2.

Research hypothesis
2.2.a. Relationship between Transactional leadership and Job Satisfaction
In his study in 2017, Basri et al. claimed that the manager that has a transactional
leadership style will influence employee performance. It can be proven by previous research
such as (Greenberg, 1996, 2003, Tatum et al., 2003a, 2003b) that transactional leadership has a
significant impact when it involves the employee's perceptions of justice. Epitropaki and Martin
(2005) proposed a significant positive relationship between employee motivation and
transactional leadership style in their study of Greek Bank employees, which eventually led to a
positive connection between transactional leadership and employee performance. 
2.2.b. Relationship between Transformational leadership and job satisfaction
In 2019, Aun et al. proved that there is a positive and significant effect of the
transformational leadership style on employee performance by using the Ordinary Least Square
(OLS) regression method. Before that, Belonio (2012) conducted a survey by administering
questionnaires to 400 respondents in the banking sector in Bangkok which also pointed out the
positive effect of transformational leadership on employee performance. Moreover, in various
contexts, transformational leadership has been found to have a positive effect on individual
performance and further on job performance (Bass & Avolio, 1994; Ristow, 1998). 

ORIGINAL
Riaz, A., & Haider, M. H. (2010). Role of transformational and transactional leadership
on job satisfaction and career satisfaction. Business and Economic horizons, 1(1), 29-
38.

As the study of Chen et al., (2005) found that followers were satisfied with the contingent reward
dimension of transactional leaders and individualize consideration of transformational leaders. In
the same way the study of Jansen et al., (2009) concluded that the transformational leadership
behaviors contribute significantly to exploratory innovation while transactional leadership
behaviors facilitate improving and extending existing knowledge and are associated with
exploitative innovation (Jansen et al., 2009).

Transactional leadership style provides high satisfaction and organizational identification as

compared to transformational leadership style (Wu, 2009; Epitropaki and Martin, 2005) despite
the reason transactional leaders have substantial influence on the followers (Boseman, 2008).

At contrast, in another study transformational leadership had large influence on followers’

performance and innovation than transactional leaders (Boerner et al., 2007) as well as it was
more significantly associated with team cohesiveness, work unit effectiveness and organizational
learning as compared to transactional leadership (Stashevsky and Koslowsky, 2006; Lowe et al.,
1996; Zagorsek et al., 2008).

Transformational leaders also help in the acceptance of organizational change (Bommer et al.,
2004) especially when it is about accepting technology and acquisition (Schepers et al., 2005;
Nemanich and Keller, 2007).
Having effective communication skills, transformational leaders tend to have higher agreement
on the strategic goals of the organization (Berson and Avolio, 2004). They voluntarily help their
employees and prevent the occurrence of work-related problems (Berson and Avolio, 2004),
which ultimately enhances job satisfaction among employees (Scandura and Williams 2004;
Nemanich and Keller, 2007). They become more committed and have less turnover intentions
(Scandura and Williams, 2004; Rafferty and Mark, 2004).

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Hamid_Waqas/publication/322643782_Impact_of_Leaders
hip_Style_Transformational_Transactional_Leadership_On_Employee_Performance_Mediating
_Role_of_Job_Satisfaction_Study_of_Private_School_Educator_In_Pakistan/links/5a662b8b458
5158bca5449c9/Impact-of-Leadership-Style-Transformational-Transactional-Leadership-On-
Employee-Performance-Mediating-Role-of-Job-Satisfaction-Study-of-Private-School-Educator-
In-Pakistan.pdf

Voon, Ngui and Ayob (2011) show the stronger relationship between transformational leadership
and job satisfaction. If the organization has to enhance job satisfaction among their workers and
to increases commitment, researcher viewed that they must follow transformational leaders
(Koh, Steers & Terborc, 1995). Krishnan (2005) express transformational leadership as a key
factor of high job satisfaction and thus increased employee performance. Schaubroeck, Lam
(2007) is of view that there is positive relationship between transformational leadership and
employee performance and it creates a positive impact on team performance. Transformational
leadership is effective in two ways, 1st it builds enthusiasm, secondly, instills sense of vision that
lead to higher job satisfaction, due to this, employers performance takes a positive slope
(Kennedy, Anderson, 2002).

