The Relationship Between Servant Leadership and Social Sustainability: A Case of a Health-Dedicated University

Öz

Social sustainability is one of the least researched and applied topics in the field of sustainability, and identifying the leadership approach associated with social sustainability is equally critical for organisations. The main purpose of this study is to examine the impact of servant leadership on social sustainability. The scope of this research is the Bezmialem Foundation University, which is a health–dedicated and nonprofit university, in Istanbul. The survey method was chosen as the data collection method, and a questionnaire was completed by 730 people working in the academic and administrative units of Bezmialem Foundation University. In accordance with the findings, positive and significant relationships were found between servant leadership and social sustainability. The originality of this study is derived from the fact that the relationship between servant leadership and social sustainability was examined. This research fills an important theoretical gap in the relevant field. Thus, it is likely that it would be beneficial for organisations that want to enhance their social sustainability practises to highlight the servant leadership approach as a leadership style. It is expected that the results of this research will be used by social sustainability practitioners and researchers within the framework of leadership approaches. JEL Classification : M19 , S01 , P46

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Servant Leadership
• Social Sustainability
• Health Sector

Kaynakça

1. Afshari, H., Agnihotri, S., Searcy, C., & Jaber, M.Y. (2022). Social Sustainability indicators: A comprehensive review with application in the energy sector. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 31, 263-286. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2022.02.018. google scholar
2. Alafeshat, R., & Tanova, C. (2019). Servant Leadership Style and High-Performance Work System Practices: Pathway to a Sustainable Jordanian Airline Industry. Sustainability, 11, 6191. DOI:10.3390/su11226191. google scholar
3. Atanda, J. O. Developing A Social Sustainability Assessment Framework. Sustainable Cities and Society, 2019, 44, 237-252. google scholar
4. Balser, D. B., & Winkler, A.E. (2012). Worker Behavior on The Job:A Multi-methods Study of Labor Cooperation with Management. Journal of Labor Research, 33(3), 388-413.DOI 10.1007/s12122-012-9133-1. google scholar
5. Bambale, A.J., Shamsudin, F.M., & Subramaniam, C.A.L. (2012). Servant Leadership as Employee-Organization Approach for Performance of Employee Citizenship Behaviors in the Nigeria’s Electric Power Sector. Journal of Marketing and Management, 3(1), 1-21. google scholar
6. Basiago, A. D. (1999). Economic, social, and environmental sustainability in development theory and urban planning practice. Environmentalist, 19(2), 145-161. google scholar
7. Batool, F., Mohammad, J., & Awag, S.R. (2022). The effect of servant leadership on organizational sustainability: the parallel mediation role of creativity and psychological resilience. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 43(1), 71-95. DOI 10.1108/LODJ-06-2021-0264. google scholar
8. Bormane, S., Skiltere, D., & Batraga, A. (2017). Sustainability: economic, environmental andpublic issues. Marketing possibilities. Regional Formation and Development Studies, 3(23), 21-35. http://dx.doi.org/10.15181/rfds.v23i3.1582. google scholar

9. Broch., F.F.M., Escrig, E.D., Gomez, R.C., & Alcami, R.L. (2020). Promoting firm innovativeness through servant leadership and corporate social responsibility to employees. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 41(4), 615-633. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-03-2019-0127. google scholar
10. Buchen, Irving H. (1998). Servant Leadership: A Model for Future Faculty and Future Institutions. The Journal of Leadership Studies, 5(1), 125-134. google scholar
11. Carroll, A. B. (1991). The pyramid of corporate social responsibility: Toward the moral management of organizational stakeholders. Business Horizons, 34(4), 39-48. google scholar
12. Cavicchi, C., & Vagnoni, E. (2017). Does Intellectual Capital Promote The Shift of Healthcare Organizations Towards Sustainable Development? Evidence from Italy. Journal of Cleaner Production, 153, 275-286. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.03.175. google scholar
