Published
2025-06-25
Section
Research Articles
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Chenge Li, Man Jiang, Lei Dai, Yanchen Cui

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The journal adopts the Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0), which means that anyone can reuse and redistribute the materials for non-commercial purposes as long as you follow the license terms and the original source is properly cited.
Author(s) shall retain the copyright of their work and grant the Journal/Publisher rights for the first publication with the work concurrently licensed since 2023 Vol.8 No.2.
Under this license, author(s) will allow third parties to download, reuse, reprint, modify, distribute and/or copy the content under the condition that the authors are given credit. No permission is required from the authors or the publisher.
This broad license intends to facilitate free access, as well as the unrestricted use of original works of all types. This ensures that the published work is freely and openly available in perpetuity.
By providing open access, the following benefits are brought about:
- Higher Visibility, Availability and Citations-free and unlimited accessibility of the publication over the internet without any restrictions increases citation of the article.
- Ease of search-publications are easily searchable in search engines and indexing databases.
- Rapid Publication – accepted papers are immediately published online.
- Available for free download immediately after publication at https://esp.as-pub.com/index.php/ESP

Copyright Statement
1.The authors certify that the submitted manuscripts are original works, do not infringe the rights of others, are free from academic misconduct and confidentiality issues, and that there are no disputes over the authorship scheme of the collaborative articles. In case of infringement, academic misconduct and confidentiality issues, as well as disputes over the authorship scheme, all responsibilities will be borne by the authors.
2. The author agrees to grant the Editorial Office of Environment and Social Psychology a licence to use the reproduction right, distribution right, information network dissemination right, performance right, translation right, and compilation right of the submitted manuscript, including the work as a whole, as well as the diagrams, tables, abstracts, and any other parts that can be extracted from the work and used in accordance with the characteristics of the journal. The Editorial Board of Environment and Social Psychology has the right to use and sub-licence the above mentioned works for wide dissemination in print, electronic and online versions, and, in accordance with the characteristics of the periodical, for the period of legal protection of the property right of the copyright in the work, and for the territorial scope of the work throughout the world.
3. The authors are entitled to the copyright of their works under the relevant laws of Singapore, provided that they do not exercise their rights in a manner prejudicial to the interests of the Journal.
About Licence
Environment and Social Psychology is an open access journal and all published work is available under the Creative Commons Licence, Authors shall retain copyright of their work and grant the journal/publisher the right of first publication, and their work shall be licensed under the Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0).
Under this licence, the author grants permission to third parties to download, reuse, reprint, modify, distribute and/or copy the content with attribution to the author. No permission from the author or publisher is required.
This broad licence is intended to facilitate free access to and unrestricted use of original works of all kinds. This ensures that published works remain free and accessible in perpetuity. Submitted manuscripts, once accepted, are immediately available to the public and permanently accessible free of charge on the journal’s official website (https://esp.as-pub.com/index.php/ESP). Allowing users to read, download, copy, print, search for or link to the full text of the article, or use it for other legal purposes. However, the use of the work must retain the author's signature, be limited to non-commercial purposes, and not be interpretative.
Click to download <Agreement on the Licence for the Use of Copyright on Environmental and Social Psychology>.
How to Cite
The impact of perceived servant leadership on teachers’ voice behavior in Chinese Universities
Chenge Li
Chinese International College, Dhurakij Pundit University, Bangkok, 10210, Thailand
Man Jiang
Chinese International College, Dhurakij Pundit University, Bangkok, 10210, Thailand
Lei Dai
Ludong University, Yantai, 264025, China
Yanchen Cui
Qilu Medical University, Zibo, 255300, China
DOI: https://doi.org/10.59429/esp.v10i6.3825
Keywords: Servant leadership; voice behavior; knowledge sharing behavior; psychological; empowerment
Abstract
The study focuses on the impact of perceived servant leadership on teachers’ voice behavior in Chinese universities and the mediating role of knowledge sharing and psychological empowerment. Grounded in the Social Exchange Theory, the current study utilized the Perceived Servant Leadership Scale, Knowledge Sharing Behavior Scale, Psychological Empowerment Scale, and Voice Behavior Scale. A questionnaire survey was conducted through convenience sampling in which 547 valid questionnaires were collected. Results indicate that perceived servant leadership, knowledge sharing, and psychological empowerment have significant positive effects on voice behavior. In addition, knowledge sharing and psychological empowerment mediate the relationship between perceived servant leadership and voice behavior.