Janssen, Yperen (2004) says that transactional leadership entertains employee performance by
increasing the follower’s job satisfaction. Participative leadership style or directive both can
become the element of increasing employee’s participation, and in turn enlarged performance
(Kahai, Sosik & Avolio, 2004). Liang, Chan, Lin and Huang (2011) take job satisfaction as
mediator between transactional and transformational leadership style and articulate that these
styles create strong correlation between employee’s performance. Nemanich and Keller (2007)
also have made a linkage between leadership style, job satisfaction and employee performance.
Though researchers have conducted research on different aspects of leadership styles, their
impact on job satisfaction and employee performance, however momentous thrust in context to
the Pakistani culture yet to imparted (Adnan & Mubarak, 2010).

http://www.lifesciencesite.com/lsj/life1105s/009_23647life1105s14_48_53.pdf

No one can deny the role of effective leadership in the growth and better performance of an
organization. Whether it is transformational or transactional leadership behavior, its role in the
success of an organization is recognized (Laohavichien, Fredendall, & Cantrell, 2009). They help
in predicting subordinates’ satisfaction with their leaders, however with varying results. It has
been noted that transactional leadership style relationship with job satisfaction and organizational
identification is comparatively high as compared to transformational leadership style (Wu &
Shiu, 2009). Transformational leader with effective communication skills have been found
enjoying higher agreement with employees on the strategic goals of the organization (Berson &
Avolio, 2004). Resultantly, such leaders voluntarily help their employees and prevent the
occurrence of work-related problems (Berson & Avolio, 2004). The prevalence of this aura
ultimately promotes sense of job satisfaction among employees (Nemanich & Keller, 2007).
They become more committed and have less turnover intentions (Rafferty & Griffin, 2004;
Scandura & Williams, 2004).

https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/30905046/leadership_styles_and_job_satisfaction-
_empirical_evidence_from_mogadishu_universities.pdf?1362992197=&response-content-
disposition=inline%3B+filename
%3DLEADERSHIP_STYLES_AND_JOB_SATISFACTION_E.pdf&Expires=1602525249&Si
gnature=P8LdPGEm0M2cmVkARUuijuk9yB0~zv9VXF5l7B-
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jQFibGZDeH09RWwFJqzwawHDgsD6UgToljCJtFQnqA__&Key-Pair-
Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA

Transformational leadership which encourages autonomy and challenging work became

increasingly important to followers’ job satisfaction.

According to Voon, et al, (2011) the influence of leadership styles on employees’ job satisfaction
in public sector organizations in Malaysia, the result showed that transformational leadership
style has a positive relationship with job satisfaction whereas transactional leadership style has a
negative relationship with job satisfaction in government organization.

According to Hmidifar (2010) also conducted similar study by using questionnaire, the result
showed that there is significance positive influence of transformational leadership factor on
employee job satisfaction. Transformational leadership behavior was found significantly
affecting predicting variable and in some cases transactional leadership behavior. Transactional
leadership style provides high satisfaction and organizational identification as compared to
transformational leadership style (Riaz, & Haider, 2010).

As shown in the table, there is a significant relationship between job satisfaction and
transformational leadership styles (r=0.574, p=0.000). This means that transformational
leadership style used by administrators of the Universities enhanced instructors’ job satisfaction.
There is a strong relationship between transformational leadership style of instructors’
administration and job satisfaction of the instructors. In other words, instructors of the
universities were satisfied with transformational leadership style currently exhibited by
administrators of the Universities.

The result further indicated a significant relationship between job satisfaction and transactional
leadership style (r=0.178, p=0.211). This means that instructors were satisfied with transactional
leadership styles that currently exhibited by their administrators. However, there is small
relationship between transactional leadership styles of the instructors, administrators and job
satisfaction of the instructors. However, the above result (table 3) supported the hypothesis of the
study that there is a positive relationship between leadership styles (transformational and
transactional) and job satisfaction.

A significant relationship was found between transactional and transformational leadership style
and employee job satisfaction. The transformational and transactional leadership styles positively
influenced job satisfaction of instructors working in Universities in Mogadishu. In other words,
the findings supported that instructors working in Universities in Mogadishu significantly
preferred both types of leadership styles. However, there is a strong relationship between
transformational leadership style and job satisfaction. The findings supported that the instructors
preferred transformational leadership style over transactional leadership style. The findings of
this study are also supported by Muniandi, (2010) who indicated that there is a significant
relationship between job satisfaction and transformational leadership (r=0.535, p=0.000) and
transactional leadership and job satisfaction (r=0.454, p=0.000).

CONCLUSIONS

The result of the study indicated that there is a positive and significant relationship among
transformational and transactional leadership and job satisfaction. In other words, there is a
strong relationship between transformational leadership style and job satisfaction while there is
weak relationship between job satisfaction and transactional leadership. That means the
instructors prefer transformational leadership than transactional leadership.

doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.01.403

In accordance with Robbins (2003) more employees leave with the transactional leadership than
with the transformational leadership.

