Is Silence Golden? The Influence of Employee Silence on the Transactional Leadership and Job Satisfaction Relationship

Abstract

The literature has shown that a positive relationship between transactional leadership and job satisfaction in private and public organizations exist. This relationship is critical for sustained organizational performance; however, this relationship can be challenged by the existence of employee silence in the organizational setting. Based on self-determination theory, this study measured the impact of transactional leadership on job satisfaction as well as the part of employee silence in the leadership–satisfaction relationship in a public organizational setting. The study sample consisted of employees working at the Ministry of Justice in Jordon, and 450 questionnaires were applied with 357 useable questionnaires being returned. The data were tested through confirmatory factor analysis, correlation and regression analyses, and structural equation modeling. The results showed a strong positive relationship between transactional leadership and job satisfaction, though employee silence as a mediator indicated reduced job satisfaction. The importance of public organization leaders being more mindful towards the employee silence phenomenon and how it can be detrimental in the transactional leadership–job satisfaction relationship was highlighted.