nancial assistance to all the team members. Despite
this, the authors personally distributed some ques-
tionnaires among the respondents of some selected
PCBs where no team members got access.
432 respondents were returned the questionnaire
out of 500 distributed questionnaires. Among them,
387 were usable. Some completed questionnaires
were rejected due to problems of severe outliers, un-
engaged responses, and missing data. The response
rate is 77.4%. This response rate is adequate (Baruch
SL
OC
OCB
H₂ H₃
H₄
H₁
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
74 South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
and Holtom 2008; Saunders et al. 2009; Zikmund et al.
2013).
82.7% of respondents of this study are male (320
in numbers). Among the respondents 43.2 % belong
to the 30 -35 age, 34.1 % respondents were within
25 – 30 age, and only 14.0% were within 35-40 age.
Most of the respondents are highly educated (96.4%
of respondents were master holders). Among the re-
spondents 23.5% were assistant ocers, 23.8% were
ocers, 11.6% were principal ocers, and 37.2% were
senior ocers. Most of the respondents (42.4%) had 3
-6 years of work experience. 1-3 years work experience
had 28.7% of respondents, 16.8% had 6-9 years work
experience, and 12.1% had above 9 years work expe-
rience. 143 respondents (37%) had work experience
with their present manager for 1-2 years. Moreover,
12.7%, had 1-year work experience with their present
manager, 27.1% had 2-3 years, and 28.2% had above
3 years work experience with their present manager.
Out of 387 respondents, 257 respondents (66.4%)
were married.
3.2 Measurement tools
The 30-item SL scale of Van Dierendonck and Nuijten
(2011) was used to measure SL since this scale showed
high reliability and validity. This scale has eight dimen-
sions such as accountability, forgiveness, courage,
empowerment, humidity, standing back, authentic-
ity, and stewardship. Three items (14, 15, and 16) were
negatively keyed. The seven points Likert scale was
used for getting the responses on items. In the pre-
sent context, it was found good reliability ranged from
.772 to .893.
The OC scale given by Allen and Meyer (1990) was
used for measuring OC. This scale contains 18 items
divided into three subscales according to the dimen-
sions of OC. The seven points Likert scale was used for
getting the responses on items. Reliability scores of
this scale in the current context were found from .875
to .884 which indicates very good reliability.
To measure the OCB the scale given by Podsako
et al. (1990) was used which generated one global
measure of OCB. There are ve dimensions of this
scale such as conscientiousness, sportsmanship, civic
virtue, altruism, and courtesy. Only ve items were
negatively keyed (2, 4, 7, 16, and 19). The seven points
Likert scale was used for getting the responses on
items. The reliability scores of this scale ranged from
.825 to .885 which also indicates very good reliability
of this scale in the current context.
3.3 Evaluation of model
Both the measurement model and the structural mod-
el were examined by using SEM (Hair et al. 2012). SEM
takes a conrmatory approach, can include both man-
ifest and latent variables, and estimate measurement
error (Hair et al. 2012; Hoe 2008).
3.3.1 Measurement model
The exactness of the model was examined by reli-
ability and validity checks including convergent valid-
ity and discriminant validity. From Table 1, it is found
that the factor loadings have a satisfactory value that
is above the minimum level of 0.50 for each item of
the constructs (Hair et al. 2012). Moreover, the internal
consistency measurement through Cronbach’s alpha
(From .772 to .893) and composite reliability (From
.773 to .889) indicates the reliability of the scales (Hair
et al. 2012).
To evaluate the validity of the measurement mod-
els, both the convergent and discriminant validities
were advocated (Hair et al. 2012). From Table 1, it is
found that the minimum average variance extract-
ed (AVE = .539) and composite reliability (CR=.773)
are above the threshold value of .0500 and 0.700 re-
spectively (Hair et al. 2012; Saunders et al. 2009) that
conrmed the convergent validity of the measure-
ment models. From table 2, it is found that the inter-
construct correlation is smaller than the square root
of AVE. This nding demonstrates the existence of the
discriminant validity of the scales. Moreover, from ta-
ble 1, it is found that the factor loading is more than
0.70 for each construct that also conrms the discri-
minant validity of the scales (Haque et al. 2019; Kline
2005).
According to the Harman’s single factor test, the
current study has a concern for common method bias
since this model has a very poor t (X2/df = 9.479, GFI
= .692, NFI = .627, CFI= .650, TLI = .596, and RMSEA=
.148) (Podsako, et al. 2003). After applying the un-
measured latent method factor (Podsako, MacKenzie,
and Podsako 2012), it is found that the model has
satisfactory t for the data (X2/df = 1.558, GFI = .960,
NFI = .950, CFI= .981, TLI = .973, and RMSEA= .038)
with the common method factor. Moreover, the com-
mon methods factor causes variance extraction only
by 23.35% which is less than the minimum level of
50%. Thus, the present study has no serious concern
for common method bias (Kashyap and Rangnekar
2014; Podsako et al. 2012).
Furthermore, Table 1 shows that the overall meas-
urement model bestowed a good t to the data (X2/df
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
75South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
= 1.588, RMR = 0.051, GFI = .952, NFI = .940, CFI= .977,
TLI = .972, and RMSEA= .039) since all the t indices
are within their standard value (Hair et al. 2012).
3.3.2 Structural model
After examining the reliability and validity, now move
to test the structural model tness. The structural
model delivered a good t to the data (X2/df = 1.588,
RMR = .051, GFI = .952, NFI = .940,CFI= .977, TLI = .972,
and RMSEA= .039) (Hair et al. 2012). Though the NFI
value is less than the standard value .95 but it is with
acceptable level .90 (Hair et al. 2012).
The constructs of structure models are associated
to each other. To nd out the nature of these asso-
ciations the path coecient analysis is also used. The
results from Table 3 revealed that SL and OC explain
21% variance in OCB (R2 = 0.21) and SL explains 13%
variance in OC (R2 = 0.13). Additionally, the results
shown in Table 3 demonstrated a signicant inuence
of SL on OCB (β = .294, t = 4.609, p = .000), and OC (β=
.363, t = 5.660, p = .000). Moreover, OC signicantly in-
uence the OCB (β = .259, t = 3.866, p = .000). Thus H1,
H2 and H3 are supported.
Table 1. Constructs reliability and validity
Exogenous
constructs
Latent constructs Standard Factor
loading
Cronbach’s alpha Composite
reliability
AVE
SL Empowerment .81 .883 0.889 0.667
Standing Back .78 .884 0.885 0.719
Accountability .74 .831 0.833 0.624
Forgiveness .76 .772 0.773 0.630
Courage .75 .785 0.792 0.658
Authenticity .75 .865 0.866 0.617
Humility .78 .893 0.885 0.608
Stewardship .82 .843 0.845 0.645
OC Continuous .68 .875 0.877 0.544
Aective .86 .883 0.876 0.540
Normative .77 .884 0.886 0.565
OCB Altruism .84 .884 0.832 0.554
Conscientiousness .78 .836 0.885 0.607
Courtesy .79 .829 0.841 0.572
Sportsmanship .72 .853 0.853 0.539
Civic Virtue .79 .825 0.825 0.541
(X2/df = 1.588, RMR = .051, TLI = .972, GFI = .952, NFI = .940, CFI= .977, and RMSEA= .039).
