Servant Leadership for Sustainability: A Serial Mediation Model of Empowerment, Creativity, and Pro-Environmental Behavior

Farida Saleem () and Sofia Mateou
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Farida Saleem: Department of Management, College of Business Administration, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia
Sofia Mateou: Department of Aviation Management, College of Business Administration, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia

Administrative Sciences, 2025, vol. 15, issue 10, 1-19

Abstract: This study examines the impact of Environmentally Specific Servant Leadership (ESSL) on employees’ pro-environmental behavior (PEB) by proposing a serial mediation model that incorporates green psychological empowerment and green creativity as central mechanisms. Guided by social exchange theory (SET), survey data from managers in Saudi Arabia were analyzed using PROCESS Model 6 with bootstrapping to test direct, indirect, and serial mediation effects. The results show that ESSL has a significant positive influence on PEB, with both psychological empowerment and green creativity acting as partial mediators. Moreover, the serial mediation analysis confirms that empowerment enhances creativity, which in turn drives employees’ pro-environmental actions. The findings support the social exchange theory, SET, in the contextual environmental settings of the rapidly developing economy of Saudi Arabia. These findings highlight the critical role of psychological empowerment and creativity in translating leadership values into sustainable behaviors. Practically, the study suggests that organizations can advance sustainability goals by fostering servant leadership practices, empowering employees with autonomy and resources, and encouraging innovative solutions for environmental challenges. Within the context of Saudi Vision 2030, the findings provide valuable insights for aligning leadership development with national sustainability objectives.

Keywords: environmentally specific servant leadership; pro-environmental behavior; psychological empowerment; green creativity; Saudi Vision 2030 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: L M M0 M1 M10 M11 M12 M14 M15 M16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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