References
[1]. 1.Arellano, J. S. (2020). Who Is Willing to Speak Up and Why? Examining Individual and Organizational Predictors of Employee Voice Behavior in Higher Education Institutions (Master's thesis, The University of Texas at El Paso). https://www.proquest.com/openview/8ab233307436886ea1e4c19bdd6940fd/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y
[2]. 2.Hsieh, C. C., Gunawan, I., Li, H. C., & Liang, J. K. (2024). Teachers’ voice behavior—Principal leadership‐driven or teacher self‐driven? Evidence from Taiwan. Psychology in the Schools, 61(5), 2077-2099. https://doi.org/10. 1002/pits.23152
[3]. 3.Chi, N. W., Achyldurdyyeva, M., Lin, C. Y., & Kao, N. Y. (2024). An emotional journey to speaking up: understanding when and how employee daily emotions relate to promotive and prohibitive voice. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 33(4), 517-534. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2024.2329381
[4]. 4.Zeng, C., Kelly, S., Goke, R., & Diers-Lawson, A. (2024). Employee voice as a means to facilitate organizational safety and crisis preparedness. Communication Quarterly, 72(3), 299-319. https://doi.org/10.1080/01463373.2024.2344760
[5]. 5.Zeng, J., Li, L., Ding, L., & Wang, Q. (2024). Traditionality, supervisor- subordinate guanxi and university teachers’ voice behavior: An empirical exploration in the context of Chinese culture. Current Psychology, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-05698-y
[6]. 6.Karakose, T., Tülübaş, T., & Papadakis, S. (2023a). The scientific evolution of social justice leadership in education: structural and longitudinal analysis of the existing knowledge base, 2003-2022. Frontiers in Education, 8, 1139648. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2023.1139648
[7]. 7.Wang, G., Li, J., Liu, H., & Zaggia, C. (2025). Transformational leadership and teachers’ voice behaviour: A moderated mediation model of group voice climate and team psychological safety. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 53(1), 102-122. https://doi.org/10.1177/17411432221143452
[8]. 8.Karakose, T., Tülübaş, T., Papadakis, S., & Yirci, R. (2023b). Evaluating the intellectual structure of the knowledge base on transformational school leadership: A bibliometric and science mapping analysis. Education Sciences, 13(7), 708. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13070708
[9]. 9.Ghasemy, M. (2024). Servant leadership for sustainability in higher education: policy implications based on ethical behavior and conceptual skills of scholars with science-related backgrounds. Educational Research for Policy and Practice, 24, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/2HFVF7
[10]. 10.Bowman, R. F. (2005). Teacher as servant leader. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, 78(6), 257-260. https://doi.org/10.3200/TCHS.78.6.257-260
[11]. 11.Alvoid, L., & Black Jr, W. L. (2014). The Changing Role of the Principal: How High-Achieving Districts Are Recalibrating School Leadership. Center for American Progress. https://doi.org/10.17760/d20201630
[12]. 12.Washington, R. R., Sutton, C. D., & Sauser Jr, W. I. (2014). How distinct is servant leadership theory? Empirical comparisons with competing theories. Journal of Leadership, Accountability & Ethics, 11(1), 11-25. http://www.na-businesspress.com/JLAE/SauserWI_Web11_1_.pdf
[13]. 13.Ekinci, A. (2015). Development of the school principals' servant leadership behaviors scale and evaluation of servant leadership behaviors according to teachers' views. Egitim ve Bilim, 40(179), 341-360. https://doi.org/10.15390/EB.2015.2152
[14]. 14.Ahmad, F., & Karim, M. (2019). Impacts of knowledge sharing: a review and directions for future research. Journal of Workplace Learning, 31(3), 207-230. https://doi.org/10.1108/JWL-07-2018-0096
[15]. 15.Lin, X., Xu, X., & Wang, X. (2022). Users’ knowledge sharing on social networking sites. Journal of Computer Information Systems, 62(1), 118-127. https://doi.org/10.1080/08874417.2020.1736690
[16]. 16.Sathyamoorthi, V., Inayath-Ahamed, S. B., Hariharasudan, A., Grabara, J., & Sroka, M. (2023). Managerial perspective of servant leadership on voice behaviour of banking professionals: mediation. Polish Journal of Management Studies, 27(2), 311-327. https://doi.org/10.17512/pjms.2023.27.2.19