Note: * xed parameter, AVE = Average variance extracted
Source: Authors’ calculation, 2020
Table 2. Inter-construct correlations and the Square root of AVE
CR AVE OC SL OCB
OC 0.761 0.517 0.719
SL 0.892 0.510 0.363 0.714
OCB 0.843 0.518 0.366 0.388 0.720
Diagonal bold gures are the square root of AVE; sub diagonal gures are the inter-construct correlations.
Source: Authors’ calculation, 2020
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
76 South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
Figure 2. OC partially mediating the relationship between SL and OCB
Source: Authors’ development, 2020
4. RESULTS
4.1 Mediation testing
The nested models’ approach was used for testing me-
diation. In this approach, the partially mediated mod-
el is compared with the most likely competing models
nested within it (Brown et al. 2002; Cantarello, Filippini,
and Nosella 2012; Ju Rebecca Yen and Gwinner 2003).
The outcomes of three dierent models are shown
in table 4. The rst model is the partial mediating
model shows both the direct and indirect impact of
SL on OCB (Figure 2). The second model is a full me-
diating model where it is shown that the association
between SL and OCB is mediated by OC (Figure 3).
Table 3. Test of Hypotheses for the structured model
Hypothesis Hypothesized
relationship
Standardized
coecient
T – value P-value Result
H1 SL ¦ OCB .294 4.609 .000 Supported
H2 SL ¦ OC .363 5.660 .000 Supported
H3 OC ¦ OCB .259 3.866 .000 Supported
Source: Authors’ calculation, 2020
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
77South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
The third model is the direct eect model where the
direct impact of SL and OC on OCB is shown (Figure
4). The partial mediating model is needed to compare
with both the full mediating model and the direct ef-
fect model to examine the nature of mediating eect
of OC on the association between SL and OCB. Table 4
shows the comparison of three models based on the
t indices.
According to the t indices, table 4 revealed that
all three structural models are well t. But the partial
mediation model shows better t indices than the
other two models. The X2 dierence test is conduct-
ed. The result shows that the X2 dierence between
the rst model (partially mediating) and the second
model (fully mediating) (X2 dierence = 23.237, df =
1, p = 0.000) is signicant as well as the X2 dierence
between the rst model (partially mediating) and the
second model (direct eect) (X2 dierence = 36.950, df
= 1, p = 0.000) is also signicant. Thus it is found that
the partially mediated model is best tted. The results
recommend that OC has a partial mediation impact
on the association between SL and OCB. Therefore,
Figure 3. OC fully mediating the relationship between SL and OCB
Source: Authors’ Development, 2020
Table 4. Fit indices of the models
Model X2/df CFI GFI NFI TLI RMSEA
First (Partial mediating) 1.588 .977 .952 .940 .972 .039
Second (Full mediating) 1.802 .968 .946 .931 .962 .046
Third (Direct relations) 1.938 .962 .942 .926 .955 .049
Source: Authors’ calculation, 2020
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
78 South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
hypothesis H4 is supported. Thus, it could be stated
that SL has both direct and indirect eects on OCB.
The proportion of mediation of OC on the SL and OCB
relationship is found 24.40 percent [(.36 x .26)/(.36 x
.26) + .29] (Iacobucci, Saldanha, and Deng 2007). The
result indicates that 24.40% variance on OCB is ex-
plained by both SL and OC which is for the indirect
path via OC, whereas the remaining OCB variance is
explained by both SL and OC which is for the direct
path. Hence, there is a partial mediation because the
direct path is preponderated.
5. DISCUSSION
The result of this study revealed that there is a direct
inuence of SL on OCB. This result is also reinforced by
other ndings in the Western context (Neubert et al.
2008; Reed 2016; Van Dierendonck et al. 2017) as well
as in the Asian context (Abid et al. 2015; GÜÇEL and
Begec 2012; Newman et al. 2017). Some studies (Abid
et al. 2015; Hu and Liden 2011) in the banking sector
also support the direct inuences of SL on OCB.
Additionally, the outcome of the current study
revealed that there is a direct impact of SL on OC.
Figure 4. The direct relationship of SL and OC with OCB
Source: Authors’ development, 2020
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
79South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
This result is also supported by other outcomes in
the Western context (Bobbio et al. 2012; Drury 2004;
Lapointe and Vandenberghe 2018). In developing
countries, some studies (Awee et al. 2014; Miao et al.
2014; Ramli and Desa 2014) also support that SL has a
direct inuence on OC.
Moreover, it was perceived that there is a direct
impact of OC on OCB, and the nding of the present
study supported this perception. This nding is also
supported by Western studies (Cetin, Gürbüz, and Sert
2015; op den Buijs et al. 2019; Pooja et al. 2016) along
with the developing countries (Obedgiu et al. 2017;
Prasetio, Yuniarsih, and Ahman 2017). In Bangladesh,
a study on bankers (Ferdus and Kabir 2018) also sup-
ports the direct inuence of OC on OCB.
The relationship between SL and OCB is partially
mediated by OC. This nding of the study is supported
indirectly by the ndings of Walumbwa et al. (2010)
who studied employees’ commitment to their super-
visor. The mediation inuence of OC on the SL and
OCB relationship is partial due to a signicant direct
relationship of SL and OC with OCB. However, some
other factors may inuence the relationship between
SL and OCB that is still a matter of discovery.
6. THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL
IMPLICATIONS OF THE STUDY
The theoretical contribution of the study is that OC
indirectly aects the relationship between SL and OCB
that was not identied by any other ndings earlier.
Moreover, the dimensions of SL are perfectly suited
in developing countries’ contexts like Western coun-
tries. SL style is similarly applicable in the developing
countries like Bangladesh which is supported by other
few ndings in Asian and African countries like India
(Carroll and Patterson 2016), Malaysia (Le Ng et al.
2016), China (Liu et al. 2015), Turkey (Cerit 2010), and
Kenia (Walumbwa et al. 2010).
This study adds new knowledge by exploring the
eect of SL on employees’ OC and OCB in organiza-
tions. Based on the outcomes of the study it can be
proposed that SL should be recognized as a signicant
antecedent to foster OC and OCB among employees.
It is found that the SL scale of van Dierendonck
and Nuijten, (2011) is approachable and easily appli-
cable in developing countries. These ndings create
opportunities for selecting and developing SL in the
organizations of developing countries through proper
assessment, training, and performance evaluation of
the executives.
Managers and executives can apply SL that ulti-
mately will improve the employees OC and OCB. The
employee-orientated managers and executives are
empowering the employees, developing them, and
increasing loyalty. Hence, this leadership can improve
the performance of both employees and organiza-
tions in today’s technology-based extremely competi-
tive business situation.
