The Influence of Servant Leadership on Employee Engagement Through Psychological Safety of a Three-Star Hotel Employees in Yogyakarta

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the influence of servant leadership on employee engagement with psychological safety as a mediating variable among employees of a three-star hotel in Yogyakarta. This study uses a quantitative approach with an explanatory research design. The population consisted of all 36 employees of the hotel, and the census method was used as the sampling technique. Data were collected by distributing questionnaires using a Likert scale. Servant leadership was measured using the Servant Leadership Scale (SL-7), employee engagement was measured using the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES), and psychological safety was measured based on Edmondson's indicators. The data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling–Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS). The results show that servant leadership has a positive and significant effect on employee engagement. Servant leadership also has a positive and significant effect on psychological safety, while psychological safety has a positive and significant effect on employee engagement. However, the mediation test indicates that psychological safety is not able to significantly mediate the relationship between servant leadership and employee engagement, although the indirect effect shows a positive direction. These findings indicate that employee engagement is more dominantly influenced directly by servant leadership than indirectly through psychological safety.