Abstract
Advocates of servant leadership maintain that altruism is the foundational ethic fueling the success of the servant leader. Thus, the foremost requirement of a servant leader is the possession of a concern for others above and beyond his or herself. Researchers have largely neglected the possibility that servant leaders may be, at least partially, motivated by self-interest. We challenge the current foundational ethic attributed with servant leadership and put forth a new ethical perspective. Reviewing four motivational states, from purely other-centered to purely self-centered, we introduce a conceptual model and argue that the proper ethic to ascribe with servant leadership is a dual motivational perspective of rational self-interest and agapao love. A dual motivational perspective allows the servant leader to avoid the negative consequences of the self-sacrificial, altruistic motivation while maintaining the positive, pro-social behaviors that improve organizational outcomes associated with servant leadership.
Creative Commons License
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Recommended Citation
Hurt, Kevin J. and Nolan, Ross
(2024)
"A Rational Perspective of Servant Leadership: Towards a Paradigm Shift in Servant Leader Motivation,"
American Business Review: Vol. 27:
No.
1, Article 12.
DOI: 10.37625/abr.27.1.326-348
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.newhaven.edu/americanbusinessreview/vol27/iss1/12
DOI
10.37625/abr.27.1.326-348