Like other service organizations (Abid et al. 2015;
GÜÇEL and Begec 2012) SL is applicable in banking
sectors in developing countries (Mathur and Negi
2014). Moreover, managers and executives in the
banking sector can apply SL to improve the OC of the
employees which will, in turn, motivate the employ-
ees to do extra for organizations.
Organizations can inspire managers to follow the
SL behavior to deal with their employees. Training
and mentoring programs can develop the SL behav-
ior among the managers (Liden et al. 2014; Peterson,
Galvin, and Lange 2012). Managers can be trained in
such a way that to deal with the employees they can
exhibit personal attention, keep them knowledgeable
about the development chances, establish a fair and
open relationship with them, empower them, show
sympathy to them for their faults, and provide credit
to them for their achievements.
Employee-oriented leadership (SL) is the best op-
tion to deal with the highly educated and meritorious
employees in the organization. Academicians must
give more attention to the area of SL for more study.
The course curriculum on leadership should also con-
tain the model of SL.
7. LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE RESEARCH
DIRECTIONS
Data collection using convenience sampling is the
main limitation of the study that fails to generalize the
results. All data were collected from only local PCBs of
Bangladesh for ensuring data consistency. The sample
consisted of only PCBs of Bangladesh, which seem to
be more homogenous; thus, future researchers can
cover other areas such as public banks, foreign banks
to ensure heterogeneous demographics.
Among the respondents, ninety-nine percent hold
a master’s degree. The results of the study point out
how to deal with highly educated people eectively.
Thus, the results cannot be generalized how to deal
with less-educated or working-class people eec-
tively. Future researchers can cover the working-class
people for exploring the inuence of SL on the job
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
80 South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
attitude of working-class people.
The objective perception of the employees rather
than independent and subject measurement was
used to measure the variables. The future researcher
can use both subjective and objective measurements
for generating undisputable results.
The present study did not reveal the impact of SL
on the dierent dimensions of OC and OCB. Future
studies can explore the relationship of SL with dier-
ent dimensions of OC and OCB.
8. CONCLUSION
SL creates a positive attitude among employees
since they are given importance by the leaders. In
exchange for this leadership behavior, subordinates
show their steady commitment to organizations and
performing extra pro-social activities. Additionally,
servant leaders can create a positive organizational
context and culture that fosters OC and OCB. Business
organizations are facing more challenges from tech-
nological progress and worldwide competition. In this
situation, every business organization needs to adapt
to the new technologies and increase competitive-
ness. Managers are now worried about how to devel-
op and retain talented employees. SL is an excellent
approach to lead employees with high potential and
skills. SL can foster the armative postures and per-
formance of the employees. Moreover, the organiza-
tional eort for increasing OC will foster OCB through
SL. Organizations can develop the SL through proper
assessment, training, and mentoring programs ac-
cording to the SL model. More specically, SL develop-
ment programs develop the managers to demonstrate
personal consideration to their employees, keep them
well informed about the development opportuni-
ties, establish a fair and open relationship with them,
empower them, show empathy to them, and provide
credit to the employees for their achievements.
REFERENCES
Abid, H. R., Gulzar, A., and Hussain, W. 2015. The impact of
servant leadership on organizational citizenship behav-
iors with the mediating role of trust and moderating
role of group cohesiveness; A Study of public Sector of
Pakistan. International Journal of Academic Research in
Business and Social Sciences, 5(3): 234.
Ahmed, O. and Rahman, B. 2020. Employees of Commercial
Banks Learning to Unlearn: A Case Study on the Impact
of Electronimic Banking in the Commercial Banks of
Bangladesh. International Journal of Business and
Technopreneurship, 10(1): 31-50.
Allen, N. J., and Meyer, J. P. 1990. The measurement and an-
tecedents of aective, continuance and normative com-
mitment to the organization. Journal of occupational
psychology, 63(1): 1-18.
Allen, N. J., and Meyer, J. P. 1996. Aective, continuance,
and normative commitment to the organization: An
examination of construct validity. Journal of Vocational
Behavior, 49(3): 252-276.
Awee, A., Cheah, W. Y., Cheng, C. N., Hong, K. S., Ling, L. B.,
and Tan, M. C. 2014. Eect of servant leadership on aec-
tive commitment among hotel employees. International
Journal of Scientic and Research Publications, 4(11):
1-7.
Baruch, Y., and Holtom, B. C. 2008. Survey response rate lev-
els and trends in organizational research. Human rela-
tions, 61(8): 1139-1160.
Bobbio, A., Dierendonck, D. V., and Manganelli, A. M. 2012.
Servant leadership in Italy and its relation to organiza-
tional variables. Leadership, 8(3): 229-243.
Borman, W. C., and Motowidlo, S. 1993. Expanding the
criterion domain to include elements of contextual
performance.
Brown, T. J., Mowen, J. C., Donavan, D. T., and Licata, J. W. 2002.
The customer orientation of service workers: Personality
trait eects on self-and supervisor performance ratings.
Journal of marketing research, 39(1): 110-119.
Bryman, A. 2016. Social research methods: Oxford university
press.
Bučiūnienė, I., and Škudienė, V. 2008. Impact of Leadership
Styles on Employees’ Organizational Commitment in
Lithuanian Manufacturing Companies. 3(2): 57. doi: htt-
ps://doi.org/10.2478/v10033-008-0015-7
Cantarello, S., Filippini, R., and Nosella, A. 2012. Linking hu-
man resource management practices and customer sat-
isfaction on product quality. The international journal of
human resource management, 23(18): 3906-3924.
Carroll, B. C., and Patterson, K. 2016. Servant leadership: A
cross cultural study between India and the United States.
Servant Leadership: Theory & Practice, 1(1): 3.
Cerit, Y. 2009. The Eects of Servant Leadership Behaviours
of School Principals on Teachers’ Job Satisfaction.
Educational Management Administration & Leadership,
37(5): 600-623. doi: 10.1177/1741143209339650
Cerit, Y. 2010. The eects of servant leadership on teach-
ers’ organizational commitment in primary schools in
Turkey. International Journal of Leadership in Education,
13(3): 301-317.
Cetin, S., Gürbüz, S., and Sert, M. 2015. A meta-analysis of
the relationship between organizational commitment
and organizational citizenship behavior: Test of poten-
tial moderator variables. Employee responsibilities and
rights journal, 27(4): 281-303.
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
81South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
CH Chan, S., and Mak, W. M. 2014. The impact of servant
leadership and subordinates’ organizational tenure on
trust in leader and attitudes. Personnel Review, 43(2):
272-287.
Chen, Z. X., and Francesco, A. M. 2003. The relationship
between the three components of commitment and
employee performance in China. Journal of Vocational
Behavior, 62(3): 490-510.