[17]. 17.Morrison, E. W. (2014). Employee voice and silence. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1(1), 173-197. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091328
[18]. 18.Lee, J., Loretta Kim, S., & Yun, S. (2023). Encouraging employee voice: coworker knowledge sharing, psychological safety, and promotion focus. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 34(5), 1044-1069. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.2018014
[19]. 19.Van Dierendonck, D. (2011). Servant leadership: A review and synthesis. Journal of Management, 37(4), 1228-1261. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206310380462
[20]. 20.Ehrhart, M., & Naumann, S. (2004). Leadership and procedural justice climate citizenship behavior as antecedents of unit-level organizational. Personnel Psychology, 57(1), 61-94. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2004.tb02484.x
[21]. 21.Liden, R. C., Wayne, S. J., Zhao, H., & Henderson, D. (2008). Servant leadership: Development of a multidimensional measure and multi-level assessment. The Leadership Quarterly, 19, 161–177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua. 2008.01. 006
[22]. 22.Yang, J., Gu, J., & Liu, H. (2019). Servant leadership and employee creativity: The roles of psychological empowerment and work–family conflict. Current Psychology 38(6), 1417-1427. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-019-0161-3
[23]. 23.Al-Madadha, A., Al-Adwan, A. S., Alrousan, M. K., & Jalghoum, Y. A. (2019). Organisational climate and team performance: The mediating role of psychological empowerment at Jordanian pharmaceutical companies. International Journal of Management Practice, 12(2), 228-245. https://doi.org/10. 1504/IJMP. 2019.098661
[24]. 24.Homans, G. C. (1958). Social behavior as exchange. American journal of sociology, 63(6), 597-606. https://doi.org/10.1086/222355
[25]. 25.Blau, P. (1964). Power and exchange in social life. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203792643
[26]. 26.Cropanzano, R., Anthony, E. L., Daniels, S. R., & Hall, A. V. (2017). Social exchange theory: A critical review with theoretical remedies. Academy of management annals, 11(1), 479-516. https://doi.org/10.5465/annals.2015.0099
[27]. 27.Lyons, B. J., & Scott, B. A. (2012). Integrating social exchange and affective explanations for the receipt of help and harm: A social network approach. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 117(1), 66-79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2011.10.002
[28]. 28.Rashid, S., Dastgeer, G., & Kayani, T. (2018). A social exchange perspective through the lens of an individual: Relationship between LMX, voice and organizational commitment in academia. Business & Economic Review, 10(3), 41-64. https://doi.org/10.22547/BER/10.3.3
[29]. 29.Liao, C., Liden, R. C., Liu, Y., & Wu, J. (2021). Blessing or curse: The moderating role of political skill in the relationship between servant leadership, voice, and voice endorsement. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 42(8), 987-1004. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2544
[30]. 30.Melinda, T., & Antonio, T. (2019). Servant leadership dimension in higher education. In 2019 International conference on organizational innovation (ICOI 2019) (pp. 677-681). Atlantis Press. https://doi.org/10.2991/icoi-19.2019.118
[31]. 31.Chen, H., Wang, L., & Li, J. (2022). How can servant leadership promote employees’ voice behavior? A moderated chain mediation model. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 938983. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.938983
[32]. 32.Amin, H., Ahmed, F., & Soomro, R. H. (2019). Servant leadership improves the knowledge sharing behavior of employees in organization: A case of higher education sector in Pakistan. Etikonomi, 18(1), 83-92. http//dx.doi.org/10. 15408/etk. v18i1.6190
[33]. 33.Birgisdóttir, B. D., Gunnarsdóttir, S., & Candi, M. (2024). Exploring relationships among servant leadership, role clarity and creative self-efficacy. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 45(3), 397-422. https://doi.org/10. 1108/ LODJ-12-2022-0555
