Strategising for continuance commitment: the role of servant leadership behaviour

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which servant leadership behaviour as a non-financial mechanism influences changes in continuance commitment. Research that investigates effects on specific forms of commitment is likely to provide more tailored information, thereby enhancing the quality of resulting decisions. Design/methodology/approach This study used an explanatory approach to investigate the envisaged linkage between the study variables from a social-psychological perspective. Findings Findings revealed that servant leadership behaviour significantly influences the variations in continuance commitment. Research limitations/implications The data used were sourced from organisations in the health sector. Results were more likely to be limited to organisations dealing in services like healthcare, education, hospitality and business sectors. Also, since the data used were cross sectional, the application of results could be limited by changes in business cycle effects. Nevertheless, the study provides a direction of thought and a platform for a longitudinal study by future researchers. Practical implications Organisations have the option of relaying upon servant leadership behaviour as a non-financial mechanism of enhancing continuance commitment. This is likely to relieve the pressure on financial resources, especially for organisations in developing economies that often operate under conditions of economic scarcity. Originality/value This work is the first of its kind to describe the effect of servant leadership behaviour on continuance commitment in the health sector within Uganda which is a typical developing economy facing challenges of high attrition rates.