The effect of gender on transformational leadership and job satisfaction among Saudi nurses

Abstract

Aim: To compare nurses’ job satisfaction and perceptions of transformational leadership style of their manager among four different nurse/manager gender dyads in Saudi Arabia. Background: Women and men differ on many behavioural characteristics and are influenced by the cultural environment. Understanding these differences may have an impact on leadership behaviours and job satisfaction. Design: A descriptive analysis of one-time survey data collected in 2011 from Saudi nurses employed in six general public hospitals located in three cities. Method: Three hundred and eight (51.3%) of 600 Saudi nurses solicited to participate completed anonymous questionnaires that measured their job satisfaction and perceptions of transformational leadership style of their manager. Findings: Factorial ANOVA tested the main effects of gender of the nurse, gender of the manager and the interaction term on the nurse's job satisfaction, and perceived transformational leadership style of their manager. These analyses indicated a main effect of gender of the manager on both job satisfaction and perceived transformational leadership style of the manager (p