The Role of Ethical Leadership in Increasing Employees' Organizational Commitment and Performance: The Case of Healthcare Professionals

Abstract

Today's organizations are looking for ways to improve the organizational commitment and performance of employees in order to have a qualified workforce and maintain sustainability. Organizational leaders' approach to increasing employee motivation positively affects their organizational commitment and job performance. This research, basically focusing on the health sector, tried to specify the effect of the managers’ ethical approach on employees’ organizational commitments, performances, and the role of organizational commitments in this effect. The sampling was composed of 362 healthcare professionals. In this cross-sectional field study, an independent variable model for the ethical leadership approaches and a dependent variable model for the employees’ performance and commitment to their organizations were practiced. Data was collected through Ethical leadership, Organizational Commitment, and Individual Performance Scales. The data collected were analyzed through SPSS and AMOS package programs. A correlation analysis to specify the relationships between the variables and a regression analysis was done to specify the interaction. In specifying the intermediary role of organizational commitment, Structural Equation Model (SEM) was used. The results of the analyses showed positive significant relationships between ethical leadership approaches and organizational commitment and employees’ performance. It was also observed that ethical leadership approaches had a positive and meaningful effect on affective, continuous and normative commitment, the sub-dimensions of organizational commitment, as well as the employees’ performance. On other important finding is employees’ attendance and normative commitment are highly affected by ethical leadership approaches. As a result, it was specified that ethical leadership approaches by the managers are highly effective on employees’ performance and their commitment. It was also noted that organizational commitment played a mediator role on ethical leadership approaches. These findings were seen to be amicable with findings in previous studies. It is expected that this research will contribute to the literature because it is a holistic model including the relationships between variables.

The role of ethical leadership and social networks in the promotion of workplace happiness and quality of care: A cross‐sectional study

“…The strong influence of ethical traits in healthcare management leadership is supported by recent conceptual proposals challenging the current leadership styles towards a more ethical‐centric approach, 8,9 making ethical leadership a necessary response to newfound needs in the aftermath of a global crisis 14 . Similarly, our findings corroborate and expand recent research efforts focussed on explaining the relationship between ethical leadership and commitment 28 and well‐being 16 …”

“…Ethical leaders promote a positive safety environment, encourage individual contributions, and allow for an alignment of moral behaviours whose rationale transcends the organizational reality towards the societal needs. 9,14,16,27,28 Encouraging leadership traits that promote ethical decision making and the support employees through macro-level crises in healthcare could be an effective response to accommodate future global challenges. 14 Something that, in turn, reduces psychological distress, isolation and turnover of healthcare professionals during uncertain times.…”

“…However, the focus on communication and the heavy reliance on cooperative systems in complex or rational‐driven markets poses a managerial challenge commonly found in healthcare organisations 48 . Drawing further parallels from literature discussing delivery of care, evidence suggests the reliance on organizational culture and structures to promote satisfaction, engagement, and commitment in the workplace 16,46 —core dimensions of workplace happiness 18 . However, no previous empirical work acknowledges the use of workplace happiness as postulated by Fisher 18,48,49 as a predictor of quality of care.…”

“…Social networks define social structures of importance in healthcare organisations, given their contributing value in handling complexity through the use of formal and informal social dyadic ties and through the engagement in social activities. 15,16 Happiness is a complex and multifaceted concept that can defined in a vast array of ways. 17 Deemed as a positive organizational behaviour , 18 we follow our discussion of workplace happiness of healthcare professionals under the rationale defended by Positive Psychology principles and its view of a state of well-being.…”

Examining the Determinants of Healthcare Workers’ Performance: A Configurational Analysis during COVID-19 Times

“…For practices and management of healthcare workers in times of crisis, we show that leadership and commitment are the key variables to ensure a good level of job performance in the case of less satisfied workers, and, in general, that there is a good working environment, in addition to leadership and commitment. It implies that if supervisors exercise good leadership they can create positive organisational commitment and further promote the job performance of healthcare professionals, in line with what other authors have argued [ 66 , 67 ]. In this regard, some of the actions that healthcare managers can take include, among others: (a) that management stimulates change and the implementation of a culture of trust, involvement and support oriented towards achieving best practices, as well as improving environmental conditions; (b) that integration of objectives is encouraged, with no barriers between individuals and/or groups/areas; (c) that continuous improvement is proactively pursued before having to react to conflicts or crises; (d) that the ideas of the members of the organisation are taken into account in the management of the organisation; (e) that environmental protection issues are proactively managed; (f) that employees feel a sense of pride in being part of the organisation; (g) that the values of the organisation are felt as their own by the employees; (h) or provide training programmes to cultivate the leadership talents of its employees.…”