THE IMPACT OF EMPATHIC LEADERSHIP ON JOB SATISFACTION AND EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE

Abstract

The phenomenon of leadership evolves by adapting to changes in lifestyles, business processes, technology, habits, and thus, human behavior and attitudes. This evolution leads to the emergence of various perspectives and theories. One of these new theories is the Empathetic Leadership Theory. The aim of this study is to introduce for the first time the concept of empathetic leadership and its scale proposed by Kock and colleagues (2019) into the Turkish literature and to examine the impact of empathetic leadership on job satisfaction and employee performance. The sample of the study consists of 294 civil servants working in administrative units of public institutions in Istanbul. Research data were obtained using a demographic information form, Empathetic Leadership Scale, Job Satisfaction Scale, and Employee Performance Scale created. Exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficient analysis were conducted for the validity and reliability of the scales used. Correlation and regression analysis were preferred to test the research hypotheses. As a result of the study, the validity and reliability analyses of the Empathetic Leadership Scale, which is used for the first time in Turkish culture, resulted in the formation of its Turkish version. The study revealed that empathetic leadership positively influences employees' levels of job satisfaction at a moderate level and employee performance at a positive low level.

Keywords

• Empathic leadership
• Job satisfaction
• Employee performance
• Leadership
• Organization

EMPATİK LİDERLİĞİN İŞ TATMİNİ VE ÇALIŞAN PERFORMANSINA ETKİSİ

Abstract

Liderlik konusu, yaşam tarzları, iş süreçleri, teknoloji, alışkanlıklar ve dolayısıyla insanın davranış ve tutumunun değişimine ayak uydurarak evrilmekte ve farklı bakış açıları ve teoriler doğurmaktadır. Bu yeni teorilerden biri de Empatik Liderlik Teorisidir. Bu araştırmanın da amacı ilk defa Kock ve arkadaşları (2019) tarafında ortaya çıkarılan empatik liderlik kavramını ve ölçeğini Türkçe alan yazına kazandırmak ve empatik liderliğin iş tatmini ve çalışan performansına etkisini incelemektir. Araştırmanın çalışma grubunu İstanbul’da kamu kurumlarında idari birimlerde çalışan 294 devlet memuru oluşturmaktadır. Araştırmaya katılan bireylerin yaş ortalaması 36,2’dir. Araştırma verileri, araştırmacı tarafından oluşturulan demografik bilgi formu, Empatik Liderlik Ölçeği, İş tatmini Ölçeği, Çalışan performansı Ölçeği kullanılarak elde edilmiştir. Kullanılan ölçeklerin geçerlilik ve güvenilirlikleri için Açımlayıcı Faktör Analizi, Doğrulayıcı Faktör Analizi ve Cronbach alfa iç tutarlık katsayısı analizi yapılmıştır. Araştırma hipotezlerini test etmek için ise Korelasyon ve Regresyon analizi tercih edilmiştir. Araştırma sonucunda Türk kültüründe ilk defa kullanılan Empatik liderlik ölçeğinin geçerlilik ve güvenirlik analizleri sonucu Türkçe formu oluşturulmuştur. Araştırma sonucunda empatik liderliğin çalışanların iş tatmini düzeylerini pozitif orta düzeyde, çalışan performansını ise pozitif düşük düzeyde etkilediği görülmüştür.

Keywords

• Empatik liderlik
• İş tatmini
• Çalışan performansı
• Liderlik
• Örgüt

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