The mediating role of leader-member exchange (LMX) in the structural relationship between organizational justice and employee voice behaviour in higher education

Within the vibrant yet complex ecosystem of higher education institutions, nurturing a culture of employee voice is critical for driving innovation, fostering engagement, and optimizing decision-making. However, it's still a complex task to identify the main factors influencing voice behaviour. This study ventures into this fertile ground, examining the mediating role of leader-member exchanges in the structural relationship between perceived organizational justice and employee voice behaviour in higher education. A correlational study design was used. A total of 361 participants were involved in the study. Data were collected using a questionnaire and analyzed using structural education modelling (SEM). The study found that both perceived organizational justice and leader-member exchange have a significant direct influence on employee voice behaviour, suggesting that both variables are important factors in predicting employee voice behaviour. Despite these effects, the contribution of leader-member exchange was found to be more impactful than perceived organizational justice. When the leader-member exchange is entered as a mediating variable in the structural model, the indirect effect of organizational justice becomes large. This suggests that when employees perceive their organization as fair, they are more likely to form positive relationships with their leaders and, as a result, these relationships lead to greater employee voice behaviour. Therefore, it can be concluded that higher education institutions are recommended to create a fair and equitable working environment strengthened by strong relationships between leaders and employees, as this directly contributes to improving employees' ability to express their thoughts and opinions for the benefit of the institutions.