Identifying and Analyzing Transformational Leadership Dimensions of Elementary School Principals with a Structural Equation Modeling Approach

Abstract

Purpose: In the era of rapid and complex changes of educational systems, the role of transformational leadership of principals in promoting innovation and effectiveness is of great importance. Therefore, the aim of the present research was identifying and analyzing transformational leadership dimensions of elementary school principals with a structural equation modeling approach.

Methodology: This research was a descriptive from type of correlation. The research population consisted of all elementary school principals of Tehran province with number 2500 people, and the sample size based on the Cochran formula was calculated 333 people, which was selected using a multi-stage cluster sampling method. To collect data were used a demographic information form and a researcher-made questionnaire of transformational leadership of elementary school principals. The data in this research were analyzed using structural equation modeling in SPSS-25 and Smart PLS-3 software.

Findings: The results of this study indicated that transformational leadership of elementary school principals had 14 dimensions including ideal influence, personal characteristics, inspiration, creating a shared vision, inspiring motivation, encouraging to innovation and creativity, intellectual stimulation, accepting individual differences, individual attention, individual coaching and counseling, creating a culture of trust and respect, empowering employees, encouraging to organizational learning, and managing change and transformation, which the convergent validity of all of them based on the average variance extracted was higher than 0.50, and the reliability of all of them based on Cronbach's alpha and a combined coefficients was higher than 0.70. Also, the transformational leadership model of elementary school principals had a good fit, and in this model, inspiration had a direct and significant effect on all dimensions (P<0.05).

Conclusion: The results of this study in the field of transformational leadership of elementary school principals can help educational administrators and policymakers in formulating leadership development programs and promoting the quality of elementary school management. For this purpose, they can utilize the identified dimensions in this study for transformational leadership and pave the way for school improvement.