Leadership Characteristics and Formation: Correlation With Individual Spirituality, Workplace Spirituality and Organizational Commitment Within Catholic Healthcare

Abstract

This quantitative study examined levels of individual spirituality, workplace spirituality, and organizational commitment among a purposive sample of leaders working in Catholic healthcare. Data were collected through a cross-sectional survey (N = 143) addressing five research questions. Most respondents (n = 110, 76.9%) had participated in up to three Catholic leadership formation programs, while a minority (n = 33, 23.1%) had not attended any formation programming. Participants’ years of service ranged from 1 to more than 25 years, and annual base salaries ranged from $50,000 to over $300,000. Distributions of spirituality and organizational commitment scores deviated from normality, and median scores differed between formation and non-formation leaders, indicating variation in the integration of leadership formation. Effect size analyses showed small but positive differences in median scores among leaders who had participated in at least one formation program compared to those who had not (ƞ² = .01). Incremental increases in median scores were also observed relative to the number of formation sessions attended (ƞ² = .002–.01), years since completing formation (ƞ² = .01–.08), years of service (ƞ² = .01–.03), and pay grade (ƞ² = .01). Based on these findings, a Participation–Access–Continuity leadership formation approach is proposed to support more consistent formation integration across Catholic healthcare. The solution expands participation to leadership; increases access through ongoing, developmentally sequenced formation opportunities; and emphasizes continuity to sustain spiritually grounded and committed leadership behaviors. Keywords: leadership formation; Catholic healthcare; individual spirituality; workplace spirituality; organizational commitment