13. Cella-de-Oliveira, F.A. (2013). Indicators of Organizational Sustainability: A Proposition from Organizational Competences. International Review of Management and Business Research, 2(4), 962-979. google scholar
14. Choi, S., & Ng, A. (2011). Environmental and Economic Dimensions of Sustainability and Price Effects on Consumer Responses. Journal of Business Ethics, 104(2), 269-282. DOI 10.1007/s10551-011-0908-8. google scholar
15. Coetzer, M. F., Bussin, M. & Geldenhuys, M. (2017). The Functions of a Servant Leader. Administrative Sciences, 7 (5), 1-32. https://doi.org/0.3390/admsci7010005. google scholar
16. Dempsey, N., Bramley, G., Power, S., & Brown, C. (2011). The Social Dimension of Sustainable Development: Defining Urban Social Sustainability. Sustainable Development, 19(5), 289-300. DOI: 10.1002/sd.417. google scholar
17. Donia, M.B.L., Raja, U., Panaccio, A., & Wang, Z. (2016). Servant leadership and employee outcomes: the moderating role of subordinates’ motives. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 25(5), 722-734. google scholar
18. Farling, Myra, L., Stone, A. Gregory, & Winston, Bruce E. (1999). Servant Leadership: Setting The Stage for Empirical Research. The Journal of Leadership Studies, 6, (1/2), 49-72. google scholar
19. Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating Structural Equation Models With Unobservable Variables And Measurement Error. Journal Of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39-50. google scholar
20. Geissdoerfer, M., Vladimirova, D. & Evans, S. (2018). Sustainable business model innovation: A review, Journal of Cleaner Production, 198, 401-416. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.06.240. google scholar
21. George, D., & Mallery, M. (2010). SPSS for Windows Step by Step: A Simple Guide and Reference, 17.0 update (10a ed.) Boston: Pearson. google scholar
22. Gimenez, C., Sierra, V., & Rodon, J. (2012). Sustainable Operations: Their Impact on The Triple Bottom Line. International Journal of Production Economics, 140(1), 149-159. doi:10.1016/j.ijpe.2012.01.035. google scholar
23. Goel, A., Ganesh, L. S. ve Kaur, A. Social Sustainability Considerations in Construction Project Feasibility Study: A Stakeholder Salience Perspective. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management. 2020. google scholar
24. Görmezoğlu Gökçen, Z. (2019). A Research on The Investigation of the Relationships between Servant Leadership, Social Sustainability, Organizational Trust, and Organizational Identification. İstanbul University, Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation. google scholar
25. Graham, J. W. (1991). Servant-Leadership in Organizations: Inspirational and Moral. The Leadership Quarterly, 2(2), 105-119. https://doi.org/10.1016/1048-9843(91)90025-W. google scholar
26. Greenleaf, R. K. (1970). The Servant as Leader. Indianapolis: The Robert K. Greenleaf Center. google scholar
27. Greenleaf, R. K. (1998). The Power of Servant Leadership.; L.C. Spears (Ed.), San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers. google scholar
28. Greenleaf, R.K. (2002). Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power & Greatness. “The Servant as Leader”. L.C. Spears (Ed.), NJ: Paulist Press. google scholar
29. Hair, J. F., Anderson, R. E., Tatham, R. L., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., & Anderson, R. E. (2010). Multivariate Data Analysis Seventh Edition. In Pearson Prentice Hall. google scholar
30. Hale, J., Legun, K., Campbell, H., & Carolan, M. (2019). Social Sustainability Indicators as performance. Geoforum, 103, 47-55. google scholar
31. Harwiki, W. (2016). The Impact of Servant Leadership on Organizational Culture, Organizational Commitment, Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) and Employee Performance in Women Cooperatives. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 219, 283-290. google scholar
32. Herman, R.L. (2010). The Promise of Servant Leadership for Workplace Spirituality. International Journal of Business Research, 10(6), 83-102. google scholar
33. Hicks, C.C., v.d. (2016). Engage Key Social Concepts for Sustainability, Science, 2016, Volume 352, No.6281. google scholar
