Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 65-78
Available Online at http://ejournal.undip.ac.id/index.php/medianers

Transformational and Transactional Leadership Styles of
Nurse Managers and Job Satisfaction among Filipino Nurses:
A Pilot Study
Lucky Fitzgerald R. Lapeña1, Cyruz P. Tuppal2, Bradley Goldie K. Loo3,
Kenji Hennessy C. Abe4
2

1
Graduate School of Nursing, Concordia College, Manila, Philippines
Senior Clinical Tutor, Ministry of Health, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman; Adjunct Professor, St. Paul
University Philippines System, Tuguegarao City, Philippines
3
Professor, Graduate School of Nursing, Concordia College, Manila, Philippines
4
Clinical Education Coordinator, Prince Sultan Military Medical City, Riyadh,
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Corresponding Author: Cyruz P. Tuppal (drcyruztuppal@gmail.com)

ABSTRACT
Background: Due to the paucity of literature in leadership styles and job satisfaction
within the Philippine context, this descriptive correlational study among Filipino nurses
(FNs) was piloted in a selected tertiary hospital in Manila.
Purpose: This study utilized a descriptive correlational research design to describe
aspects of a situation and explore relationships among leadership styles and job
satisfaction, without seeking to establish causal connections
Methods: Before the data collection, the researchers secured an administrative and
ethical clearance from the executive assistant to the President thru the Officer-in-Charge
of the Nursing Service Division of the hospital. There were 285 staff nurses, of which
only 100 nurses were qualified to have at least one year of experience. Three sets of
questionnaires were disseminated, and responses were treated analyzed using the
descriptive statistics to describe the demographic and work profile, LS, and JS while
Pearson R correlation was used to measure the relationship between LS and JS.
Results: Using self-administered questionnaires, FNs rated their level of satisfaction
(M=3.37) from high to a moderate extent along with professional autonomy (M=3.91),
work environment (M=3.81), work assignment (M=3.61), and benefits (M=2.71).
Participants agreed that their nurse managers utilized either transformational or
transactional leadership styles. Findings indicate that transformational (r=0.558,
p<0.000) and transactional (r=0.528, p< 0.000) leadership styles of nurse managers
were correlated to nurses’ job satisfaction.
Conclusion: The finding explicates that FNs were satisfied in their professional
autonomy, work environment, and work assignment but moderately satisfied in work
benefits which were also apparent in the global literature. Furthermore, the results
indicate that leadership styles are related to the overall job satisfaction of among nurses.
Keywords: Job satisfaction; leadership styles; nursing service; Philippines

