Ethical Leadership, Work Meaningfulness, and Work Engagement in the Public Sector
| Author | Ahmed Mohammed Sayed Mostafa,Eman Aly Abed El-Motalib |
| Published date | 01 March 2020 |
| Date | 01 March 2020 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X18790628 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
research-article2018
Article
Review of Public Personnel Administration
2020, Vol. 40(1) 112 –131
Ethical Leadership, Work
© The Author(s) 2018
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Meaningfulness, and Work
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https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X18790628
DOI: 10.1177/0734371X18790628
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Engagement in the Public
Sector
Ahmed Mohammed Sayed Mostafa1
and Eman Aly Abed El-Motalib1
Abstract
This study responds to recent calls for research on how and why ethical leadership
is related to employee outcomes. Drawing on self-concept–based theory and
substitutes-for-leadership theory, the study examines both the mediating and
moderating role of work meaningfulness on the relationship between ethical
leadership and work engagement. Using a sample of Egyptian public hospital nurses,
the results of structural equation modeling (SEM) revealed that work meaningfulness
partially mediated the relationship between ethical leadership and engagement.
Furthermore, the results showed the positive relationship between ethical leadership
and work engagement was stronger for employees who experienced lower rather
than higher levels of meaningfulness. Thus, public sector organizations need to put
emphasis on nurturing ethical leadership and stimulating employees’ sense of work
meaningfulness. However, they need to be aware that, sometimes, they may not be
able to get “double the benefits” when they invest in developing both.
Keywords
ethical leadership, work meaningfulness, work engagement, self-concept–based
theory, substitutes-for-leadership theory, Egyptian public hospital nurses
Introduction
In recent years, ethical leadership has received significant attention from public
administration scholars (Belle & Cantarelli, 2017; Downe, Cowell, & Morgan, 2016;
1Faculty of Commerce, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt
Corresponding Author:
Ahmed Mohammed Sayed Mostafa, Faculty of Commerce, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt.
Email: ahmedmsmostafa@gmail.com
Mostafa and Abed El-Motalib
113
Hassan, Wright, & Yukl, 2014; Wright, Hassan, & Park, 2016). Ethical leadership is
defined as “the demonstration of normatively appropriate conduct through personal
actions and interpersonal relationships, and the promotion of such conduct to follow-
ers through two-way communication, reinforcement, and decision-making” (Brown,
Trevino, & Harrison, 2005, p. 120).
Several studies have found a link between ethical leadership and desirable employee
outcomes in the public sector such as job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and
ethical behavior (e.g., Beeri, Dayan, Vigoda-Gadot, & Werner, 2013; Hassan et al.,
2014; Wright et al., 2016). However, none of these studies has examined how or why
ethical leadership is related to these outcomes. This study seeks to address this issue
by examining the mediating and moderating role of work meaningfulness, which is the
degree to which work assignments have positive significance and help achieve pur-
poses that are in line with an individual’s values and principles (Demirtas, Hannah,
Gok, Arslan, & Capar, 2017; Steger, Dik, & Duffy, 2012), on the relationship between
ethical leadership and work engagement. Prior research findings suggest that leader-
ship could derive its effectiveness from its influence on work meaningfulness (Wang
& Xu, 2017). However, meaningfulness could also influence responses to leadership
(May, Gilson, & Harter, 2004). This suggests that meaningfulness could act as both a
mediator and a moderator of the ethical leadership–work engagement relationship and
could, therefore, explain how and why ethical leadership is related to engagement.
Work engagement, the employee outcome and dependent variable in this study,
reflects “an active state of psychological immersion in one’s work” (Demirtas et al.,
2017, p. 5). In spite of its importance to all types of organizations, very limited atten-
tion has been given by public administration scholars to the organizational antecedents
of work engagement in public service organizations. Disengaged employees are costly
to public organizations and could negatively influence public service delivery
(Andrews & Mostafa, 2017). Therefore, identifying the drivers of work engagement in
the public sector is important. This study proposes that one important antecedent of
work engagement in public organizations is ethical leadership. Specifically, the study
proposes that, through their fair and caring treatment of employees, ethical leaders are
likely to enhance work engagement (Engelbrecht, Heine, & Mahembe, 2017).