Cheung, G. W., and Lau, R. S. 2008. Testing mediation and
suppression eects of latent variables: Bootstrapping
with structural equation models. Organizational re-
search methods, 11(2): 296-325.
Coleman, V. I., and Borman, W. C. 2000. Investigating the
underlying structure of the citizenship performance
domain. Human resource management review, 10(1):
25-44.
Drury, S. L. 2004. Servant leadership and organizational
commitment. Paper presented at the Servant Leadership
Research Roundtable.
Ferdus, Z., and Kabir, T. 2018. Eect of job satisfaction and
organizational commitment on OCB: study on private
banks in Bangladesh. World Journal of Social Sciences,
8(2): 57-69.
Greenleaf, R. 1970. The servant as leader (an essay). Greenleaf
Organization.
GÜÇEL, C., and Begec, S. 2012. The eect of the servant
leadership on organizational citizenship behavior: Case
study of a university. International Journal of Social
Sciences and Humanity Studies, 4(1): 107-116.
Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., Anderson, R. E., and Tatham,
R. L. 2012. Multivariate data analysis (Vol. 6): Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Haque, A. K. M. T., Uddin, M. A., Easmin, R., and Sohel, S.
M. 2019. Job Satisfaction and Citizenship Behavior: A
Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment. 52(3):
236. doi: https://doi.org/10.2478/orga-2019-0015
Hoe, S. L. 2008. Issues and procedures in adopting structural
equation modeling technique. Journal of applied quan-
titative methods, 3(1): 76-83.
Hopwood, C. J. 2007. Moderation and mediation in structur-
al equation modeling: Applications for early intervention
research. Journal of early intervention, 29(3): 262-272.
Hu, J., and Liden, R. C. 2011. Antecedents of team potency
and team eectiveness: An examination of goal and pro-
cess clarity and servant leadership. Journal of Applied
Psychology, 96(4): 851.
Iacobucci, D., Saldanha, N., and Deng, X. 2007. A meditation
on mediation: Evidence that structural equations mod-
els perform better than regressions. Journal of consumer
psychology, 17(2): 139-153.
Irving, J. A., and Longbotham, G. J. 2007. Team eectiveness
and six essential servant leadership themes: A regression
model based on items in the organizational leadership
assessment. International Journal of Leadership Studies,
2(2): 98-113.
Jahangir, N., Akbar, M., and Begum, N. B. 2006. The role of
social power, procedural justice, organizational commit-
ment, and job satisfaction to engender organizational
citizenship behavior. ABAC Journal, 26(3): 21-36.
Ju Rebecca Yen, H., and Gwinner, K. P. 2003. Internet re-
tail customer loyalty: the mediating role of relational
benets. International Journal of Service Industry
Management, 14(5): 483-500.
Kashyap, V., and Rangnekar, S. 2014. The moderating role
of servant leadership: Investigating the relationships
among employer brand perception and perceived em-
ployee retention. Review of HRM, 3: 105-118.
Kline, R. B. 2005. Principles and practice of structural equa-
tion modeling 2nd edition guilford press. New York.
Koyuncu, M., J. Burke, R., Astakhova, M., Eren, D., and Cetin,
H. 2014. Servant leadership and perceptions of service
quality provided by front-line service workers in hotels in
Turkey: achieving competitive advantage. International
Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management,
26(7): 1083-1099.
Lapointe, É., and Vandenberghe, C. 2018. Examination of
the relationships between servant leadership, organiza-
tional commitment, and voice and antisocial behaviors.
Journal of Business Ethics, 148(1): 99-115.
Laub, J. A. 1999. Assessing the servant organization:
Development of the servant organizational leadership
(SOLA) instrument, Florida Atlantic University.
Lawrence, J., Ott, M., and Bell, A. 2012. Faculty organiza-
tional commitment and citizenship. Research in Higher
Education, 53(3): 325-352.
Le Ng, X., Choi, S. L., and Soehod, K. 2016. The Eects of
Servant Leadership on Employee’s Job Withdrawal
Intention. Asian Social Science, 12(2): 99.
Lee, A., Lyubovnikova, J., Tian, A. W., and Knight, C. 2019.
Servant leadership: A meta‐analytic examination of in-
cremental contribution, moderation, and mediation.
Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology.
Liden, R. C., Wayne, S. J., Liao, C., and Meuser, J. D. 2014.
Servant leadership and serving culture: Inuence on
individual and unit performance. Academy of manage-
ment Journal, 57(5): 1434-1452.
Liden, R. C., Wayne, S. J., Zhao, H., and Henderson, D. 2008.
Servant leadership: Development of a multidimensional
measure and multi-level assessment. The Leadership
Quarterly, 19(2): 161-177.
Liu, B., Hu, W., and Cheng, Y. C. 2015. From the west to the
east: Validating servant leadership in the Chinese public
sector. Public Personnel Management, 44(1): 25-45.
Lloyd, B. 1996. A new approach to leadership. Leadership &
Organization Development Journal, 17(7): 29-32.
Luthans, F., and Favolio, B. 2003. Authentic leadership de-
velopment. KS cameron, JE Dutton & RE Quinn (Eds.),
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
82 South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
Positive organizational scholarship: Foundations of a
new discipline, 241-258.
Mathur, G., and Negi, P. 2014. Servant Leadership and
Organizational Citizenship Behaviour Among Employees
of Service Sector. American International Journal of
Research in Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, 7(2):
191-196.
McGee-Cooper, A., and Looper, G. 2001. The essentials
of servant-leadership: Principles in practice: Pegasus
Communications Dallas.
Meyer, J. P., and Allen, N. J. 1991. A three-component con-
ceptualization of organizational commitment. Human
resource management review, 1(1): 61-89.
Meyer, J. P., Stanley, D. J., Herscovitch, L., and Topolnytsky,
L. 2002. Aective, continuance, and normative commit-
ment to the organization: A meta-analysis of anteced-
ents, correlates, and consequences. Journal of Vocational
Behavior, 61(1): 20-52.
Miao, Q., Newman, A., Schwarz, G., and Xu, L. 2014. Servant
leadership, trust, and the organizational commitment of
public sector employees in China. Public Administration,
92(3): 727-743.
Miller, K. 2003. Values, attitudes and job satisfaction.
Organisational Behaviour: Global and Southern African
Perspectives. Cape Town: Pearson Education South
Africa.
Mirabizadeh, M., and Gheitasi, S. 2012. Examining the or-
ganizational citizenship behavior as the outcome of or-
ganizational commitment: Case study of universities in
Ilam. Management Science Letters, 2(3): 951-960.
Moorman, R. H., Nieho, B. P., and Organ, D. W. 1993. Treating
employees fairly and organizational citizenship behav-
ior: Sorting the eects of job satisfaction, organizational
commitment, and procedural justice. Employee respon-
sibilities and rights journal, 6(3): 209-225.
Morrison, E. W. 1994. Role denitions and organizational
citizenship behavior: The importance of the employee’s
perspective. Academy of management Journal, 37(6):
1543-1567.