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 66

BACKGROUND
Job satisfaction (JS) as a concept and a subject of interest has received recognition as
the most researched variable in various disciplines (Judge & Klinger, 2008). As early as
the 1970s and to the current date, JS continuously emerges as a measure of individual
performance and organization vitality (Burke, 2004; Locke, 1976; Maurits, de Veer,
Groenewegen, & Francke, 2017; Morsiani, Bagnasco, & Sasso, 2017; Spector, 1997).
JS is an emotional state where an individual appraises the job that facilitates achieving
and facilitating of one's job values (Locke, 1976, p. 1304; Spector, 1997). JS is further
viewed using a two-pronged lens. First, the humanitarian perspective views fairness and
dignity at work that should be observed among employees. Second, the utilitarian
perspective inculcates that JS affects the employee’s behavioral or attitudinal aspects
(Spector, 1997). From the definitions and underpinnings, it can be deduced that JS
illuminates the person’s overall feelings about the work and the organization as
explicitly mentioned in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow, 1943), Herzberg
Theory of Motivation (Herzberg, 1966) and Job Satisfaction Theory (Locke, 1976).
These three distinct and interrelated theories reflect the antecedents and outcomes of JS.
In the most recent nursing studies, JS embeds several domains like autonomy (AlShamari, Paulose, Ou, & Ngwakongnwi, 2015; Kuwano, Fukuda, & Murashima, 2016;
Wu et al., 2014), work environment (Goh, Lee, Chan, & Chan, 2015; Huong Nguyen &
Prachusilpa, 2016; Kubichka, 2016; Naveed, Hussain, Sarfraz, Afghan, & Waqar, 2016;
Wang et al., 2015), workload assignment (Leineweber et al., 2016; Stuart, Jarvis, &
Daniel, 2008; Van Bogaert, Clarke, Willems, & Mondelaers, 2013), and benefits (Atefi,
Lim Abdullah, Wong, & Mazlom, 2015; Singh & Loncar, 2010; Wang et al., 2015). JS
also influences the service quality (Abdelhafiz, Alloubani, & Almatari, 2016; Atefi et
al., 2015), job performance (Huong Nguyen & Prachusilpa, 2016), wellbeing or quality
of life (Galletta, Portoghese, Coppola, Finco, & Campagna, 2016; Gurková, Čáp,
Žiaková, & Ďurišková, 2012; Ibrahim et al., 2016), burnout (Jiang, Li, Gu, & Lu, 2016),
and turnover (Alsaraireh, Quinn Griffin, Ziehm, & Fitzpatrick, 2014; Delobelle et al.,
2011; Goh & Lopez, 2016). Through the identification of JS-related facets, leaders in
the organizations can distinguish the individual differences and ways to achieve a high
level of employee’s JS. Thus, leaders should have the drive to develop an organization
that is evolving, adaptive, and responsive to the growing needs of the workforce.
Like any other organizations, hospital as a system comprises of subsystems including
nursing that needs a leadership that can address the needs of the nursing workforce. As
nursing evolves from a handmaiden to an autonomous discipline, it should be the
forefront to address various alternatives, expectations, and experiences of nurses and
their level of JS (Burke, 2004). Thus, leadership becomes inherent to nursing and
requires a new evolving mechanism to address the issue of JS despite individual
differences. Nurse managers share a mutual understanding that the way they lead and
manage their respective unit will affect the way nurses perceive their JS. The leadership
styles of nurse managers vary. The transactional leaders are those who focus on the
mutual exchange of relationship with the follower, while transformational leaders
emphasize mutuality towards greater awareness of motivation and morality (Bass, 1985;
Burns, 1978).

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 67

The hospital as a multidimensional system is a crucial enabler of JS among nurses. The
healthcare delivery comprises of nurses holding various positions. As expected, nurse
managers plan, direct, control, and evaluate the overall unit or department and nurses’
performance. Nurse managers need to ensure that a healthy environment facilitates the
formation of a trusting relationship associated with quality care (Abdelhafiz et al., 2016;
De Cremer, 2003; Wong, 2015). Nurse managers who can lead others to do the same
magnify a quality of an authentic leader-employee relationship, which in return
influences self-esteem and job satisfaction (Ugwa, 2014). In this juncture, leadership
styles and job satisfaction should be given much attention by the nursing management
not only to sustain the organizational functioning but also to build strategic actions to
improve nurses’ performance and to establish a balance of the transformational and
transactional leadership at all levels.
The Philippines has been coined as the number one exporter of nurses around the globe
(Lorenzo, Galvez-Tan, Icamina, & Javier, 2007; Tuppal, 2017). The call for overseas
work prompted many Filipino nurses (FNs) due to the economic prosperity that
developed countries can offer. Due to the compatibility of the education, dexterity in
skills, and other essential attributes, FNs have the leverage to be highly valued in
various hospitals overseas (Lorenzo et al., 2007; Pastor, 2015; Tayao-Juego, 2016;
Tuppal, 2017). As FNs continue to migrate for whatever reasons, a shortage in the
nursing workforce becomes inevitable. Consequently, those FNs who opt to work in the
country to date need to shoulder around 30 or more patients in every shift as opposed to
the ideal nurse-patient ratio of 1:12 (The Manila Times, 2016). From the same report, a
regular nurse in a government hospital receives a maximum of P18,000 every month
despite an aggressive lobbying of the Philippine Nurses Association (PNA) to
standardize the salary grade to P25,000 as stipulated in the Republic Act 7305 (Magna
Carta of Public Health Workers) and Republic Act 9173 (Nursing Law). Almost
500,000 registered nurses are working in public and private hospitals while 200,000
working in different fields. With the urgent hiring from the Middle East, United
Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Japan, Canada, and the United States, FNs would leave the
country in years to come as nursing is a fastest-growing and in-demand occupation
(Tayao-Juego, 2016; The Manila Times, 2016; Tuppal, 2017). Undeniably, with the
current economic uncertainty and unpredictability in the country, FNs would choose to
work overseas (Lorenzo et al., 2007; Tuppal, 2017). As nurses have no other choice but
to leave the country, the hospitals would abruptly experience turnover, which requires
available staff to fill the void leading to a cyclical process of high stress, burnout,
fatigue, and dissatisfaction (Perez, 2014).
Due to the paucity of evidence that explores the relationships between JS and LS among
nurse managers in the Philippines, it is then pivotal to give much attention to these
domains where the gap exists. It should be noted that many studies have been conducted
in the developed countries about nurse’s JS and yet limited on its identified significant
nexus with the two contemporary leadership styles – transformational and transactional.
Through this study, it is hoped to provide a groundwork for understanding such
constellation of relationships.