6. Conclusion

The result shows transformational leadership has positive association with job satisfaction which
means that transformational leader through their inspiring and motivating behavior can induce
changes in psychological states of members of organization. On the other hand negative
association between transactional leadership and job satisfaction is found which means that
transactional leaders are more concerned with achieving organizational goals through giving
rewards or punishments and have less concern with motivation of the members of organization.

https://search.proquest.com/docview/216597373/fulltextPDF/ADECE7098D7C4EA3PQ/1?
accountid=63189

Leadership as a Correlate of Job Satisfaction

When the construct of job satisfaction is examined in the context of Bass's view of
leadership (Bass, 1985), several predictions are suggested. First, transformational
leadership might intrinsically foster more job satisfaction, given its ability to impart a
sense of mission and intellectual stimulation. Also, transformational leaders encourage
their followers to take on more responsibility and autonomy. As such, the work tasks
provide workers with an increased level of accomplishment and satisfaction.
Additionally, since transformational leaders are focused on the individual development
of their followers, employees should have a sense that someone is caring for their
needs. Conversely, employees under the quid pro quo approach of transactional
leaders might find fault or dissatisfaction with the equity of their reward systems.
Further, in the management-by-exception approach, the transactional leader is more apt
to be perceived as someone who is actively searching for deviations. Under this type of
atmosphere, it is often perceived that one mistake outweighs ten successful
contributions.

DISCUSSION

This study attempted to examine the connection between transactional and

transformational leadership and employee commitment and job satisfaction in two
service industries. As predicted, transformational leadership was found to have a higher
correlation with the dependent variables than transactional leadership. Further, these
findings seem to support Bass's (1985) model that suggests that transformational
leadership is more predictive of individual and group performance. Additionally, the
results provide added support for prior research that has shown the use of managing-
by-exception is an ineffective leadership style (Bass, 1985).

https://search.proquest.com/docview/231415547?pq-origsite=gscholar&fromopenview=true

Research in industry has shown that the leadership style of the supervisor is related to
the job satisfaction of subordinates.(10)
Discussion
No significant relationship was demonstrated between TA leadership style and job
satisfaction. Since management by exception was the only factor nurses associated
with TA leadership, it is clear that staff nurses view behaviors associated with TA
leadership (e.g., negative feedback) unfavorably in relation to their jobs. This study has
indicated that head nurses with high TF scores were more likely to have staff nurses
with higher job satisfaction scores and longer association with their staff nurses than TA
leaders. This may indicate that TF leadership style promotes retention and prevents
turnover, a finding with important economic implications for hospitals. Exploration of TF
and TA leadership styles in leadership courses and workshops for nurses and
administrators could lead to a better understanding of the components of effective
nursing leadership.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3413924/

According to Blankenship's findings, staff who perceive their management's leadership style as
transformational and transactional enjoy higher job satisfaction. 18 It has also been observed
that leaders who communicate more often with subordinates and ask for their input might
engender a higher level of job satisfaction in the organisation. For instance, according to a study
by Shojaee et al., those managers who shared and communicated their decisions with staff
clearly or created a consulting environment at the workplace were more successful in
increasing the job satisfaction of their personnel.19

Discussion

In his 2009 research about the relationship between transformational leadership style and job
satisfaction of 154 emergency medical technicians in the USA, Breaux found a significant
relationship between transformational leadership and job satisfaction.1 Similarly, Yang
observed a significant relationship between transformational leadership style and job
satisfaction.28 Likewise, according to Hu, transformational leadership had a significant
relationship with job satisfaction.29 In 2009, Handsome observed that job satisfaction increased
by applying transformational leadership style and decreased by using laissez-faire leadership
style.30

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jalal_Hanaysha/publication/281831181_Transformational_
Leadership_and_Job_Satisfaction/links/55fa1ec808aeafc8ac31523c/Transformational-
Leadership-and-Job-Satisfaction.pdf

Riaz and Haider,[12] conducted a study to determine the impact of transformational and
transactional leadership style on job success and career satisfaction in context of Pakistan. The
results of their study showed that transformational leadership style is positively related to job
success and career satisfaction. This finding is consistent with[14],[13] and[3]. They found that
transformational leaders had more positive impact on job and overall satisfaction.

https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/53361047/1-139-432014-JABS-41-50_1.pdf?
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2.2 Transformational leadership

Transformational leadership is what that motivates employees to achieve more rather than what
was originally planned. It means to go beyond expectations (Krishnan, 2005). Transformational
leadership has high impact on followers and changes their attitude and beliefs for their own
interest and at the same time this change in behavior benefits the organization (Bums, 1978).
Transformational leadership focuses on promoting development and strategic thinking in the
organization and carries on the change process more effectively than others. Transformational
leaders take care for others and never discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, age
or social class (Chemjong, 2004). The research on transformational leadership shows that high
productivity, a decrease in the rate of job leaving and high level of job satisfaction are all due to
this leadership style (Deluga, 1992; Marshall et al., 1992; Masi & Cooke, 2000; Medley &
Larochelle, 1995; Sparks & Schenk, 2001).

