63 SERVANT LEADERSHIP IN NON-WESTERN SETTINGS leaders in a religious context. Similarly, the desire for Creating Value for the Community might have been higher in Chao’s study either due to the majority of participants coming from a Chinese background, which tends to be a collectivistic culture,29 or due to Christian emphasis on community.30 A higher desire among Liden, Wayne, Wu, and Liao’s participants for Empowering and Putting Followers First might be because these servant leadership behaviors are more appropriate in for-profit work contexts or because these servant leadership behaviors are viewed more favorably by Singaporeans than by Chinese Americans. The lower preference for Empowering in Chao’s study may be due to the higher power distance culture of Chinese heritage churches31 and overall Chinese culture.32 Several researchers concluded that servant leadership seemed to be applicable in their high power distance contexts, suggesting that the presence of high power distance does not preclude the implementation of servant leadership practices.33 However, other researchers claimed that power distance impacts followers’ willingness to accept servant leadership.34 Examining the individual dimensions of servant leadership rather than dichotomizing its usage broadly may especially benefit high power distance cultures in discerning which servant leadership practices may be effectively implemented in their contexts. The similar ratings for Helping Followers Grow and Succeed contrasted with the significant difference in ratings for Putting Followers First implies that some level of focus on followers is potentially desired universally. Given the definitions provided by Liden et al., support and mentorship are more universally desired than focusing on individuals’ work or ministry needs. Given how servant leadership emphasizes meeting and elevating followers’ needs,35 further research into the nuances of how followers appreciate being prioritized by servant leaders would help clarify what level of elevating followers’ needs and goals is more universally appreciated versus cultural-specific. Conclusion Although there was a significant difference in how participants rated their desire for Behaving Ethically, its presence at the top of both lists and mean scores above six on a seven-point Likert scale corroborate
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