TY - JOUR
T1 - The relationship between servant leadership and nurses' in-role performance
T2 - The sequential mediating effects of job autonomy and emotional exhaustion
AU - Xiao, Qijie
AU - Iftikhar, Qudsia
AU - Spaeth, Katharina
AU - Zhang, Chunyu
AU - Liang, Xiaoyan
AU - Klarin, Anton
AU - Liu, Liping
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
PY - 2024/4
Y1 - 2024/4
N2 - Aims: Drawing on the conservation of resources theory, this study examines the underlying process through which servant leadership is associated with nurses' in-role performance. Specifically, we test the indirect effect of servant leadership on in-role performance via a sequential mediating mechanism of job autonomy and emotional exhaustion. Design: A time-lagged design was implemented using data gathered from two-wave online surveys (1 week apart) of registered nurses from Jiangsu Province, China. Methods: Between September 2022 and February 2023, we used Wenjuanxing and Credma, which are two powerful and user-friendly data collection platforms, to distribute online surveys to potential participants. We received a total of 220 usable responses and employed the PROCESS Model 4 and Model 6 to assess our proposed hypotheses. Results: Our proposed model was supported. Servant leadership has a positive indirect effect on nurses' in-role performance through job autonomy and emotional exhaustion. Job autonomy has a negative effect on emotional exhaustion. Additionally, job autonomy mediates the negative relationship between servant leadership and emotional exhaustion. Conclusion: The present research extends existing nursing studies by unravelling the complex mechanisms underlying the relationship between servant leadership and nurses' in-role performance. Our study also identifies the underlying mechanism of how servant leadership mitigates emotional exhaustion by supporting nurses' job autonomy. Impact: The sequential mediation results provide us with a more fine-grained understanding of the relationship between servant leadership and nurses' in-role performance. It further promotes job autonomy and decreases emotional exhaustion, which supports the UN Sustainable Development Goal #3 (Good Health and Well-being). Patient or Public Contribution: This study addresses the UN Sustainable Development Goal #3: ‘To ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages’ and the healthcare providers will benefit from our study. Therefore, the study contributes to a more sustainable organization and society.
AB - Aims: Drawing on the conservation of resources theory, this study examines the underlying process through which servant leadership is associated with nurses' in-role performance. Specifically, we test the indirect effect of servant leadership on in-role performance via a sequential mediating mechanism of job autonomy and emotional exhaustion. Design: A time-lagged design was implemented using data gathered from two-wave online surveys (1 week apart) of registered nurses from Jiangsu Province, China. Methods: Between September 2022 and February 2023, we used Wenjuanxing and Credma, which are two powerful and user-friendly data collection platforms, to distribute online surveys to potential participants. We received a total of 220 usable responses and employed the PROCESS Model 4 and Model 6 to assess our proposed hypotheses. Results: Our proposed model was supported. Servant leadership has a positive indirect effect on nurses' in-role performance through job autonomy and emotional exhaustion. Job autonomy has a negative effect on emotional exhaustion. Additionally, job autonomy mediates the negative relationship between servant leadership and emotional exhaustion. Conclusion: The present research extends existing nursing studies by unravelling the complex mechanisms underlying the relationship between servant leadership and nurses' in-role performance. Our study also identifies the underlying mechanism of how servant leadership mitigates emotional exhaustion by supporting nurses' job autonomy. Impact: The sequential mediation results provide us with a more fine-grained understanding of the relationship between servant leadership and nurses' in-role performance. It further promotes job autonomy and decreases emotional exhaustion, which supports the UN Sustainable Development Goal #3 (Good Health and Well-being). Patient or Public Contribution: This study addresses the UN Sustainable Development Goal #3: ‘To ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages’ and the healthcare providers will benefit from our study. Therefore, the study contributes to a more sustainable organization and society.
KW - China
KW - emotional exhaustion
KW - in-role performance
KW - job autonomy
KW - servant leadership
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85176925767&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/jan.15930
DO - 10.1111/jan.15930
M3 - Article
C2 - 37962237
AN - SCOPUS:85176925767
SN - 0309-2402
VL - 80
SP - 1440
EP - 1451
JO - Journal of Advanced Nursing
JF - Journal of Advanced Nursing
IS - 4
ER -