34. Hopkins M. (2003). The Planetary Bargain: Corporate Social Responsibility Matters. 1st Edition. Routledge: London. google scholar
35. Hoveida, R., Salari, S., & Asemi, A. (2011). A Study on the Relationship among Servant Leadership and the Organizational Commitment: A Case Study. Interdiciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in Business, 3(3), 499-509. google scholar
36. Hussain, M., Ajmal, M. M., Gunasekaran, A., & Khan, M. (2018). Exploration of Social Sustainability in Healthcare Supply Chain.” Journal of Cleaner Production, 203, 977-989. google scholar
37. Hutchins, M. J., Richter, J. S., Henry, M. L., ve Sutherland, J. W. Development of Indicators for The Social Dimension of Sustainability in a US Business Context. Journal of Cleaner Production, 2019, 212, 687-697. google scholar
38. Jonsen, K., Tatli, A., Özbilgin, M. F., & Dietz, J. (2015). Equal Opportunity. Wiley Encyclopedia of Management, 1-4. google scholar
39. Kamali, F. P., Borges, J.A.R., Osseweijer, P., & Posada, J. A. (2018). Towards social sustainability: Screening potential social andgovernance issues for biojet fuel supply chains in Brazil. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 92, 50-61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2018.04.078. google scholar
40. Kincaid, M. (2012). Building Corporate Social Responsibility Thorough Servant-Leadership. International Journal of Leadership Studies, 7(2), 151-171. google scholar
41. King, S. (1994). What is the Latest on Leadership. Management Development Review, 7(6), 7-9, https://doi.org/10.1108/09622519410074163. google scholar
42. Khoury G, Rostami J, Turnbull JP. (1999). Corporate Social Responsibility: Turning Words into Action. Conference Board of Canada: Ottawa. google scholar
43. Kool, M., & Van Dierendonck, D. (2012). Servant Leadership and Commitment to Change, The Mediating Role of Justice and Optimism. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 25(3), pp.422-433. https://doi.org/10.1108/09534811211228139. google scholar
44. Kouzes, J.M. & Posner, B.Z. (1993). Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why People Demand It, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 185. google scholar
45. Kumar, A., ve Anbanandam, R. Assessment of Environmental and Social Sustainability Performance of the Freight Transportation Industry: An Index-based Approach. Transport Policy. 2020. google scholar
46. Lee, C.H., & Bruvold, N.T. (2003). Creating Value for Employees: Investment in Employee Development. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 14(6), 981-1000. DOI: 10.1080/0958519032000106173. google scholar
47. Lee, C. M. J., Che-Ha, N. ve Alwi, S. F. S. Service Customer Orientation and Social Sustainability: The Case of Small Medium Enterprises. Journal of Business Research, 2021, 122, 751-760. google scholar
48. Liden, R. C., Wayne, S. J., Zhao, H., & Henderson, D. F. (2008). Servant Leadership: Development of a Multidimensional Measure and Multi-Level Assessment. The Leadership Quarterly, 19(2), 161-177. DOI:10.1016/j.leaqua.2008.01.006. google scholar
49. Liu, J.Y. (2018). An internal Control System that Includes Corporate Social Responsibility for Social Sustainability in the New Era. Sustainability, 10, 3382. DOI:10.3390/su10103382. google scholar
50. Longoni, A., & Cagliano, R. (2015). Environmental and Social Sustainability Priorities: Their Integration in Operations Strategies. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 35(2), 218. DOI 10.1108/IJOPM-04-2013-0182. google scholar
51. Lopes, C. M., Scavarda, A. J., Hofmeister, L. F., Thome, A. M. & Vaccaro, G. L. (2017). An Analysis of the Interplay Be-tween Organizational Sustainability, Knowledge Management, and Open Innovation. Journal of Cleaner Production, 142, 476-488. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.10.083. google scholar
52. Mani, V., Gunasekaran, A., & Delgado, C. (2018a). Enhancing supply chain performance through supplier social sustainability: An emerging economy perspective. International Journal of Production Economics, 195, 259-272. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpe.2017.10.025. google scholar
53. Mani, V., Jabbour, C. J. C. ve Mani, K. T. Supply Chain Social Sustainability In Small And Medium Manufacturing Enterprises And Firms’ Performance: Empirical Evidence From An Emerging Asian Economy. International Journal of Production Economics, 2020, 227, 107656. google scholar
