Unpacking the Servant Leadership–Employee Creativity Pathway Through Psychological Empowerment
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Abstract
Employee creativity is increasingly vital for organizational innovation and adaptability. While servant leadership has been linked to various positive employee outcomes, its role in fostering creativity requires further investigation. This study examines the influence of servant leadership on employee creativity through the mediating effect of psychological empowerment and the moderating effect of perceived organizational support. Using a quantitative design, survey data were collected from 224 working university students in Batam, Indonesia, and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results reveal that servant leadership positively affects psychological empowerment and employee creativity, while psychological empowerment also enhances employee creativity. In addition, psychological empowerment partially mediates the relationship between servant leadership and employee creativity. However, perceived organizational support does not significantly moderate the relationships examined. These findings underscore the importance of psychological empowerment in translating leadership practices into creative outcomes and offer practical implications for organizations seeking to strengthen workplace creativity.
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