Local Cultural Values as a Foundation of Ethical Leadership: A Quantitative-Driven Mixed Methods Study

Abstract

This study examines the role of local cultural values as a moral foundation of ethical leadership in higher education, particularly at Universitas Baliem Papua, Indonesia. It was motivated by the growing recognition that leadership ethics cannot be separated from the cultural environment in which it operates. In regions where leadership is deeply intertwined with indigenous traditions and communal harmony, such as Papua, understanding the intersection between culture and ethics is crucial for building sustainable academic integrity and moral governance. The study employed a quantitative-driven, mixed-methods approach with a sequential explanatory design. The quantitative phase involved a survey of 150 respondents, including university leaders, lecturers, staff, and students. The data from this phase were analyzed using Pearson correlation and simple linear regression in SPSS 26.0. The qualitative phase involved 15 selected key informants who participated in in-depth interviews and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). The data were analyzed using NVivo 12 Plus through thematic coding. The quantitative findings revealed a strong and significant positive correlation between local cultural values and ethical leadership (r = 0.67, p < 0.01), with 45% of the variance in ethical leadership explained by perceptions of local cultural values. The qualitative results deepened this understanding, showing that ethical leaders in the Papuan context are perceived as open, fair, and sincere, and that cultural symbols, such as noken, embody collective responsibility and social solidarity. The study concludes that ethical leadership in Papua is inherently contextual and culture-based, rooted in communal values of harmony, fairness, and moral accountability.