Abstract

The purpose of this study is to analyze the influence of authentic leadership on creativity, organizational support, and work engagement, as well as the effects of teacher creativity and organizational support on work engagement, and the mediating role of organizational support and teacher creativity in the relationship between authentic leadership and work involvement in public middle schools in Kendari City. This research is based on the theory that authentic leadership can positively influence employee creativity, organizational support, and work engagement, and that teacher creativity and organizational support can also impact work engagement. Furthermore, it is hypothesized that organizational support and teacher creativity mediate the relationship between authentic leadership and work involvement. This study used a quantitative research design with a sample of 256 public junior high school teachers in Kendari City. The data was collected through surveys and analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results showed that authentic leadership has a positive and significant effect on creativity, organizational support, and work involvement, while teacher creativity had no significant effect on work involvement. Organizational support has a positive and significant effect on work involvement and teacher creativity. The study also found that authentic leadership has a positive and significant effect on work involvement mediated by organizational support and teacher creativity. This study provides insights into the importance of authentic leadership, organizational support, and teacher creativity in promoting work engagement and creativity among teachers in public middle schools. The findings can be used by school administrators to develop effective leadership and support strategies to improve work engagement and creativity among teachers. This study contributes to the existing literature on authentic leadership and work engagement by examining the mediating role of teacher creativity and organizational support in the relationship between authentic leadership and work involvement in public middle schools in Kendari City.