Semester Award Granted

Summer 2025

Submission Date

August 2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Ira Bogotch

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between servant leadership characteristics and church growth in Episcopal congregations. Using quantitative analysis, the research assessed whether leadership characteristics—such as emotional healing, creating value for the community, conceptual skills, empowering followers, helping followers succeed, putting followers first, and behaving ethically—were significant predictors of numerical growth. Data were collected from 40 churches (20 growing, 20 declining), with leadership perceptions measured through a validated servant leadership instrument.

The findings indicate that while growing churches exhibited slightly higher mean scores across several servant leadership characteristics, none of the differences were statistically significant. Logistic regression analysis further demonstrated that no individual leadership characteristic significantly predicted church growth at the p < .05 level. These results suggest that church expansion may be influenced more by external factors—such as congregational engagement, denominational policies, and regional demographics—than by leadership characteristics alone.

This study contributes to church leadership research and servant leadership theory by highlighting the complexity of leadership effectiveness in faith-based organizations. The findings reinforce the need for a context-dependent approach to leadership, where contextual, cultural, and structural factors are considered alongside leadership behaviors. Given the lack of statistically significant findings, future research should incorporate qualitative methods to explore how servant leadership manifests in different congregational settings and whether leadership practices align with broader church growth strategies.

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