Morrow, P. C. 1993. The theory and measurement of work
commitment: Jai Press.
Naja, S., Noruzy, A., Azar, H. K., Nazari-Shirkouhi, S., and
Dalv, M. R. 2011. Investigating the relationship between
organizational justice, psychological empowerment, job
satisfaction, organizational commitment and organiza-
tional citizenship behavior: An empirical model. African
Journal of Business Management, 5(13): 5241-5248.
Neubert, M. J., Kacmar, K. M., Carlson, D. S., Chonko, L. B., and
Roberts, J. A. 2008. Regulatory focus as a mediator of the
inuence of initiating structure and servant leadership
on employee behavior. Journal of Applied Psychology,
93(6): 1220.
Newman, A., Neesham, C., Manville, G., and Tse, H. H. 2018.
Examining the inuence of servant and entrepreneurial
leadership on the work outcomes of employees in social
enterprises. The international journal of human resource
management, 29(20): 2905-2926.
Newman, A., Schwarz, G., Cooper, B., and Sendjaya, S. 2017.
How servant leadership inuences organizational citi-
zenship behavior: The roles of LMX, empowerment, and
proactive personality. Journal of Business Ethics, 145(1):
49-62.
Ng, T. W., and Feldman, D. C. 2011. Aective organization-
al commitment and citizenship behavior: Linear and
non-linear moderating eects of organizational tenure.
Journal of Vocational Behavior, 79(2): 528-537.
Obedgiu, V., Bagire, V., and Mafabi, S. 2017. Examination of
organizational commitment and organizational citizen-
ship behaviour among local government civil servants in
Uganda. Journal of Management Development.
op den Buijs, T., Broesder, W., Goldenberg, I., Resteigne,
D., and Kivirähk, J. 2019. Warrior and peacekeeper role
identities: associations with self-esteem, organizational
commitment and organizational citizenship behavior.
Journal of Military Studies, 8: 3-15.
Organ, D. 1988. Organizational citizenship behavior: The
good soldier syndrome Lexington Books Lexington.
Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
Organ, D. W., Podsako, P. M., and MacKenzie, S. B. 2005.
Organizational citizenship behavior: Its nature, anteced-
ents, and consequences: Sage Publications.
Parris, D. L., and Peachey, J. W. 2013. A systematic literature
review of servant leadership theory in organizational
contexts. Journal of Business Ethics, 113(3): 377-393.
Peterson, S. J., Galvin, B. M., and Lange, D. 2012. CEO servant
leadership: Exploring executive characteristics and rm
performance. Personnel Psychology, 65(3): 565-596.
Podsako, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Lee, J.-Y., and Podsako, N.
P. 2003. Common method biases in behavioral research:
A critical review of the literature and recommended rem-
edies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5): 879-903.
Podsako, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Moorman, R. H., and Fetter,
R. 1990. Transformational leader behaviors and their
eects on followers’ trust in leader, satisfaction, and
organizational citizenship behaviors. The Leadership
Quarterly, 1(2): 107-142.
Podsako, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., and Podsako, N. P. 2012.
Sources of method bias in social science research and
recommendations on how to control it. Annual review of
psychology, 63: 539-569.
Pooja, A. A., De Clercq, D., and Belausteguigoitia, I. 2016. Job
stressors and organizational citizenship behavior: The
roles of organizational commitment and social interac-
tion. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 27(3):
373-405.
Porter, L. W., Steers, R. M., Mowday, R. T., and Boulian, P. V.
1974. Organizational commitment, job satisfaction,
The Inuence of Servant Leadership on Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Eect of Organizational Commitment
83South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Volume 16 (1) 2021
and turnover among psychiatric technicians. Journal of
Applied Psychology, 59(5): 603-609.
Prasetio, A. P., Yuniarsih, T., and Ahman, E. 2017. Job satis-
faction, organizational commitment, and organizational
citizenship behaviour in state-owned banking. Universal
Journal of Management, 5(1): 32-38.
Ramli, A., and Desa, N. M. 2014. The relationship between
servant leadership and organizational commitment:
The Malaysian perspectives. International Journal of
Management and Sustainability, 3(2): 111-123.
Reed, L. 2016. Servant leadership, followership, and organi-
zational citizenship behaviors in 9-1-1 emergency com-
munications centers: Implications of a national study.
Servant Leadership: Theory & Practice, 2(1): 5.
Reichers, A. E. 1985. A review and reconceptualization of
organizational commitment. Academy of management
review, 10(3): 465-476.
Saunders, M., Lewis, P., and Thornhill, A. 2009. Research
methods for business students: Pearson education.
Smith, C., Organ, D. W., and Near, J. P. 1983. Organizational
citizenship behavior: Its nature and antecedents. Journal
of Applied Psychology, 68(4): 653-663.
Van Dierendonck, D., and Nuijten, I. 2011. The servant lead-
ership survey: Development and validation of a multidi-
mensional measure. Journal of business and psychology,
26(3): 249-267.
Van Dierendonck, D., Sousa, M., Gunnarsdóttir, S., Bobbio, A.,
Hakanen, J., Pircher Verdorfer, A., . . . Rodriguez-Carvajal,
R. 2017. The cross-cultural invariance of the servant lead-
ership survey: A comparative study across eight coun-
tries. Administrative Sciences, 7(2): 8.
Vandyne, L., Cummings, L. L., and Parks, J. M. 1995. Extra-
role behaviors-in pursuit of construct and denitional
clarity (a bridge over muddied waters). RESEARCH
IN ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR: AN ANNUAL SERIES
OF ANALYTICAL ESSAYS AND CRITICAL REVIEWS, 17:
215-285.
Walumbwa, F. O., Hartnell, C. A., and Oke, A. 2010. Servant
leadership, procedural justice climate, service climate,
employee attitudes, and organizational citizenship be-
havior: a cross-level investigation. Journal of Applied
Psychology, 95(3): 517.
Wong, P. T., and Page, D. 2003. Servant leadership: An op-
ponent-process model and the revised servant leader-
ship prole. Paper presented at the Proceedings of the
Servant Leadership Research Roundtable.
Yang, H. J., and Min, H. Y. 2013. The Relationship be-
tween Directors’ Servant Leadership and Teachers’
Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediation
Eect of Teachers’ Psychological Empowerment in
Childcare Centers. Korean Journal of Human Ecology,
22(6): 547-557.
Yen, C. H., and Teng, H. Y. 2013. The eect of centralization
on organizational citizenship behavior and deviant
workplace behavior in the hospitality industry. Tourism
Management, 36: 401-410.
Zeinabadi, H. 2010. Job satisfaction and organizational
commitment as antecedents of organizational citizen-
ship behavior (OCB) of teachers. Procedia-Social and
Behavioral Sciences, 5: 998-1003.
Zhang, Y., Lin, T. B., and Fong Foo, S. 2012. Servant leader-
ship: A preferred style of school leadership in Singapore.