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 68

PURPOSE
This study utilized a descriptive correlational research design to describe aspects of a
situation and explore relationships among leadership styles and job satisfaction, without
seeking to establish causal connections (Polit & Beck, 2016).
METHODS
Before the data collection, the researchers secured an administrative and ethical
clearance from the executive assistant to the President thru officer-in-charge of the
Nursing Service Division of the hospital. According to the census of the nursing office,
there were 285 staff nurses, of which only 100 nurses were qualified to have at least one
year of experience. Those informed, consented, and eligible participants were given
each a sealed envelope that contained the packet information, and sets of a selfadministered questionnaire on demographic profile, leadership styles, and job
satisfaction. They were asked to return the sealed envelope to the researcher without an
identifiable information. The participants were also informed that their participation was
voluntary and can withdraw anytime.
Research instruments were composed of three parts. Part I describes the demographic
and work profile of the participants. Part II evaluates the eight job-related statements to
indicate their level of job satisfaction. It measures the nurses’ satisfaction as affected by
the four job components identified which are autonomy, work environment, job content,
and benefits using a 4-point Likert scale for JS (1=not at all, 2=low extent, 3=moderate
extent, 4=high extent). Part III was designed to distinguish between the Transactional (8
statements) and Transformational (8 statements) and rated using a 4-point Likert scale
(1=not at all, 2=occasionally, 3=sometimes, 4=always). Test-retest reliability was
performed to ensure that the sets of the modified questionnaires were reliable for JS
(α=0.937) and LS (α=0.956).
After the data entry in the Microsoft Excel and Statistical Package for the Social
Sciences (SPSS) (IBM Corp., 2015), data were cleaned and analyzed using normality
outliers. The quantitative data were treated using SPSS version 23 specifically
descriptive statistics including frequency, percentage, and means to analyze the
aggregated data of demographic and work profile, leadership styles, and job satisfaction.
The significant relationships between the leadership styles and job satisfaction were
treated using Pearson R correlation.
RESULTS
Demographic and work profile
Thirty-eight participants belonged to the age group between 25-29 (38%), female with
eighteen (82%) and single with sixty-eight (68%). In the length of service, 50 out of 100
respondents had a work experience of 1-2 years (50%), BSN degree holders with 90
(90%) and earned monthly ranged from P12000 to P15000 (93%). Most of the
participants surveyed were from the medical ward with 24 (24%).

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Table 1. Demographic profile of the participants (n=100)
Demographic Profiles
Age
20-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-44
45-49
Gender
Male
Female
Civil Status
Single
Married
Years of Experience in the Workplace
1-2
3-4
5-6
7-8
9-10
11-12
13-14
15 >
Highest Education Obtained
BSN
with units in Masters
Master's Degree
Gross Income
P12,000-P13,000
P14,000-P15,000
Area of Assignment
Medical Ward (6th floor)
Surgical Ward (5th floor and 16th floor)
Pediatric Ward (4-A and 5-A)
Obstetric Ward (3-A)
Delivery Room Complex
Operating Room Department
Emergency Room Department
Cardiac Catheter Laboratory
Medical Intensive Care Unit
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Behavioral Medicine Unit
Annex / Charity Ward
Post Anesthesia Care Unit / Surgical ICU

