Leadership Style, Village Apparatus Competence, And Village Government Performance: The Mediating Role Of Organizational Commitment In Kuningan Regency

Abstract

This study examines the influence of leadership style and village apparatus competence on village government performance, as well as the mediating role of organizational commitment. The study is motivated by the increasing demand for effective, accountable, and responsive village governance in supporting rural development and public service delivery. Despite substantial fiscal decentralization and village autonomy, variations in village government performance remain a critical challenge, highlighting the importance of leadership, competence, and organizational commitment as key determinants of organizational effectiveness. A causal quantitative approach was employed using data collected from 361 village apparatus members across 32 sub-districts in Kuningan Regency through proportionate random sampling. Data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling–Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS).The findings indicate that leadership style and village apparatus competence significantly enhance village government performance. Leadership style has a positive effect on performance (β = 0.332, p < 0.001), while competence also contributes positively (β = 0.286, p < 0.001). Furthermore, both variables significantly strengthen organizational commitment, which in turn positively influences performance (β = 0.365, p < 0.001). Organizational commitment was found to partially mediate the relationships between leadership style and performance (β = 0.182, p < 0.001) as well as competence and performance (β = 0.149, p < 0.001). The structural model demonstrates strong explanatory power, accounting for 86.8% of the variance in village government performance (R² = 0.868). This study contributes to the literature on public sector and village governance by identifying organizational commitment as a crucial mechanism through which leadership and competence improve performance outcomes. The findings suggest that efforts to strengthen village governance should integrate leadership development, competency enhancement, and organizational commitment-building initiatives to achieve sustainable improvements in governance quality, accountability, and public service effectiveness.