VIRTUAL LEADERSHIP AND EMPLOYEE VOICE BEHAVIOUR IN DEPOSIT MONEY BANKS IN RIVERS STATE

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between virtual leadership and employee voice behaviour in deposit money banks in Rivers State, Nigeria. Deposit money banks increasingly rely on digital communication systems, virtual work platforms, and technology-driven management practices to improve coordination, service delivery, and operational efficiency. However, greater dependence on virtual interactions has raised concerns about leadership effectiveness, employee participation, communication, and organisational trust. Virtual leadership was measured using digital communication effectiveness and virtual trust building, while employee voice behaviour was measured using promotive voice behaviour and upward voice behaviour. The study was anchored on the Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) Theory. A correlational research design was adopted, and data were collected from employees of selected deposit money banks in Rivers State, Nigeria. The population comprised 650 employees selected from 10 deposit money banks operating in Rivers State, Nigeria, with a sample size of 248 determined using the Taro Yamane formula. A total of 248 questionnaires (100%) were distributed, 235 (94.76%) were successfully retrieved, while 13 (5.24%) were not returned. No questionnaire was invalid, resulting in 235 valid questionnaires (94.76%) used for the analysis. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMCC) at a 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that digital communication effectiveness and virtual trust building have strong positive and statistically significant relationships with promotive and upward voice behaviour. The study concludes that effective virtual leadership enhances employee voice behaviour and recommends strengthening digital communication, fostering virtual trust, and promoting supportive leadership practices to encourage employees to express constructive ideas and workplace concerns.