Frequency

%

30
38
13
8
10
1

30
38
13
8
10
1

18
82

18
82

68
32

68
32

50
13
16
7
6
3
2
3

50
13
16
7
6
3
2
3

90
9
1

90
9
1

93
7

93
7

24
6
9
3
12
15
7
2
6
4
3
5
4

24
6
9
3
12
15
7
2
6
4
3
5
4

Leadership styles of nurse managers
Table 2 shows that the nurse managers exemplify either transformational (M=3.44,
always) or transactional (M=3.33, always). It can be inferred that in transactional

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 70

leadership styles, top three attributes of nurse managers include focusing attention on
irregularities, mistakes, expectations, and deviations from standards (M=3.66, always),
guide nurses in making decisions to establish goals by clarifying roles and task
requirements (M=3.55, always) and specify the importance of having a strong sense of
purpose (M=3.47, always). In terms of the transformational leadership styles, the top
three nurse managers’ attributes include increasing willingness of nurses to try harder
(M=3.69, always) and motivating nurses to do more than what is expected (M=3.69,
always), talking about the organization's most important values and beliefs (M=3.45,
always) and treating nurses as individuals rather than just a member of the group
(M=3.45, always).
Table 2. Leadership styles among nurse managers
Leadership Styles
Transactional
The nurse manager:
1. Guides me in making decisions to establish goals by
clarifying roles and task requirements
2. Directs my attention towards failures to meet standards
3. Focuses attention on irregularities, mistakes, expectations,
and deviations from standards
4. Discusses in specific terms who is responsible for achieving
performance targets
5. Makes clear what one can expect to receive when
performance goals are achieved
6. Expresses satisfaction when I meet expectations
7. Specifies the importance of having a strong sense of
purpose
8. Waits for things to go wrong before taking action
Overall Mean

Mean

Interpretation

3.55

Always

3.46
3.66

Always
Always

3.31

Always

3.40

Always

3.36
3.47

Always
Always

2.44
3.33

Occasionally
Always

Transformational
The nurse manager:
9. Increases my willingness to try harder
3.69
Always
10. Motivates me to do more than what is expected of me
3.69
Always
11. Provides me with assistance in exchange for my effort
3.16
Always
12. Seeks differing perspectives when solving problems
3.35
Always
13. Treats me as in individual rather than just a member of the
3.45
Always
group
14. Articulates a compelling vision of the future
3.36
Always
15. Talks about the organization's most important values and
3.45
Always
beliefs
16. Talks optimistically about the future
3.37
Always
Overall Mean
3.44
Always
Note: 4.00–3.25 Always, 3.24–2.49 Sometimes, 2.48–1.73 Occasionally, 1.72–1.00 Never

Job satisfaction among nurses
Table 3 shows the job satisfaction of staff nurses with the total mean of 3.37 (high
extent). Furthermore, staff nurses were satisfied with their jobs as reflected in the four
components of job satisfaction particularly professional autonomy (M=3.91, high

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 71

extent), work environment (M=3.81, high extent), work assignment (M=3.61, high
extent) and benefits (M=2.61, moderate extent).
Table 3. Job satisfaction of nurses
Job Satisfaction Indices
Mean
Interpretation
Professional Autonomy
3.91
High Extent
1. Allows me to make independent nursing care decisions
3.84
High Extent
2. Allows me to be entirely responsible for those decisions
3.99
High Extent
Work Environment
3.81
High Extent
3. Provides adequate resources necessary for patient care
3.71
High Extent
4. Provides good collaboration between nurses and physicians
3.92
High Extent
Work Assignment
3.61
High Extent
5. I receive satisfactory work hour shifts by receiving enough
3.44
High Extent
time to complete patient care task
6. My unit provides a variety of clinical challenges and provides
3.79
High Extent
opportunity to use my nursing skills
Benefits
2.16
Low Extent
7. I receive adequate salary
2.25
Low Extent
8. There are adequate additional financial benefits other than
2.08
Low Extent
salaries such as healthcare benefits, sick leave, and vacation
leaves
Note: 4.00–3.25 High Extent, 3.24–2.49 Moderate Extent, 2.48–1.73 Low Extent, 1.72–1.00
Not at all

Relationships between the leadership styles and job satisfaction
A Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient was used to measure the
relationships between the leadership styles of nurse managers and job satisfaction
among nurses. There was a positive correlation between the job satisfaction and
transactional leadership (r=0.558, p<0.000), transformational leadership (r=0.526,
p<0.000).
Table 4. Relationship between leadership styles and job satisfaction
Transactional
Pearson Correlation
.558**
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
N
100
** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed)
Overall Job
Satisfaction