[34]. 34.Xue, Y., Bradley, J., & Liang, H. (2011). Team climate, empowering leadership, and knowledge sharing. Journal of Knowledge Management, 15(2), 299-312. https://doi.org/10.1108/13673271111119709
[35]. 35.Prasetyono, H., Tjitrosumarto, S., Setyohadi, J. S., Hapsari, S., & Ramdayana, I. P. (2024). Analysis of improving innovative work behaviour of vocational high school teachers in terms of servant leadership with knowledge sharing as an intervening variable. Jurnal Pendidikan Vokasi, 14(1), 110-120. https://doi.org/10. 21831/jpv.v14i1.65445
[36]. 36.Eva, N., Robin, M., Sendjaya, S., Van Dierendonck, D., & Liden, R. C. (2019). Servant leadership: A systematic review and call for future research. The Leadership Quarterly, 30(1), 111-132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. leaqua.2018.07.004
[37]. 37.Phung, V. D., Hawryszkiewycz, I., & Chandran, D. (2019). How knowledge sharing leads to innovative work behaviour: A moderating role of transformational leadership. Journal of Systems and Information Technology, 21(3), 277-303. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSIT-11-2018-0148
[38]. 38. Bashshur, M. R., & Oc, B. (2015). When Voice Matters: A Multilevel Review of the Impact of Voice in Organizations. Journal of Management, 41(5), 1530-1554. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206314558302
[39]. 39. Newman, A., Schwarz, G., Cooper, B., & Sendjaya, S. (2017). How servant leadership influences organizational citizenship behavior: The roles of LMX, empowerment, and proactive personality. Journal of Business Ethics, 145, 49-62. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2827-6
[40]. 40. Walumbwa, F. O., Hartnell, C. A., & Oke, A. (2010). Servant leadership, procedural justice climate, service climate, employee attitudes, and organizational citizenship behavior: A cross-level investigation. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(3), 517-529. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018867
[41]. 41. Yang, J., Liu, H., & Gu, J. (2017). A multi-level study of servant leadership on creativity: The roles of self-efficacy and power distance. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 38(5), 610-629. https://doi.org/10. 1108/LODJ-10-2015-0229
[42]. 42. Greenleaf, R. K. (1970). The servant as leader. Newton Centre, MA: The Robert K. Greenleaf Center. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-70818-6_6
[43]. 43. Detert, J. R., & Burris, E. R. (2007). Leadership behavior and employee voice: Is the door really open?. Academy of management journal, 50(4), 869-884. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2007.26279183
[44]. 44. Frazier, M. L., & Fainshmidt, S. (2012). Voice climate, work outcomes, and the mediating role of psychological empowerment: A multilevel examination. Group & Organization Management, 37(6), 691-715. https://doi.org/10.1177/1 0596 01112463960
[45]. 45. Wang, D., Gan, C., & Wu, C. (2016). LMX and employee voice: A moderated mediation model of psychological empowerment and role clarity. Personnel Review, 45(3), 605-615. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-11-2014-0255
[46]. 46. O’driscoll, M. P., Pierce, J. L., & Coghlan, A. M. (2006). The psychology of ownership: Work environment structure, organizational commitment, and citizenship behaviors. Group & Organization Management, 31(3), 388-416. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601104273066
[47]. 47. Spreitzer, G. M. (1995). Psychological empowerment in the workplace: Dimensions, measurement, and validation. Academy of Management Journal, 38(5), 1442-1465. https://doi.org/10.5465/256865
[48]. 48. Yogalakshmi, J. A., & Suganthi, L. (2020). Impact of perceived organizational support and psychological empowerment on affective commitment: Mediation role of individual career self-management. Current Psychology, 39(3), 885-899. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-9799-5
[49]. 49. Younas, A., Wang, D., Javed, B., & Haque, A. U. (2023). Inclusive leadership and voice behavior: the role of psychological empowerment. The Journal of Social Psychology, 163(2), 174-190. https://doi.org/10. 1080/00224 545.2022. 2026283
