Cultivating Future Student Leaders: Core Self‐Evaluation and Student Leadership Practices With the Mediating Role of Motivation to Lead

Quality leadership practices among university student leaders are imperative for ensuring proper discipline within universities and fostering the future career success of students. This study aims to explore the factors that influence leadership practices among university student leaders. Data were gathered through a multistage sampling method from student leaders across various universities in Anhui province, China, yielding a total of 637 responses for analysis. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was employed to analyse the data. The findings reveal that student leaders' core self‐evaluation is significantly associated with their leadership practices and motivation to lead. The study also supports a positive relationship between the motivation to lead and student leadership practices. The motivation to lead dimensions (affective identity‐, social‐normative‐, and non‐calculative motivation to lead) are significant mediators between core self‐evaluation and student leadership practices. The findings provided actionable insights for university authorities and policymakers in helping them understand how to effectively motivate student leaders to engage in leadership activities and thereby contribute to the enhancement of future student leadership practices.