54. Markham, J. W. (2015). A Financial History of United States from Enron-Era Scandals to the Great Recession (2004-2009), NY: Routledge. google scholar
55. McWilliams A., & Siegel, D. (2001). Corporate social responsibility: A theory of the firm perspective. The Academy of Management Review, 26(1), 117-127. google scholar
56. Mehta, S., & Pillay, R. (2011). Revisiting Servant Leadership: An Empirical Study in Indian Context. The Journal Contemporary Management Research, 5(2), 24-41. google scholar
57. Mejia, C., Bak, M., Zientara, P., & Orlowski, M. (2022). Importance-performance analysis of socially sustainable practices in U.S. restau-rants: A consumer perspective in the quasi-post-pandemic context. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 103, 103209, 1-10. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.yhm.2022.103209. google scholar
58. Montalban-Domingo, L., Garcfa-Segura, T., Sanz, M. A., & Pellicer, E. (2018). Social Sustainability Criteria in Public-work Procurement: An International Perspective. Journal of Cleaner Production, 198, 1355-1371. google scholar
59. Murphy, K. (2012). The social pillar of sustainable development: a literature review and framework for policy analysis. Sustainability: Science, practice and policy, 8(1), 15-29. google scholar
60. Nyhan, R. C. & Marlowe H. A. (1997). Development and Psychometric Properties of the Organizational Trust Inventory, Evalnation Review, 21(5), 614-635. google scholar
61. Omann, I., & Spangenberg, J. H. (2002). Assessing social sustainability the social dimension of sustainability in a socio-economic scenario. Sustainable Europe Research Institute SERI, Proceedings of the 7th Biennial Conference of the International Society for Ecological Economics, Sousse, 6-9 March, 1-20. google scholar
62. Page, D., & Wong, P.T.P. (2017). A Conceptual Framework for Measuring Servant Leadership, The Human Factor In Shaping The Course Of History And Development. Ed. S. Adjibolooso. American University. 2000. Press. Access from website address on July 7, 2017. http://www.drpaulwong.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Conceptual-Framework.pdf. google scholar
63. Peachey, J.W., Burton, L., Wells, J. & Chung, M.R. (2018). Exploring Servant Leadership and Needs Satisfaction in the Sport for Development and Peace Context. Journal of Sport Management, 32, 96-108. google scholar
64. Pinney, C. (2001). How to manage corporate social responsibility and reputation in a global marketplace: the challenge for Canadian business. Toronto, ON: Canadian Centre for Philanthropy. google scholar
65. Popovic, T., Barbosa-Povoa, A., Kraslawski, A., & Carvalho, A. (2018). Quantitative Indicators for Social Sustainability Assessment of Supply Chains. Journal of Cleaner Production, 180, 748-768. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.01.142. google scholar
66. Pouramiri, T., & Mehdinezhad, V. (2017). Servant Leadership as a Predictor of Hig School Principal’s Organizational Trust. The New Educational Review, 116-121. DOI:10.5804/tner.2017.47.1.09. google scholar
67. Reinke, S. J. (2004). Service Before Self: Towards a Theory of Servant-Leadership. Global Virtue Ethics Review, 5(3-4), 30-57. google scholar
68. Rotondo, F., Corsi, K., & Giovanelli, L. (2019). The Social Side of Sustainable Business Models: An Explorative Analysis of The Low-cost Airline Industry. Journal of Cleaner Production, 225, 806-819. google scholar
69. Sakaoğlu, N. (2008). Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları: Valide Sultanlar, Hatunlar, Hasekiler, Kadınefendiler, Sultanefendiler, Oğlak Bilimsel Kitaplar, 4. Baskı, İstanbul, 387. google scholar
70. Schulte, P. A., Wagner, G. R., Ostry, A., Blanciforti, L. A., Cutlip, R. G., Krajnak, K. M., & Miller, D. B. (2007). Work, Obesity, and Occupational Safety and Health. American Journal of Public Health, 97(3), 428-436. google scholar
71. Schönborn, G., Berlin, C., Pinzone, M., Hanisch, C., Georgoulias, K., & Lanz, M. (2019). Why Social Sustainability Counts: The Impact of Corporate Social Sustainability Culture On Financial Success. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 17, 1-10. google scholar
72. Sendjaya, S. & Cooper, B. (2011). Servant Leadership Behaviour Scale: A Hierarchical Model and Test of Construct Validity. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 20(3), 416-436, https://doi.org/10.1080/13594321003590549. google scholar
