Leadership Effectiveness Among Healthcare Managers in Kazakhstan: A Cross-Sectional Study

<b>Background</b>: Leadership effectiveness is a key determinant of organizational performance in healthcare systems. Although leadership styles and emotional intelligence have been widely studied in high-income countries, limited empirical evidence exists within transitional healthcare systems such as Kazakhstan. This study assessed leadership effectiveness among healthcare managers in Kazakhstan and examined associations between leadership effectiveness, leadership styles, and emotional intelligence.<br /> <b>Methods:</b> A cross-sectional study was conducted between November 2024 and March 2025 among 77 healthcare managers from medical organizations in Astana and Almaty. Participants were selected using stratified random sampling across managerial levels. Leadership styles were measured using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire, emotional intelligence using the Emotional Competency Profiler, and leadership effectiveness using the Management Research Group framework. Reliability and content validity were confirmed. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analysis were performed to examine associations between leadership effectiveness and independent variables.<br /> <b>Results:</b> Among the 63 respondents who completed the survey, most reported moderate levels of effectiveness across all dimensions (creating vision, implementing vision, developing followership). Around 62-68% of participants rated their effectiveness as moderate, while approximately 22-33% reported as high. Implementing vision showed the lowest mean score (2.13). Correlation analysis showed that leadership effectiveness was positively associated with transformational (r = 0.45, p = 0.038) and transactional leadership (r = 0.54, p &lt; 0.001), as well as emotional intelligence (r = 0.57, p &lt; 0.001), with emotional intelligence suggesting the strongest relationship. In contrast, no significant association was observed for laissez- faire leadership (r = 0.2617, p = 0.1076).<br /> <b>Conclusion:</b> Leadership effectiveness among healthcare managers in Kazakhstan is positively associated with active leadership styles and emotional intelligence. Strengthening competencies related to vision implementation and emotional intelligence may support leadership development within ongoing healthcare reforms. Further research using larger and more diverse samples is warranted.