Impact of Authentic Leadership Behavior on Employee Commitment and Performance: An Empirical Study on Higher Educational Institutions of Bangladesh Impact of Authentic Leadership Behavior on Employee Commitment and Performance: An Empirical Study on Higher Educational Institutions of Bangladesh

Abstract

The research dissertation strives to investigate the impact of authentic leadership (AL) behavior on employee commitment (EC) and employee performance (EP). It has been conducted on the higher educational institutions (HEIns) in Bangladesh. The research purposes of concerned study were, to identify the impact of authentic leadership on employee commitment; and to investigate the effect of authentic leadership on employee performance; both major objectives with logical specific aims were scrutinized by the opinions and perceptions of the respondents from the tertiary educational institutions of Bangladesh. For investigating the outcomes from result analyses, the most important dimensions of AL behavior practices i.e., Self-Awareness (SA), Internalized Moral Perspective (IMP), Balanced Processing (BP), and Relational Transparency (RT) were taken into account of, as latent constructs or variables of AL for measuring the relationships as well as impacts on EC as well as EP. And for achieving the research purposes of the study, survey (by printed questionnaire) method as a strategy and deduction as an approach ware used with quantitative data analysis technique. A strata probability sampling technique was used and the respondents were selected randomly for collecting data and information from different universities (educational organizations) in Bangladesh. The employees (teachers, academic employees and research fellows) of the higher educational institutions were treated as respondents and the respondents were experienced in the various functional areas of activities and curriculum of HEIns in Bangladesh. Data normality has been ensured by the test EFA, CFA, Skewness & Kurtosis where the loadings of each indicator variables as well as each latent construct showed high reliability of data to conduct the study. Again, primary reliability test by Cronbach Alpha approach, indicated strong data reliability to conduct AL-EC-EP linked theoretical model, concerned with current research. With the thorough assessment of full dissertation, the existence and presence of face, content, criterion as well as construct validity is very strong. The study also covered the validity of convergent and discriminant for the constructs of Authentic Leadership (SA, IMP, BP, and RT), Employee Commitment (AC, CC, and NC), and Employee Performance (EP) accordingly. Moreover, Common Method Variance (CMV) has also been assessed with the technique of ‘Harman’s Single Factor Technique’ through EFA and ‘Common Latent Factor’ through CFA as well as concerned others calculations. And, though 400 questionnaires were distributed among the employees as well as researchers of HEIns to gather data and information but finally 381 applicable responses were utilized for result analysis. Findings from quantitative data analysis using descriptive, inferential statistics, measurement model evaluation, and structural equation model (SEM) revealed that there is a positive and significant interrelationship between the components of AL behavior practices i.e., SA, BP, RT and EC; but only in case of IMP and EC, the relationship is moderate. Again, there is supportive and positive relationship between SA, IMP, BP, and EP; but RT and EP relationship is not supportive. Again, there is a significant, positive and acceptable level of impact of AL behavior (SA, IMP, BP, and RT) on EC (though IMP and EC showed poor acceptance) by which major objectives MRO-1 with specific objective SRO-1; and forecasted research hypotheses H 1=

H 1b, H 1c, H 1d have been scrutinized and satisfied. Gradually, it has been also found that there is a significant, positive and acceptable level of impact of AL behavior (SA, IMP, BP, and RT) on EP (though RT and EP showed poor acceptance) by which major objectives MRO-2 with specific objective SRO-2; and forecasted research hypotheses H 2= H 2a, H 2b, H 2c, have been examined and satisfied in the higher educational institutions in Bangladesh. The study has a crucial theoretical implication because it provides a valuable contribution in the field of literature with a new theory development and model fitness. This research can enhance the knowledge of academics, teachers, researchers, students with the theoretical application in the field of authentic leadership, employee commitment and performance. Again, it also has been applicable for human resource management, production management, organizational behaviors, organizational strategy, international management & business, MIS and environmental leadership, and related other fields. The study also conveys practical implications for the researchers, academicians, industrialists, entrepreneurs and business leaders to identify the ways to improve employees’ moral value and relational transparency with other strongly practices to ensure and retain HEIns growth and expansion in Bangladesh as well as anywhere in the world. The study didn’t conduct taking all of the educational institutions and other concerned institutions, enterprises of Bangladesh which might limit the generalizability of the findings. Sometimes, miscommunication from some specific persons create a cause of limitation of the present study. Lastly, the essential directives of research for further study of this dissertation have also been explained.