Navigating Organizational Conflict in Higher Education: The Mediating Role of Transformative Leadership in Enhancing Public Service Quality
Keywords:
organizational conflict, transformative leadership, public service quality, higher education, educational managementAbstract
Organizational conflict within higher education institutions constitutes a complex phenomenon that substantially influences the quality of public services delivered to stakeholders. This article aims to analyze the mediating role of transformative leadership in the relationship between organizational conflict and public service quality across higher education environments. The research object is centered on higher education institutions as public service providers within the educational sector. The methodological approach employed is a Systematic Literature Review (SLR), encompassing the examination of Scopus-indexed and Sinta-indexed scholarly articles published over the past decade. Literature retrieval was conducted using Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and the Sinta portal with relevant keywords. The findings demonstrate that inadequately managed organizational conflict adversely affects institutional performance and service quality, whereas transformative leadership serves as an effective mediator, converting destructive conflict into constructive engagement. Transformative leadership, characterized by inspirational vision, intellectual stimulation, individualized consideration, and idealized influence, has been shown to enhance organizational cohesion and elevate the quality of public service. This study contributes to the advancement of conflict management theory and leadership scholarship within the context of higher education governance.
Downloads
References
Anderson, M. H., & Sun, P. Y. T. (2017). Reviewing leadership styles: Overlaps and the need for a new "full-range" theory. International Journal of Management Reviews, 19(1), 76–96. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijmr.12082
Bass, B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (1994). Improving organizational effectiveness through transformational leadership. Sage Publications.
Bass, B. M., & Riggio, R. E. (2014). Transformational leadership (2nd ed.). Psychology Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781410617095
Berkovich, I. (2016). School leaders and transformational leadership theory: Time to part ways? Journal of Educational Administration, 54(5), 609–622. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-11-2015-0100
Manaf, S., Novita, M., Rokimin, & Thaariq, Z. Z. A. (2025). Visionary leadership in Islamic education: Transforming practices and enhancing educational governance. Journal of Pedagogy and Education Science, *4*(03), 706–722. DOI: 10.56741/IISTR.jpes.001287
Manaf, S., Rokimin, R., Rahman, M. H., Thaariq, Z. Z. A., Akhirudin, M. T., & others. (2026). Social media as a tool for Islamic dawah in the digital era: Analyzing the benefits and obstacles. Dinamika Penelitian: Media Komunikasi Penelitian Sosial Keagamaan, *26*(1), 1–14.
Berkovich, I., & Eyal, O. (2017). The mediating role of principals' transformational leadership behaviors in promoting teachers' emotional wellness at work. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 45(2), 316–335. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143215617947
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2019). Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 11(4), 589–597. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676X.2019.1628806
Bryman, A. (2007). Effective leadership in higher education: A literature review. Studies in Higher Education, 32(6), 693–710. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075070701685114
De Dreu, C. K. W., & Gelfand, M. J. (2018). The psychology of conflict and conflict management in organizations. Routledge.
De Wit, F. R. C., Greer, L. L., & Jehn, K. A. (2012). The paradox of intragroup conflict: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97(2), 360–390. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0024844
Hallinger, P. (2018). Bringing context out of the shadows of leadership. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 46(1), 5–24. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143216670652
Idham, I., Rokimin, R., Akhirudin, M. T., Zh, M. H. R., & Thaariq, Z. Z. A. (2026). The application of deep learning in enhancing the effectiveness of Islamic religious education curriculum in madrasahs. Management of Education: Jurnal Manajemen Pendidikan Islam, *12*(1), 34–48.
Manaf, S., & Rokimin, R. (2025). Manajemen kepemimpinan kepala sekolah dalam meningkatkan kecerdasan emosional siswa. Jurnal Manajemen Pendidikan, *10*(2), 509–518.
Hempsall, K. (2014). Developing leadership in higher education: Perspectives from the USA, the UK and Australia. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 36(4), 383–394. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2014.916468
Hobfoll, S. E. (2018). Conservation of resources theory: Its implication for stress, health, and resilience. In The Oxford Handbook of Stress, Health, and Coping (pp. 127–147). Oxford University Press.
Kezar, A., & Holcombe, E. (2017). Shared leadership in higher education: Important lessons from research and practice. American Council on Education.
Khan, H., Rehmat, M., Butt, T. H., Farooqi, S., & Asim, J. (2020). Impact of transformational leadership on work performance, burnout and social loafing: A mediation model. Future Business Journal, 6(1), 40. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43093-020-00043-8
O'Neill, T. A., McLarnon, M. J. W., Hoffart, G. C., Woodley, H. J. R., & Allen, N. J. (2018). The structure and function of team conflict state profiles. Journal of Management, 44(2), 811–836. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206315581662
Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., et al. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, 372, n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71
Pakurár, M., Haddad, H., Nagy, J., Popp, J., & Oláh, J. (2019). The service quality dimensions that affect customer satisfaction in the Jordanian banking sector. Sustainability, 11(4), 1113. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11041113
Pondy, L. R. (1967). Organizational conflict: Concepts and models. Administrative Science Quarterly, 12(2), 296–320.
Rahim, M. A. (2017). Managing conflict in organizations (4th ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203786482
Saeed, T., Almas, S., Anis-ul-Haq, M., & Niazi, G. S. K. (2014). Leadership styles: Relationship with conflict management styles. International Journal of Conflict Management, 25(3), 214–225. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCMA-12-2012-0091
Salmi, J. (2017). The tertiary education imperative: Knowledge, skills and values for development. Sense Publishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6351-070-3
Schein, E. H. (2017). Organizational culture and leadership (5th ed.). Wiley.
Snyder, H. (2019). Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines. Journal of Business Research, 104, 333–339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.039
Sun, J., & Henderson, A. D. (2017). Transformational leadership and organizational processes: Influencing public performance. Public Administration Review, 77(4), 554–565. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.12654
Tight, M. (2019). Higher education research: The developing field. Bloomsbury Academic.
Tjosvold, D., Wong, A. S. H., & Chen, N. Y. F. (2014). Constructively managing conflicts in organizations. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1(1), 545–568. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091306
Asbari, M., Santoso, P. B., & Purwanto, A. (2020). Pengaruh kepemimpinan transformasional dan iklim organisasi terhadap kinerja dosen. Jurnal Ilmiah Manajemen Edukasi, 5(2), 142–158.
Mulyasa, E. (2018). Manajemen dan kepemimpinan kepala sekolah dalam menghadapi era revolusi industri 4.0. Jurnal Manajemen Pendidikan, 9(2), 145–157.
Sutrisno, E., & Yuniarsih, T. (2019). Manajemen konflik dan kualitas pelayanan publik di perguruan tinggi negeri. Jurnal Administrasi Pendidikan, 26(1), 88–99.
Wahyudi, A. (2017). Kepemimpinan transformatif dan budaya organisasi dalam meningkatkan kinerja perguruan tinggi. Jurnal Manajemen dan Kewirausahaan, 19(1), 22–31.
Yulianti, P., Tanjung, A. R., & Iskandar, D. (2021). Pengaruh kepemimpinan transformasional terhadap kualitas pelayanan akademik di perguruan tinggi. Jurnal Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan, 6(1), 55–70.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Muhammad Mamduh Nuruddin, Sita Husnul Khotimah, Muhammad Iman Kurniawan, Mohamad Gally Tawakal
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