Chinese Management Studies, 6(2): 369-383.
Zhou, Y., and Miao, Q. 2014. Servant leadership and aective
commitment in the Chinese public sector: The mediating
role of perceived organizational support. Psychological
reports, 115(2): 381-395.
Zikmund, W. G., Babin, B. J., Carr, J. C., and Grin, M. 2013.
Research Business Methods. Boston: South-Western
Cengage Learning.
... Chiniara & Bentein (Chiniara & Bentein, 2018) added that servant leaders demonstrate how servant principles can support and advance their staff members' professional development through selfless assistance and a courteous leadership demeanor toward colleagues. The development of 28 servant leadership elements by Eva et al. (Eva et al., 2019) has a greater link with OCB when compared with other leadership styles, according to Howladar & Rahman (Howladar & Rahman, 2021). The bulk of respondents to this study, which was carried out in Bangladesh, had experience as senior officers in financial organizations and had worked there for three to six years. ...
Article
Full-text available
This research aims to elucidate the relationship between servant leadership and organizational citizenship behavior mediated by employee resilience. The research employed a descriptive and verificative method with data analysis using Structural Equation Modeling. Primary data were collected through a survey of 398 employees from a state-owned bank in the Batam City region. The findings reveal that employee resilience has a positive and significant effect on the relationship between servant leadership and organizational citizenship behavior. The impact of servant leadership on organizational citizenship behavior is more dominant compared to the influence of employee resilience. However, this study has limitations. Organizational citizenship behavior is not solely influenced by servant leadership and employee resilience but is also affected by other factors, necessitating further research. The results of this study also suggest expanding the scope of the analytical unit to provide a broader contribution to the understanding of organizational citizenship behavior.
... Empirical research established the evidence of this reciprocity. For example, some researchers investigated OCB and its outcomes (Donglong et al., 2020;Howladar, Rahman, 2021;Morrison, 1994). They observed a positive association between OCB and its dimensions toward the organization. ...
Article
Purpose. The purpose of this study is to delve into the depth to develop knowledge-based education sectors in a globalized world with an everincreasing competitive landscape. Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are undergoing significant changes as a result of globalization, increased competition for financing and personnel, as well as more institutional autonomy. Therefore, as institutions continueto face several challenges their survival will depend upon how effectively they manage their human resources. To effectively adapt to this institutional change and become more competitive in a challenging world, more and more HEIs are implementing various methods to better utilize their human resources. Method. In the study, a descriptive research design was used. The sample frame includes 470 faculty members from India’s higher educational institutions. The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS20) and AMOS 20 versions were used for data analysis. Descriptive statistics were utilized to assess demographic data, which included frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, etc. It was used to assess how OCB and its variables are interrelated. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed on the OCB dimensions, confirming that the model is acceptable because all CFI, TLI, and RMSEA values remain within the acceptable limits. Findings. The paper is to examine the connection between the dimensions of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) in Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) in India. Accordingto the findings, there exists a significant association between the dimensions of OCB. Implications for practice. In practice, this study advises private university administration to streng then teachers’ ethical behaviors at work, which can affect teachers’ organizational citizenship behavior. Value of results. This study delivers knowledge and a framework for further investigation. This study will help academicians and institutions to better comprehend the OCB study.
... Eliot (2020) also supported this view by proposing that servant leadership's objective is the followers' development. Howladar and Rahman (2021) assert that servant leaders promote citizenship behavior among their followers through trust. ...
Article
Full-text available
Servant leadership is a developing leadership model in the global corporate world, especially in emerging markets such as Pakistan. It is important since servant leadership emphasizes follower-centric, altruist ethical and spiritual values. This study examines the relationship between servant leadership and employee performance with the mediating effect of trust and the moderating role of power distance. The sample size was 415, which we selected from the employees of the leading banks in Pakistan. The study adopted the scales and measures from the past studies. We used SPSS version 23 for statistical analysis, which included reliability and validity analysis and multiple regression. The analysis also includes mediated regression and moderation on SPSS. The study found that servant leadership and trust significantly affect job performance. At the same time, we found that power distance moderates servant leadership and trust. Organizations’ growth and sustainability depend on employees’ motivation and performance in this competitive world. Further, we found that trust mediates servant leadership and employee performance. Leaders in the organization develop a culture that encourages employees to give feedback and suggestions. Such an environment enhances employees’ trust and motivation, resulting in increased organizational performance.
... adept at managing relationships with superiors. In today's competitive business world successful managers need to work proactively out of their boxes (Howladar & Rahman, 2021) and to be influential both downwards and upwards (Singh, 1998). ...
Article
Full-text available
The paper explores the follower–leader distance orientation (FLDO) of subordinate managers in eight Bulgarian industrial companies. The purpose was twofold: first, to study the FLDO of subordinate managers and its impact on work environment; and second, to propose a relational followership model which could lay the foundations for the resolution of the subordinate manager’s relational dilemma. The study applied a mixed‐methods research design, using both qualitative and quantitative approaches within a combination of two research strategies—exploratory, and descriptive. A survey questionnaire, semi‐structured interviews, and focus groups were used for primary data collection. Results indicate that Bulgarian managers tend to maintain social proximity with the immediate superior. The strengths and weaknesses of proximal and distant managers are outlined and discussed. A relational followership model is proposed to support lower‐level managers in managing their distance with higher‐level managers in a way that is favorable to team and organizational effectiveness.
... Servant leadership is presently recognized as a contemporary pattern within leadership studies, characterized by an emphasis on leader behavior and a focus on followers' concerns, responsiveness, and development [79,80]. It also has a significant aspect of the capacity to trigger the performance of an organization, specifically in manufacturing and service organizations [50,81]. Thus, it is the need of an hour for organizational management to encourage the employees toward performance by agreement the organizational justice at the workplace [24,80]. ...
Article
Full-text available
Modern organizations assert that cynicism and organizational design provide advantages for knowledge-intensive settings. However, organizational crises may lead to resource shortages, prompting increased knowledge hiding (KH) among workers for competitive edge. Therefore, current study aims to examine the influence of organizational design and cynicism on job performance with organizational justice and KH through the moderating effect of servant leadership. Convenience sampling technique was used for data collection from 730 manufacturing organization employees via a survey questionnaire and data were analyzed with AMOS (28.0). Findings showed that KH's behavior negatively influenced by organizational design and positively influenced by cynicism. The current study also validates that higher management needs to practice advanced organizational justice to improve performance that drastically generates justice practices and reduces KH within the firms. Moreover, deploying servant leadership helps to control the cynicism, and employees start practicing knowledge-sharing behavior that significantly contributes to the performance.
... Additionally, they discovered that a variety of contextual elements, including industry, culture, and follower traits, moderated the effects of servant leadership. The relationship between organizational commitment and servant leadership traits (stewardship, humility, authenticity, altruism, and empowerment) in public sector organizations was examined in the paper by Howladar & Rahman, (2021). They discovered that while only altruism and empowerment had positive effects on continuance commitment, all five characteristics had positive effects on affective commitment. ...