Transformational
.526**
.000
100

DISCUSSION
Job satisfaction of FNs
Results indicate that FNs were highly satisfied with their job (M=3.37) along with the
four domains. Professional Autonomy was rated to a great extent as it defines the
independence among nurses to act and decide in managing their patients (M=3.81). AlShamari et al. (2015) found out in a cross-sectional study among nurses (n=435) in
Qatar were more satisfied compared to their local counterparts. Autonomy and contract
type were statistically significant predictors of JS aside from financial and non-financial
benefits. However, Kuwano et al. (2016) surmised that professional autonomy of

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 72

Japanese nurses (n=238) caring for non-Japanese patients was significantly lower than
when caring for Japanese patients. Kuwano et al. (2016) suggested that nurses should
develop an intercultural sensitivity to provide culturally competent care to increase JS.
From among nurses in a regional hospital in Taiwan (n=196), Wu et al. (2014) revealed
that professional autonomy was positively associated with JS although cumbersome and
busy workload can reduce the capacity of nurses to work efficiently.
Interpersonal relations with colleagues affect nurse’s view on JS about the work
environment (M=3.81). A positive work environment cultivates appreciation,
interdependence, and cooperation (Bai, 2016). The majority of the participants in this
study have at least 1-2 years working experience. Thus, the work environment plays a
vital role towards work motivation and job satisfaction among these entry-level nurses
(Laschinger, Zhu, & Read, 2016). Naveed et al. (2016) also found out among nurses
(n=81) in a selected children hospital in Pakistan. In China, nurses (n=444) working in
22 venerable institutions were surveyed to examine the job satisfaction and its
contributing factors (Wang et al., 2015). The practice environment was associated with
nurses’ job satisfaction reflected on the nurse-physician collegial nature of relationships.
Kubichka (2016) reiterated that negative relationships among colleagues contribute to
the stressful conditions that precipitate low job satisfaction among nurses (n=427).
Huong Nguyen and Prachusilpa (2016) concluded that work conditions and
psychological empowerment positively and significantly related to job satisfaction
among professional public health nurses (n=356). In a tertiary public-funded hospital in
Singapore, migrant nurses surveyed (n=495) reiterated that a supportive environment is
essential to achieve a high level of satisfaction (Goh & Lopez, 2016). On the contrary,
Goh et al. (2015) also indicated that job satisfaction was negatively correlated with the
work environment and pre-existing Chinese nurses did not help their colleagues for a
more efficient acculturation.
FNs were highly satisfied with their workload assignment (M=3.61). Despite there are
many activities on every shift, nurses would find ways to ease the burden of completing
the assigned tasks. Patient activities, nurse-led interventions, documentation, pre- and
post-endorsement, and follow-ups are the everyday activities that nurses do. However,
due to a stressful environment, nurses’ level of job satisfaction may tend to decrease.
Such decrease has been associated with insufficient control over the workload including
the scheduling pattern. Atefi et al. (2015) surmised that about 76% Iranian nurses
surveyed (n=421) working at a large hospital that they do not have a shared decision
regarding scheduling and about 75% agreed that the workload was unreasonable and
erratic. Work assignment of nurses requires consensus among nurse managers and
nurses themselves. A study in Pakistan revealed that lack of involvement in a decision
that requires nurses’ inputs was a significant factor of job satisfaction nurses in a
selected children hospital (Naveed et al., 2016). Leineweber et al. (2016) suggested that
work schedule flexibility can be utilized to alleviate dissatisfaction and intent to leave
from a multi-country and multilevel study conducted among nurses (n=23,076) from
2,020 units in 384 hospitals in 10 European countries.
Work benefits including salary have been linked to job satisfaction. In this study, nurses
were moderately satisfied with the benefits that they receive (M=2.10) in contrast to

