Care or Justice Ethics: An Examination of the Moral Dimension of Servant Leadership in public and private organisations

Servant leadership is a value-based leadership theory acclaimed to be universally applicable and relevant across contexts. However, there is limited empirical verification of servant leaders’ moral orientation. Some scholars alleged that servant leadership may be less evident for businesses. Hence, underpinned by social learning theory, this study examined the moral dimension of servant leadership and its presence in UK organisations, using quantitative data from 208 employees. The statistical analysis showed that servant leadership behaviours are perceived equally in public and private organisations, and leaders are viewed as moral when they tend towards a justice-based orientation rather than an ethics-of-care orientation. This outcome informed the proposed definition of servant leadership and the extension of a servant leadership survey as an updated tool for leadership evaluation. Hence, the study advances the servant leadership theory and recommends moral development as essential for organisational members.