Drawing on self-concept theory of leadership (Shamir, House, & Arthur, 1993), this
study also proposes that ethical leadership encourages work engagement through
enhancing employees’ experience of work meaningfulness. Self-concept theory pro-
poses that leaders’ ability to motivate followers depends on engaging followers’ self-
concept in the mission articulated by them. The theory further proposes that followers
will perceive their work as meaningful when leaders link the work to a larger moral
purpose and clarify how it helps in the attainment of organizational objectives (Shamir
et al., 1993). Moreover, drawing on substitutes-for-leadership theory (Kerr & Jermier,
1978), the study also proposes that meaningfulness could moderate and substitute for
ethical leadership in influencing work engagement. Leadership substitutes theory pos-
its that certain factors could provide followers with incentives that negate a leader’s
ability to either impair or improve his or her attitudes and behaviors (Kerr & Jermier,
1978). Figure 1 depicts the conceptual model of this study.
114
Review of Public Personnel Administration 40(1)
Figure 1. Conceptual model.
Overall, this study makes several contributions to the literature. First, there have
been calls for research on the mediating mechanisms that link leadership behavior,
in general, and ethical leadership, in particular, to employee outcomes (Brown &
Mitchell, 2010; Wang & Xu, 2017). This study responds to these calls by examining
the mediating role of work meaningfulness on the relationship between ethical lead-
ership and work engagement. Second, the potential moderators of the relationship
between ethical leadership and employee outcomes have “hardly been considered in
research” (Kalshoven, Den Hartog, & De Hoogh, 2013a, p. 228). Moreover, scholars
have been calling for research on the boundary conditions of ethical leadership (Gok
et al., 2017). This study, therefore, contributes to the literature by proposing that
work meaningfulness could act as a moderator of the ethical leadership–work
engagement relationship. Third, even though research has shown that work mean-
ingfulness is positively related to desirable employee outcomes, not much is known
about the antecedent factors that contribute to its development (Demirtas et al.,
2017; Wang & Xu, 2017). In particular, there have been calls for research on the
relationship between leadership and work meaningfulness in both public and private
organizations (Demirtas et al., 2017; Rosso, Dekas, & Wrzesniewski, 2010; Steger
et al., 2012; Tummers & Knies, 2013). This study contributes to the meaningfulness
literature by examining the relationship between ethical leadership and work mean-
ingfulness in the public sector. Finally, most of the studies on the relationship
between ethical leadership and employee outcomes have been conducted in Western
contexts and Asia (e.g., Demirtas et al., 2017; Den Hartog & Belschak, 2012;
Kalshoven et al., 2013a; Wang & Xu, 2017). Therefore, by using data based on a
sample of Egyptian public hospital nurses, the study’s findings make an important
contribution to the development of leadership theory as it increases the international
breadth of empirical work on the ethical leadership–employee outcomes link
(Whetten, 1989).
The article is structured as follows. First, the direct relationship between ethical
leadership and work engagement is discussed, followed by an overview of how work
meaningfulness could both mediate and moderate the ethical leadership–work engage-
ment relationship. Following that, the research methodology employed in this study is
described and the results of structural equation modeling (SEM) are presented. Finally,
the implications of the findings for both theory and practice are discussed.
Mostafa and Abed El-Motalib
115
Ethical Leadership and Work Engagement
Before understanding the relationship between ethical leadership and work engage-
ment, it is important to understand what work engagement means. Work engagement
is a positive, motivational, work-related state of mind characterized by vigor, dedica-
tion, and absorption (Salanova & Schaufeli, 2008). Vigor refers to having persistence,
high energy levels, mental resilience, and the willingness to exert effort into work
tasks; dedication refers to feeling enthusiastic about one’s work and being highly
involved in it; and absorption refers to concentrating fully and being engrossed in
work (Schaufeli & Bakker, 2004). Because of its importance, there have been recent
calls for research on the organizational factors that might contribute to work engage-
ment, especially in the public sector (Andrews & Mostafa, 2017). This study considers
the role of leadership, as an organizational factor, and proposes that it plays a...
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