Participative Leadership, Psychological Empowerment, and Work Engagement in Enhancing Job Satisfaction

Abstract

Participative leadership is an important approach to improving employee job satisfaction in the manufacturing sector, which has high work demands and a dynamic work environment. This study aims to analyze the effect of participative leadership on job satisfaction, with psychological empowerment and work engagement as mediating variables, among employees of PT Jagat Karya Putra Indonesia. The study used a quantitative approach with a replication design from the Fatoki (2023) research model. The study population consisted of 523 employees, with a sample of 226 respondents selected using purposive sampling. Data were collected through questionnaires and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM The results of the study show that participative leadership has a positive and significant effect on job satisfaction, psychological empowerment, and work engagement. In addition, psychological empowerment and work engagement were also proven to have a positive effect on job satisfaction and were able to mediate the relationship between participative leadership and job satisfaction. This research provides theoretical implications in the development of Social Exchange Theory and Job Demands-Resources Theory, as well as practical implications for companies to implement a participatory leadership style to increase employee job satisfaction.