The Servant Leadership Questionnaire (SLQ)
The Servant Leadership Questionnaire (SLQ) by (Liden, et al., 2008) is a 28-item scale that measures
seven major dimensions of servant leadership: conceptualizing, emotional healing, putting followers first,
helping followers grow and succeed, behaving ethically, empowering, and creating value for the
community. Using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, Liden et al. established the multiple
dimensions of this scale and described how it is uniquely different from other leadership measures. By
completing the SLQ you will gain an understanding of how servant leadership is measured and explore
where you stand on the different dimensions of servant leadership. Servant leadership is a complex
process, and taking the SLQ is one way to discover the dynamics of how it works.
Instructions: Select two people who know you in a leadership capacity such as a coworker, fellow group
member, or follower. Make two copies of this questionnaire and give a copy to each individual you have
chosen or email it to them. Using the following 7-point scale, ask them to indicate the extent to which they
agree or disagree with the following statements as they pertain to your leadership. “He/She” is referring to
you in a leadership capacity.
Key: 1 = Strongly disagree 2 = Disagree somewhat 3 = Disagree 4 = Undecided
5 = Agree somewhat 6 = Agree 7 = Strongly agree
1. Others would seek help from him/her if they had a personal problem.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
2. He/She emphasizes the importance of giving back to the community.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
3. He/She can tell if something work related is going wrong.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
4. He/She gives others the responsibility to make important decisions
about their own jobs.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
5. He/She makes others’ career development a priority.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
6. He/She cares more about others’ success than his/her own.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
7. He/She holds high ethical standards.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8. He/She cares about others’ personal well-being.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
9. He/She is always interested in helping people in the community.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
10. He/She is able to think through complex problems.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
11. He/She encourages others to handle important work decisions on their
own.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
12. He/She is interested in making sure others reach their career goals.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
13. He/She puts others’ best interests above his/her own.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
14. He/She is always honest.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
15. He/She takes time to talk to others on a personal level.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
16. He/She is involved in community activities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
17. He/She has a thorough understanding of the organization and its
goals.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
18. He/She gives others the freedom to handle difficult situations in the
way they feel is best.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
19. He/She provides others with work experiences that enables them to
develop new skills.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
20. He/She sacrifices his/her own interests to meet others’ needs.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
21. He/She would not compromise ethical principles in order to meet
success.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
22. He/She can recognize when others are feeling down without asking
them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
23. He/She encourages others to volunteer in the community.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
24. He/She can solve work problems with new or creative ideas.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
25. If others need to make important decisions at work, they do no need to
consult him/her.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
26. He/She wants to know about others’ career goals.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
27. He/She does what he/she can to make others’ jobs easier.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
28. He/She values honesty more than profits.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Sc
oring
Using the questionnaires on which others assessed you leadership, take the separate scores for each
item, add them together, and divide that sum by two. This will give you the average score for that item.
For example, if Person A assessed you at 4 for Item 2, and Person B marked you as a 6, you score for
Item 2 would be 5. Once you have averaged each item’s scores, use the following steps to complete the
scoring of the questionnaire.
1. Add up the scores on 1, 8, 15, and 22. This is your score for emotional healing.
2. Add up the scores for 2, 9, 16, and 23. This is your score for creating value for the community.
3. Add up the scores for 3, 10, 17, and 24. This is your score for conceptual skills.
4. Add up the scores for 4, 11, 18, and 25. This is your score for empowering.
5. Add up the scores for 5, 12, 19, and 26. This is your score for helping subordinates grow an
d
s
ucceed.
6. Add up the scores for 6, 13, 19, and 27. This is your score for putting subordinates first.
7. Add up the scores for 7, 14, 20, and 28. This is your score for behaving ethically.
Li
den, R.C., Wayne, S.J. Zhao, H., & Henderson, D. (2008). Servant leadership: Development of a
multidimensional measure and multi-level assessment. Leadership Quarterly, 19, 161-177.
Scoring Worksheet
Person 1:
Emotional
healing
Creating
value for
the
community
Conceptual
skills
Empowering
subordinates
grow and
subordinates
first
Behaving
ethically
1.
2.
3.
4.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
28.
Total:
Total:
Total:
Total:
Total:
Person 2:
Emotional
healing
Creating
value for
the
community
Conceptual
skills
Empowering
subordinates
grow and
subordinates
first
Behaving
ethically
1.
2.
3.
4.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
28.
Total:
Total:
Total:
Total:
Total:
Average Score:
Emotional
healing
Creating
value for
the
community
Conceptual
skills
Empowering
subordinates
grow and
subordinates
first
Behaving
ethically
1.
2.
3.
4.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
28.
Total:
Total:
Total:
Total:
Total:
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0