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 73

Atefi et al. (2015) who found out that Iranian nurses were dissatisfied with their
benefits, often felt unappreciated and underpaid. Al-Shamari et al. (2015) in a survey
from a tertiary hospital in Qatar among expatriate nurses (n=435) rated their job
satisfaction higher compared to local nurses. Results indicate that either financial or
non-financial benefits are the predictor of nurses’ job satisfaction. Wang et al. (2015)
concurred similar findings among Chinese nurses from various hospitals in an old
setting.
Leadership styles and job satisfaction
With the advent of a modernized health care delivery, radical reforms, and change in
basic assumptions, nurse managers along with the hospital administrators need to
develop a healthy working environment for the workforce. Nurse managers though can
embrace the dynamic management processes; they are also mandated to lead others to
achieve the institutional vision and mission. Nurse managers should learn how to
facilitate to meet the needs and expectations of other nurses under their supervision.
Findings in this study indicate that transformational (r=0.526, p<0.000) and
transactional (r=0.558, p<0.000) leadership styles of nurse managers are correlated to
nurses’ JS similar to the study findings of Aarons (2006) among public-sector mental
health service clinicians (n = 303). Such findings further explain that regardless the type
of leadership styles used by the nurse managers, nurses’ JS would either be low or high.
This means that JS is dependent on how nurses perceive the importance of leadership
styles since either transformational and transactional could be beneficial for nurses,
nurse managers, and the organization. Several studies reveal that nurses prefer
transformational rather than transactional (Perez, 2014). Abualrub and Alghamdi (2012)
show a significant moderate correlation in the positive direction between
transformational leadership style and nurses’ job satisfaction (r=0.45, p<0.001), and
significant weak relationship in the negative direction between transactional leadership
style and job satisfaction (r=−0.14, p<0.01). Other studies found out that
transformational leadership styles are more preferred in many hospitals
The early pioneers made a clear distinction between transformational and transactional
leadership styles. Transformational leaders heighten the motivation of their followers
towards a shared vision while Transactional leaders focus on the roles including
supervision and organization of daily progress within the organization (Burns, 1978;
Burns, 2003). From these attributes, nurse managers should find balance with the
leadership styles that would be significant in the workflow and the interrelation
mechanism of the workforce as presented in (Aarons, 2006; Miller, 2017; Perez, 2014).
In support of this assumption, Figure 1 presents the LS-JS Constellation Paradigm that
sustains such balance between the leadership styles (i.e., transformational versus
transactional) and job satisfaction (autonomy, work environment, work assignment, and
benefits).
If nurse managers would be able to build a strong foundation in both leadership styles,
as transactional leaders, for instance, nurse managers can direct others to identify
specific goals to be achieved daily. For novice nurses, they would further need
assistance from the nurse managers to be more acquainted and would feel affirmed and
appreciated. As effective transactional leaders, nurse managers understand how to

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 74

reciprocate the outcomes of an excellent service delivery. Nurse managers can provide a
reward system that would motivate others to perform effectively and efficiently. About
the problems or issues arising in the unit, nurse managers can immediately develop
strategic approaches. On the other note, as transformational leaders, nurse managers
exemplify a shared vision on a long-term basis that nurtures innovativeness, inspiration,
enthusiasm, and trust. If nurse managers can illumine such vision, it would also
motivate and heighten the willingness of other staff to exceed the expectations regarding
performance and productivity.

Figure 1. The LS-JS Constellation Model
CONCLUSION
Despite a growing body of literature extracted about the job satisfaction and leadership
styles among nurses from both developed and developing countries, there is a paucity of
evidence published among FNs. The findings of this pilot study indicate that FNs are
satisfied from the selected four domains of job satisfaction. As FNs embrace their
autonomy, positive work environment, flexible work assignment, and generous benefits,
the more it contributes to their level of job satisfaction. As nurse managers take a
significant part in the lives of nurses, they should learn to respond to the needs of their
staff. The way they should manage would depend on a given situation where either
transformational or transactional could be more appropriate. Also, the finding of this
study argues that FNs opt to choose transformational over the transactional leadership
styles. Since the daily operations in any nursing unit vary from a different setting,
leadership styles can also be flexible in a manner that it meets the vision towards
sustainable organizational functioning and efficient staff performance. Reframing the
concepts of leadership styles should be understood by the nurse managers to maintain a
state of balance between transformational and transactional attributes. Despite extensive
research on the preferences of the transformational over the other, the balance would

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Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 7(2), 2017, 75

further benefit strengthening an open work environment, systematic management
processes, and collegial relationships between and among the members of the hospital
community.
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