Article
Full-text available
This study investigates how staff commitment in Uganda's public universities is impacted by servant leadership. In many organizational contexts, servant leadership a leadership philosophy that puts the needs of the team first and motivates leaders to serve their staff has been gaining traction. Empirical research on its impact on staff commitment in Ugandan public universities is limited, despite its potential advantages. By examining whether and how servant leadership impacts staff commitment in the education sector, this study seeks to close this knowledge gap. The results of this study may influence leadership practices in public universities in Uganda as well as in other comparable educational environments worldwide. This study looks at how staff members' commitment to their schools is affected by public university leaders' servant leadership behaviours. Data for the study came from 214 employees of Uganda's public universities. A servant organizational leadership assessment scale was used to gauge the servant leadership behaviours of university administrators, and an organizational commitment scale was used to gauge staff members' organizational commitment. This study shows a significant and favourable correlation between staff members' commitment to the university and the servant leadership behaviours of university leaders. Servant leadership was a strong predictor of staff commitment.
Article
Purpose This study explored the relationship between servant leadership (SL) and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) from the perspective of South Korean Police officers. We also investigated the mediating roles of psychological empowerment (PE) and organizational commitment (OC). Design/methodology/approach In this study, the authors analyzed 439 survey responses from South Korean Police officers. The mediation model was tested using structural equation modeling. Findings The results showed that SL had a significantly positive influence on OCB among South Korean Police. Moreover, PE and OC partially mediated the relationship between SL and OCB. Officers who perceive their leader as a servant leader are more likely to have a positive perception of OCB. These findings show that PE is a more efficient mediator than OC. Originality/value This study contributes to the generalization of knowledge by empirically testing the relationship between SL and OCB in the South Korean Police. The results show that SL theory can be applied to the Korean Police. By capturing the specific characteristics of the Korean Police, such as the powerful effect of PE, this study supports leadership contingency theory.
Article
Full-text available
This study aims to examine the influence of Servant Leadership, Self Awareness, Workload on Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB), and Employee Performance at Badan Perencanaan Pembanguna Daerah (BAPPEDA) Provinsi Jawa Timur. The research was conducted using a quantitative approach and data were collected from employees working at BAPPEDA Provinsi Jawa Timur. The collected data is analyzed using the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) PLS method with the Smart PLS Version 4.0 software. The respondents for this study were 118 employees out of a total of 137 employees at BAPPEDA Provinsi Jawa Timur. The data collection instrument was measured using a Likert scale. The research findings indicate that Servant Leadership significantly influences OCB but does not significantly affect Employee Performance. On the other hand, Self Awareness significantly influences both OCB and Employee Performance, while Workload does not significantly affect OCB but has a significant impact on Employee Performance. Additionally, OCB significantly influences Employee Performance. These results highlight the importance of implementing Servant Leadership and fostering Self Awareness to encourage OCB, while Workload has a greater impact on employee performance. Interestingly, the implementation of servant leadership does not seem to drive employee performance at BAPPEDA Provinsi Jawa Timur, however the high level of OCB in BAPPEDA of East Java Province can enhance employee performance. Keywords: Servant Leadership, Self-Awareness, Workload, Organizational Citizenship Behavior, Employee Performance
Article
Purpose This study aims to investigate the healthcare sector of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to explore the significance of servant leadership and collaborative culture in fostering social sustainability. The primary objective of this paper is to investigate how servant leadership and a collaborative culture contribute to social sustainability in health care in the UAE. With a focus on promoting well-being within healthcare organizations, the paper aims to uncover the synergies between servant leadership, collaborative culture, and social sustainability. Design/methodology/approach This paper conducted a multilayer literature review of existing literature on servant leadership, collaborative culture and social sustainability in health care, both globally and specifically in the UAE context, and a conceptual model was proposed. Findings Servant leadership proves to be a culturally pertinent and effective leadership model within the UAE due to its alignment with cultural values, emphasis on community support, and the robust health-care system that contributes to individual well-being. This combination establishes a solid foundation for fostering a healthy and sustainable society. Research limitations/implications Limitations and implications are discussed. The current research has not identified the boundary conditions under which servant leadership and collaborative culture may be more or less effective. This could involve exploring industry-specific influences or contextual factors. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. Originality/value The research seeks to unravel the interconnections between servant leadership, collaborative culture and social sustainability. To the best of the author’s knowledge, none of the studies have explored the interrelationships of these constructs, particularly in the UAE context.
Article
Full-text available
Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui hubungan antara keadilan organisasi dan perilaku kewargaan organisasi dengan mempertimbangkan efek mediasi dari komitmen organisasi. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kuantitatif dan pengumpulan data menggunakan kuesioner yang disebarkan kepada karyawan generasi Z di Jawa Timur dan mendapatkan sebanyak 118 responden. Teknik analisis data menggunakan teknik deskriptif dan Partial Least Square Structural Equation (PLS-SEM). Hasil penelitian menunjukkan adanya hubungan positif dan signifikan antara keadilan organisasi terhadap perilaku kewargaan organisasi, adanya hubungan positif dan signifikan antara keadilan organisasi terhadap komitmen organisasi, adanya hubungan positif dan signifikan antara keadilan organisasi terhadap perilaku kewargaan organisasi, serta hasil mediasi dari komitmen organisasi menunjukkan adanya mediasi sebagian atau mediasi parsial.
Article
Full-text available
With the rapid emergence of new technologies in the age of the fourth industrial revolution, technology has affected every area of the business world and the financial sector. Job requirements are changing rapidly in the banking institutions with the inclusion of new technologies and the growing electronic banking sector. The main objective of this study is to find the level of job security that employees of banks have in the banking institutes. The study has been conducted using a 7-point Likert scale questionnaire in order to find out the employee attitude towards job security. The variables analysed in this paper are the effect of automatic teller machine (ATM), internet banking services, electronic money transfer and telephone banking on the overall attitude of employees of the banks towards their job security. The study used regression in SPSS using the responses from 101 respondents and discovered that all variables have a positive relationship with job security instead of a negative correlation. This means employees are not significantly affected by their job security due to emerging technology. The study concluded, the results is due to banks shifting recruiting policy towards hiring more technical workers and conducting training programs for filling the gap in knowledge.
Article
Full-text available
This article focuses on military role identity by assessing the relations between demographic variables and warrior and peacekeeper role identities and by examining the potential influence of these role identities on self-esteem, organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) in a cross-national sample. A questionnaire was distributed to military members in four participating countries: Belgium, Estonia, Canada and the Netherlands ( n = 831). The findings show that demographic variables (i.e., age, gender, marital status and unit) are related to military role identity, and that military role identity predicts self-esteem, organizational commitment and OCB. In particular, multiple regression analyses demonstrate that peacekeeper role identity predicts self-esteem, organizational commitment and OCB, whereas warrior role identity only predicts organizational commitment and OCB, and further, that peacekeeper role identity is a stronger predictor of the outcome variables measured. The theoretical and practical implications, including providing commanders with information to assess their units’ mindsets, and mechanisms to improve self-esteem, commitment, OCB, are discussed. Finally, the limitations of this study and its potential for future research are described.
