Samian

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Proactive work behavior is crucial for innovation and the quality of higher education; however, studies on social contextual factors remain limited. This study aims to examine the role of psychological empowerment as a mechanism linking contextual factors, such as coworker support and initiative-oriented team climate, to proactive work behavior among faculty members. Using a cross-sectional online survey, primary data were collected from May to July 2025 among 203 active faculty members at various universities in Indonesia (M = 40.42; 75.4% female) and analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) via path analysis in Mplus. The initial saturated model indicated that coworker support (β = 0.072; p = 0.406) and initiative team climate (β = 0.060; p = 0.446) did not have a significant direct effect on proactive work behavior. The final parsimonious model (χ²/df = 1.254; p = 0.286; RMSEA = 0.035; CFI = 0.993; TLI = 0.982; SRMR = 0.042) indicates that psychological empowerment directly influences proactive work behavior (β = 0.498; p < 0.001). Moreover, psychological empowerment was found to be an “indirect-only” statistical mediator of the effect of coworker support (β = 0.113; p = 0.009) and initiative team climate (β = 0.091; p = 0.028) on proactive work behavior, with total variances (R-squared) of 13.1% and 24.8%, respectively. Ultimately, higher education institutions must design systems of coworker support and a collaborative team climate that foster psychological empowerment, as contextual resources will not lead to proactive actions unless faculty members feel psychologically empowered.