Assessing the Influence of Leadership Practices on Healthcare Job Satisfaction: A Quantitative, Non-Experimental Correlational Study
Assessing the Influence of Leadership Practices on Healthcare Job Satisfaction: A Quantitative, Non-Experimental Correlational Study
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Issue Date
2026-01
Authors
Barnwell, Donald
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Abstract
This quantitative, non-experimental correlational study investigated the impact of transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership practices on job satisfaction among healthcare employees in the United States, with burnout as a mediator. This research addressed a critical issue: declining job satisfaction amid rising burnout, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Utilizing data from 145 participants via the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory Human Services Survey, and Job Satisfaction Survey, the study analyzed correlations and mediation effects. Key findings revealed that transformational leadership significantly enhanced personal accomplishment and reduced depersonalization, while transactional leadership lowered emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, whereas laissez- faire leadership showed no significant impact. Job satisfaction factors, such as the Nature of Work, were positively influenced by transformational and transactional leadership. Nevertheless, overall predictive power remained low, and burnout mediation was non-significant across leadership styles. Grounded in Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory, the results aligned with the literature on leadership’s role in morale but highlighted context-specific limitations in U.S. trauma hospitals, suggesting the need for larger samples in future research. The study offered practical insights for healthcare leaders to enhance well-being, though gaps in ethical leadership analysis and sample size variability warranted further investigation.
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Keywords
Leadership Style , Healthcare Organization , Job Satisfaction , Burnout , Business, Engineering, Science, & Technological Innovation , Healthcare Innovation & Delivery