Unveiling Employee Moral Voice in Vietnam’s Public Sector: An Integration of Ethical Leadership and Behavioral Integrity

This study presents a groundbreaking exploration of the nexus between Ethical Leadership (ETL) and Moral Voice (MV) in Vietnam’s public sector, a context that has been underexplored in existing literature. It specifically examines the mediating roles of Public Service Motivation (PSM), Person-Organization Value Congruence (POV), and the moderating role of Behavioral Integrity (BI). This research is significant as it addresses the gap in understanding how ETL influences MV through these specific mediating and moderating mechanisms. Utilizing Self-Determination Theory (SDT), Social Learning Theory (SLT), and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) on data from 434 employees, using a cluster sampling method, in Tien Giang Province, Vietnam, the study reveals that ETL significantly impacts MV, with PSM and POV serving as partial mediators. Notably, this research pioneers in investigating the sequential mediating effects of POV and PSM, as well as the moderating effect of BI in the ETL-MV link. The work’s contribution lies in its comprehensive examination of the interplay of PSM, POV, and BI in the relationship between ETL and MV within the public sector in Vietnam. This provides both theoretical advancement in leadership studies and practical insights for enhancing ethical behavior and moral courage in public organizations.