[50]. 50. Russell, R. F., & Stone, A. G. (2002). A review of servant leadership attributes: Developing a practical model. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 23(3), 145-157. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437730210424
[51]. 51. Van Dierendonck, D., Nuijten, IAPM., & Heeren, I. (2009). Servant Leadership, key to followers well-being. In D. Tjosvold, & B. Van Knippenberg (Eds.), Power and interdependence in organizations (pp. 319-337). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511626562.020
[52]. 52. Conger, J. A., & Kanungo, R. N. (1988). The empowerment process: Integrating theory and practice. Academy of Management Review, 13(3), 471-482. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1988.4306983
[53]. 53. Thomas, K. W., & Velthouse, B. A. (1990). Cognitive elements of empowerment: An “interpretive” model of intrinsic task motivation. Academy of Management Review, 15(4), 666-681. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1990.4310926
[54]. 54. Vrhovnik, T., Marič, M., Žnidaršič, J., & Jordan, G. (2018). The influence of teachers’ perceptions of school leaders’ empowering behaviours on the dimensions of psychological empowerment. Organizacija, 51(2), 112-120. https://doi.org/10.2478/orga-2018-0009
[55]. 55.Wat, D., & Shaffer, M. A. (2005). Equity and relationship quality influences on organizational citizenship behaviors: The mediating role of trust in the supervisor and empowerment. Personnel Review, 34(4), 406-422. https://doi.org/10. 1108/00483480510599752
[56]. 56. National Research Council of Thailand (2015). National policy and guidelines for human research [Policy brief]. National Research Council of Thailand. https://sp.mahidol.ac.th/pdf/ref/National_Policy_Guidelines_for_Human_Research2015.pdf
[57]. 57. Liden, R. C., Wayne, S. J., Meuser, J. D., Hu, J., Wu, J., & Liao, C. (2015). Servant leadership: Validation of a short form of the SL-28. The leadership quarterly, 26(2), 254-269. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2014.12.002
[58]. 58. Al-Husseini, S., & Elbeltagi, I. (2018). Evaluating the effect of transformational leadership on knowledge sharing using structural equation modelling: The case of Iraqi higher education. International Journal of Leadership in Education, 21(4), 506-517. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603124.2016.1142119
[59]. 59. Liang, J., Farh, C. I., & Farh, J. L. (2012). Psychological antecedents of promotive and prohibitive voice: A two-wave examination. Academy of Management Journal, 55(1), 71-92. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2010.0176
[60]. 60. Hair, J. F. Jr., Anderson, R. E., Tatham, R. L., & Black, W. C. (1998). Multivariate Data Analysis (5th Ed.). Prentice Hall.
[61]. 61. Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. (1981). Structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 382-388. https://doi.org/1.1177/002224378101800313
[62]. 62. Al-Kurdi, O. F., El-Haddadeh, R., & Eldabi, T. (2020). The role of organisational climate in managing knowledge sharing among academics in higher education. International Journal of Information Management, 50, 217-227. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2019.05.018
[63]. 63. Malinowski, B. (1922). Argonauts of the Western Pacific: An Account of Native Enterprise and Adventure in the Archipelagoes of Melanesian New Guinea. Routledge.
[64]. 64. Mauss, M. (1925). The Gift: Forms and Functions of Exchange in Archaic Societies. The Norton Library. https://files.libcom.org/files/Mauss%20 - %20The%20Gift.pdf
[65]. 65. Sharif, S., Tongkachok, K., Akbar, M., Iqbal, K., & Lodhi, R. N. (2024). Transformational leadership and innovative work behavior in three-star hotels: mediating role of leader-member exchange, knowledge sharing and voice behavior. VINE Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Systems, 54(1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1108/VJIKMS-07-2021-0122
[66]. 66.Morrison, E. W. (2011). Employee voice behavior: Integration and directions for future research. Academy of Management Annals, 5(1), 373-412. https://doi. org/10. 5465/19416520.2011.574506






