Transformational Leadership and Employee Turnover Intention in Private Hospitals in Kenya: A Case of The Nairobi Hospital

Abstract

High employee turnover in private hospitals will continue to pose a significant challenge to healthcare delivery systems globally, with private hospitals in Nairobi expected to experience acute staffing instabilities that will compromise both patient care quality and organizational effectiveness. This study investigated the influence of transformational leadership on employee turnover intention in private hospitals in Kenya: A case of The Nairobi Hospital. The study was grounded in transformational leadership theory, focusing on four key dimensions: Idealized Influence, Inspirational Motivation, Intellectual Stimulation, and Individualized Consideration, as critical leadership behaviours influencing employee outcomes. Social Identity Theory served as the anchor framework, explaining how employees developed psychological attachment to their organizations through leader-follower relationships. A stratified random sampling technique was used to select 333 participants from a target population of 1,964 employees across three divisions: Clinical (490), Nursing (785), and non-clinical (689), with proportional allocation yielding 83, 133, and 117 participants, respectively. Primary data was collected through semi-structured questionnaires, using a five-point Likert scale to capture perceptions. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics and inferential statistics in terms of correlation analysis and multiple regression modeling using SPSS version 28.0. It was preceded by diagnostic testing to ensure compliance with assumptions of normality, linearity, and homoscedasticity. The study revealed a significant negative relationship between transformational leadership and turnover intention, with all four dimensions, Idealized Influence, Inspirational Motivation, Intellectual Stimulation, and Individualized Consideration, predicting reduced turnover intention. Organizational commitment demonstrated a significant moderating effect, strengthening the inverse relationship. The overall model was expected to explain a substantial portion of the variance in turnover intention. These findings contributed to leadership literature by offering empirical evidence from the Kenyan healthcare context and provided practical insights for hospital administrators aiming to enhance employee retention through targeted leadership development and organizational commitment strategies. The study findings revealed a positive and statistically significant relationship. The research also concluded that effective transformational leadership fosters trust and commitment. Finally, the research recommends the adoption of strategies that promote intellectual stimulation among employees, like encouraging team members to be creative and innovative.