73. Sendjaya, S., & Sarros, J. C. (2002). Servant Leadership: Its Origin, Development, and Application in Organizations. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 9(2), 57-64, https://doi.org/10.1177/107179190200900205. google scholar
74. Sharma A. (2016). Managing Diversity and Equality in The Workplace. Cogent Business & Management, 3(1), 1212682, DOI: 10.1080/23311975.2016.1212682. google scholar
75. Sher, S., & Nawaz, S. (2021). Impact of Green Servant Leadership on Organizational Sustainability: The mediating Role of Green Human Resource Management Practices. İRASD Journal of Management, 3(3), 448-457. https://doi.org/10.52131/jom.2021.0303.0057. google scholar
76. Song, C., Park, K.R., & Kang, S-W. (2015). Servant Leadership and Team Performance: The Mediating Role of Knowledge-Sharing Climate. Social Behavior and Personality, 43(10), 1749-1760. google scholar
77. Spears, L. (1995). Servant-Leadership and The Greenleaf Legacy. In L.C. Spears (Ed.), Reflections on Leadership: How Robert K. Greenleaf’s Theory of Servant Leadership Influenced Today’s Top Management Thinkers, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. google scholar
78. Spears, L.C. (2004). Practicing Servant-Leadership. Leaderto Leader, (34), 7-11. https://doi.org/10.1002/ltl.94 . google scholar
79. Staniskiene, E., & Stankeviciute, Z. (2018). Social Sustainability Measurement Framework: The Case of Employee Perspective in a CSR-Committed Organisation. Journal of Cleaner Production, 188, 708-719. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.03.269. google scholar
80. Sudusinghe, J.I., & Seuring, S. (2020). Social Sustainability Empowering the Economic Sustainability in the Global Apparel Supply Chain. Sustainability, 12, 2595, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12072595. google scholar
81. Terzi, A. (2018). Bezmialem Valide Sultan, Timaş Yayınları, İstanbul, p.240. google scholar
82. Toker, K. (2023). Non-Profit Organizations: A Path for Social Economy. (in). Pekdemir M. I. (ed.) Making the Planet More Habitable: Business Perspectives for Social Economy. İstanbul - Türkiye: IU Press, Chapter 2, 17-53. google scholar
83. Toussaint, M., Cabanelas, P., & Blonco-Gonzalez, A. (2021). Social Sustainability in the food value chain: An integrative approach beyond corporate social responsibility. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management. 28, 103-115. DOI:10.1002/csr.2035. google scholar
84. Trompenaars, F., & Voerman, E. (2009). Servant Leadership Across Cultures: Harnessing the Strength of the World’s Most Powerful Leadership Philosophy. Oxford: Infinite Ideas Ltd. google scholar
85. Uttam, N., Dutta, P., & Singh, A. (2022). Micro, small, medium suppliers’ perspectives on supply chain social sustainability: New evidence from India. Journal of Cleaner Production, 379, 134473, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.134473. google scholar
86. Van Dierendonck, D. (2011). Servant Leadership: A Review and Synthesis. Journal of Management, 37(4), 1228-1261, https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206310380462. google scholar
87. Vivoda, V., & Kemp, D. (2019). How Do National Mining Industry Associations Compare on Sustainable Development? The Extractive Industries and Society, 6(1), 22-28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exis.2018.06.002. google scholar
88. Williams Jr. W.A., Brandon, R-S., Hayek, M., Haden, S.P., & Atinc, G. (2017). Servant leadership and followership creativity: The influence of workplace spirituality and political skill. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol.38, No.2, 178-193. google scholar
89. Wong, P.T.P., & Page, D. (2003). Servant Leadership: An Opponent-Process Model and the Revised Servant Leadership Profile. Servant Leadership Roundtable, October, 1-13. google scholar
90. Wohlgemuth, V., Wenzel, M., Berger, E.S.C., & Eisend, M. (2019). Dynamic Capabilities and Employee Participation: The Role of Trust and Informal Control. European Management Journal, 37, 760-771. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2019.02.005. google scholar
91. Yıldırım, N. (2013). From The Charity Hospital to The Bezmialem Vakif University, İstanbul: Bezmiâlem Vakif University Publications. google scholar