Servant Leadership in Nursing: A Multifactor Analysis

Abstract

Servant leadership, an ethics-based leadership approach, focuses on prioritizing the needs and development of employees rather than personal interests, making it highly compatible with the values of the nursing profession such as empathy, ethical responsibility, and service. However, studies on servant leadership in nursing remain limited. This study aims to systematically examine the relationship between servant leadership and nursing by analyzing studies from multiple methodological and thematic perspectives. This systematic review, conducted in accordance with the PRISMA 2020 protocol and employing descriptive content analysis as the analytical method, analyzed 28 studies identified through ScienceDirect, Scopus, Springer, and Web of Science databases based on methodological and content-related criteria. The findings show that research on this topic is largely concentrated in the United States, with limited evidence from other countries. Most studies used quantitative and cross-sectional designs, some applied SEM, and fewer adopted mixed, qualitative, or conceptual approaches. Across the reviewed studies, servant leadership was primarily associated with higher organizational commitment, greater job satisfaction, stronger leader-member exchange, reduced burnout, and improved teamwork. Additional positive effects were reported on patient care quality, leadership development, organizational citizenship behavior, trust, value alignment, spirituality, and psychological safety, with several studies indicating that these outcomes may occur directly or through mediators. The findings suggest that servant leadership is a promising leadership approach for nursing practice, and that further culturally diverse and longitudinal research is needed to strengthen the evidence base.

Keywords

• Servant Leadership
• Nursing
• Systematic Review
• Multifactor Analysis
• PRISMA

Hemşirelikte Hizmetkar Liderlik: Çok Faktörlü Bir Sistematik Derleme

Abstract

Hizmetkâr liderlik, kişisel çıkarları öncelemek yerine çalışanların ihtiyaç ve gelişimini merkeze alan, etik temelli bir liderlik yaklaşımıdır. Bu yönüyle, empati, etik sorumluluk ve hizmet gibi temel değerleriyle hemşirelik mesleğinin etik ve insani boyutlarıyla yüksek düzeyde örtüşmektedir. Bununla birlikte, hemşirelik alanında hizmetkâr liderlik konusuna odaklanan araştırmaların sınırlı olduğu görülmektedir. Bu çalışma, hizmetkâr liderlik ile hemşirelik arasındaki ilişkiyi birden fazla yöntemsel ve tematik perspektiften incelenen çalışmaları analiz ederek sistematik biçimde ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. PRISMA 2020 protokolüne uygun biçimde yürütülen ve analitik yöntem olarak betimsel içerik analizinin benimsendiği bu sistematik derlemede, ScienceDirect, Scopus, Springer ve Web of Science veri tabanlarından elde edilen çalışmalar, yöntemsel ve içeriksel ölçütler doğrultusunda değerlendirilmiş ve toplam 28 çalışma inceleme kapsamına alınmıştır. Bulgular, konuyla ilgili araştırmaların büyük ölçüde Amerika Birleşik Devletleri’nde yoğunlaştığını, diğer ülkelerden elde edilen kanıtların ise oldukça sınırlı kaldığını ortaya koymaktadır. Çalışmaların önemli bir kısmı nicel ve kesitsel tasarımlarla yürütülmüş, bazı araştırmalarda Yapısal Eşitlik Modellemesi (SEM) kullanılmış, daha az sayıda ise karma, nitel ya da kavramsal yöntemlere başvurulmuştur. İncelenen araştırmalarda hizmetkâr liderliğin; örgütsel bağlılığı artırdığı, iş tatminini güçlendirdiği, lider-üye etkileşimini geliştirdiği, tükenmişliği azalttığı ve ekip çalışmasını desteklediği belirlenmiştir. Ayrıca hasta bakım kalitesi, liderlik gelişimi, örgütsel vatandaşlık davranışı, güven, değer uyumu, maneviyat ve psikolojik güvenlik üzerinde de olumlu etkiler saptanmıştır. Bulgular, bu etkilerin bazı durumlarda doğrudan, bazı durumlarda ise aracı değişkenler üzerinden ortaya çıkabildiğini göstermektedir. Bulgular, hizmetkâr liderliğin hemşirelik pratiği için umut verici bir liderlik yaklaşımı olduğuna işaret etmekte; kanıt tabanının güçlendirilmesi için kültürel çeşitliliği göz önünde bulunduran ve boylamsal tasarımlara dayanan ileri araştırmalara ihtiyaç duyulduğunu ortaya koymaktadır.

Keywords

• Hizmetkar Liderlik
• Hemşirelik
• Sitematik Derleme
• Çok Faktörlü Analiz
• PRISMA

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