Both transactional and transformational leadership showed different relationship with the job
satisfaction in different scenarios. In some cases transformational leadership proved itself as
having significant relationship with job satisfaction and in other cases transactional leadership
showed the same pattern. According to research studies conducted by (Wu, 2009) and
(Epitropaki and Martin, 2005) that showed transactional leadership style provided high
satisfaction as well as organizational identification compared to transformational leadership
style. On the contrary, another study showed that the impact of transformational leadership style
on followers’ performance and innovation was more than transactional leadership style (Boerner
et al., 2007).
https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Relationship-between-leadership-style%2C-job-
and-A-Long-Thean/21bcfdc7051374f88222c1ab2757f6f1e30743c4?p2df
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https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12960-016-0171-2
Transformational leaders are generally described as leaders who transform the values,
desires, aspirations, and priorities of their employees and motivate employees to
outperform expectations [40]. The link between transformational leadership and job
satisfaction is well established in the current literature [41]. The characteristics of
transformational leadership conceptualized by Bass [22] provide theoretical foundation
for explaining employees’ job satisfaction.

Bogler [42] explains that transformational behaviors can affect job satisfaction through
employees’ perceptions of transformational leaders. Such leaders increase employees’
expectations and recognition of their work and enhance employees’ job satisfaction
through transformational leadership behaviors such as individual attention, intellectual
stimulation, and motivation. Additionally, the participative decision-making style
practiced by transformational leaders gives employees a sense of involvement. Thus,
employees are more committed to their jobs and have higher levels of job satisfaction. In
the same vein, the study by Nemanich and Keller [43] suggests that job satisfaction
occurs when employees are valued through transformational leadership behaviors,
namely individual consideration and inspiration. This relationship can be understood as
a reciprocal exchange because employees gain job satisfaction and become committed to
producing better job outcomes when they are valued by organizations.
Individual and team perceptions of transformational leadership are also positively
related to job satisfaction [44]. Transformational leaders not only consider their
followers individually but also recognize the importance of the team. This dual
consideration is evidenced through transformational behaviors, such as motivation and
inspiration, that are tailored to both the individual and the entire team. For example,
transformational leaders will communicate a vision and demonstrate considerate
behavior to encourage all team members to work together to achieve organizational
goals. Furthermore, interpersonal conflicts can be reduced when individuals work
together as a team; the job satisfaction of both individuals and the entire team will be
strengthened.

The relevance of transformational leadership to employees’ job satisfaction is not

restricted to a particular organizational setting. Prior studies have consistently found
that transformational behaviors occur and enhance followers’ job satisfaction in various
organizational settings, including educational, industrial, military, and volunteer
settings [44–48]. For instance, Yang et al. [47] found that followers’ positive perceptions
of transformational behaviors by leaders (or supervisors) lead to stronger identification
with the organization, increased internalization of organizational goals, and improved
job satisfaction.

As stated previously, the role of transformational leadership in enhancing employees’

organizational commitment and job satisfaction cannot be denied. The effect of
transformational leadership is important for individuals who work in rapidly changing
environments (for example, R&D personnel in technology-based organizations) to
strengthen their organizational commitment and job satisfaction [45]. Indeed,
transformational leadership is important to any organization that experiences
environmental changes, including public sector organizations, which are commonly
perceived as undergoing minimal organizational change. In a similar vein, a study by
Wright and Pandey [25] suggests that transformational leadership behaviors are not
limited by procedural constraints and rules in organizations with hierarchical authority
structures. Such organizations can opt to change leadership styles even if their
hierarchical decision-making structures may constrain transformational leadership
behaviors.

In particular, scholars have acknowledged the importance of transformational

leadership in enhancing the job satisfaction of staff in healthcare industries [49–53].
Employees in the healthcare sector often work in high-pressure environments.
Supervisors’ transformational behaviors can establish a sense of self-control and
competence among employees and thereby enhance job satisfaction [49]. Andrews and
Dziegielewski [52] explain that nursing staff generally prefer supervisors with
transformational behaviors that address employees’ individual needs. Thus,
transformational leadership can reduce nursing staff turnover owing to low job
satisfaction. This reasoning leads to the following hypothesis:

H1: Transformational leadership has a positive impact on job satisfaction among

medical assistants and nurses in Malaysia.
References