Article
Full-text available
Background and Purpose: Recently, job satisfaction has become a center of attention among academics, behavioral scientists, and business practitioners. Drawing on the tenet of the social exchange theory (SET) perspective and extending the conceptualization of the same, the present study aims at investigating the relationships among job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and citizenship behavior and mediation mechanism to unearth the effect of job satisfaction and organizational commitment on citizenship behavior. Design/Methodology/Approach: Building on the positivist paradigm, we used quantitative research methodology following deductive reasoning approach. Henceforth, we have collected 210 replies from employees who have been serving Ready-made garments (RMG) sector that accounts for the highest export earning industry (84% of the total export earning) in Bangladesh. We purposively selected Chittagong Export Processing Zone, the largest export processing zone in Bangladesh, for collecting our required data. Data were analyzed using the descriptive statistics, bivariate correlation, and structural equation model (SEM) using Smart PLS 2, a second-generation regression analysis, and SPSS 20. Results: The structural model estimates that all the direct influences are significant excepting the impact of job satisfaction on citizenship behavior. Besides, the full mediation effect of organizational commitment was found in the relationships between job satisfaction and citizenship behavior. Conclusion: The main implication is suggesting all corporate executives for creating an environment which will make employees very committed to letting them think out of the box beyond their required formal task requirement. In addition to a longitudinal study, further research on the moderating effect of demographic factors on the above variable is attested.
Article
Full-text available
In this competitive environment of the 21 st century it is hard for an organization to succeed without the good citizenship behavior of its employees. In this conclusive study organizational citizenship behavior of bankers of different private commercial banks in Bangladesh is investigated by using multistage cluster sampling technique and hence the required data were collected from 20 commercial banks though structured questionnaires. Result of correlation analysis shows that bankers of Bangladesh with a high level of job satisfaction hold positive attitudes toward their job but their level of organization commitment remains moderate which indicates that bankers of this country obey their organizations and their organizational goals but do not wish to remain as members for lifetime or long time.
Article
Full-text available
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behaviour among local government civil servants. Design/methodology/approach The paper adopts cross-sectional survey research design with a response of 239 civil servants in the local government sector; data was collected using a questionnaire and quantitative approaches were used in analysis. Findings The findings reveal that there is a significant positive relationship between organizational commitment and Organizational Citizenship Behavior. The predictive power of organizational commitment on organizational citizenship behavior is however lower than other similar studies in extant literature. Despite being significant the coefficient of determination in the final model was very low raising thoughtful concerns hence recommendation for further analytical studies in the local government context in the African setting. Research limitations/implications The results in this study cannot be without limitations. We take note of the sector that we studied; local governments, we may not have contextualized the concepts very well and had challenges of interpretation by the respondents. We were also limited by lack of context specific literature to underpin our discussion. The paper is also limited by the narrow scope of one region in Uganda and thus generalizability to the African level may be done with caution. Practical implications The study provides important implications to policy, practice and research. While policies provide for expected efficiencies and productivity, we note that an environment in which these are to be achieved is important when it promotes OCB. Policy makers should bear in mind behavioral elements for affective, normative and continuance commitment. Originality/value The study contributes to the body of knowledge by finding further support for the relationship between organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behavior, and advances a likely debate that among local government civil servants in a developing country context the predictive power could be very low. This possibly explains the efficiency gaps at this level of state governance.
Article
Full-text available
The present study examines the relative influence of two distinct leadership styles, servant leadership and entrepreneurial leadership, on the organizational commitment and innovative behavior of employees working in social enterprises. Analyzing data from 169 employees and 42 social entrepreneurs, we found that, although servant leadership was positively related to followers’ organizational commitment, the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and organizational commitment was insignificant. In contrast, whilst we found evidence that entrepreneurial leadership was positively related to followers’ innovative behavior, the relationship between servant leadership and employees’ innovative behavior was insignificant. Our research contributes to the underdeveloped literature on leadership in social enterprises by exploring the relative effectiveness of different leadership styles (namely an entrepreneurial leadership style and a servant leadership style) in promoting follower work attitudes and behaviors in social enterprises. In addition, our research demonstrates the importance of leadership over and above followers’ individual differences such as pro-social motivation and creative self-efficacy.
Article
Full-text available
This paper tests and confirms the cross-cultural equivalence of the Servant Leadership Survey (SLS) in eight countries and languages: The Netherlands, Portugal, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Spain, Turkey and Finland. A composite sample consisting of 5201 respondents from eight countries that all filled out the SLS was used. A three-step approach was adopted to test configural invariance, measurement equivalence, and structural equivalence. For the full 30-item version of the SLS, configural invariance and partial measurement equivalence were confirmed. Implications of these results for the use of the SLS within cross-cultural studies are discussed.
Article
Full-text available
Organization need to develop its human resources in a way that can build the high level of organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB). Job satisfaction and organizational commitment can became an important factor which affecting OCB. The aim of this study is to identify the mediating role of organizational commitment in the relationship between job satisfaction and OCB. The samples were derived from a survey using 39 items questionnaire distributed to the 320 employees of a state-owned banking in Bandung, Indonesia. All respondents hold positions in marketing and small business market. The bootstrap confidence interval used to measure the mediation. The result revealed that there was a direct and indirect effect in the relation between job satisfaction and OCB. Since the interval did not contain zero in the equation, then the research found these relations was mediated by organizational commitment. Organizational commitment indeed contributes as mediator in the effect of job satisfaction on OCB.
Article
Research suggests that when leaders, as servant leaders, focus on their followers’ needs, this can have a positive effect on organizational functioning. Yet results are inconsistent in establishing the strength of the relationships, limiting understanding of the theoretical impact and practical reach of the servant leadership (SL) construct. Using a quantitative meta‐analysis based on 130 independent studies, the current research provides evidence that SL has incremental predictive validity over transformational, authentic, and ethical leadership. Further, the link between SL and a range of individual‐ and team‐level behavioural outcomes can be partially explained by trust in the leader, procedural justice, and leader–member exchange. The paper also explores moderators to better establish SL's criterion‐related validity and to clarify the magnitude of effects across boundary conditions, such as research design, national culture, and industry. Practitioner points • Servant leadership has predictive validity over other leadership approaches, and therefore, organizations would benefit by developing their current leaders into SLs. • Organizations should aim to select SLs into influential positions: Training programmes and selection profiles and processes would need to be aligned and developed to capture attitudes and behaviours associated with SL inside and outside the organization. • Servant leaderships should seek to create a culture that positively promotes the development of trust, fairness, and high‐quality leader–follower relationships, as these conditions collectively enable the effects of SL to be transmitted onto desirable follower outcomes.