week4: 1) summary of a quantitative research article 2) Quantitative Data Collection Instrument

QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH ARTICLE ABSTRACT ASSIGNMENT 4.1 1

Bibliographic Citation

Atasoy, R. (2020). The relationship between school principals’ leadership styles, school

culture and organizational change. International Journal of Progressive Education,

16(5), 256-274.

https://web.s.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4&sid=b54f9890-511f-

46a0-b3d1-f63d3ae25cc2%40redis

Author

Dr. Ramazan Atasoy, Mamak District of National Education Directorate, Turkey Ministry of

National Education

Research Concern

In the post-Covid era of quiet quitting, massive teacher shortages, and unprecedented job

dissatisfaction among educators, school systems and educational organizations have to take a

hard look at organizational changes that must be made in order to recruit and retain teachers.

Lowering the standards to a pathway to certification is a short-term, and short-sighted, fix. The

number one reason most teachers give for leaving the classroom is lack of pay, the number two

reason is lack of respect or satisfaction on the job. The culture of a company is the most

significant contributor to the satisfaction of the employees who work there, and it is logical to

assume that the culture is closely tied to the leadership style of the organization head. This study

sought to quantify the impact that a transformational leader can have on the culture of the school

as well as the attitudes of the employees during a period of organizational change. The

assumption was that a transformational leader would have a significant positive impact, and the

data proved that to be true. It went on to indicate that a transformational leader has a

significantly higher impact on positive culture than a transactional leader, and that only

transformational leaders can hope to actually mitigate negative feelings or opposition when an

organization is experiencing significant changes.

Purpose

The purpose of the research was to measure the relationship between leadership styles of school

leaders on school culture and teacher attitudes during organizational changes.

Precedent Literature

The literature reviewed for this study focuses on understanding the meaning of the concepts that

will be explored in the data (Joseph, 2020). The definitions of transformational and transactional

leadership and their similarities and differences (Arnold, 2023). The study centers around Bass’s

leadership model (1985), and seeks to determine how the transformational leader empowers

teachers and taps into their critical thinking, problem solving, and creative thinking skills in

order to inspire them to give their all to the organization and to help to achieve the mission and

vision of the school. Transformational leaders build teams and coalitions (Smith, 2021; Jason,

2023, Marshall, 2029) . Transactional leaders use the carrot and the stick. While that might be

QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH ARTICLE ABSTRACT ASSIGNMENT 4.1 2

effective in the short term, that strategy does not help to improve school culture or teacher

satisfaction or morale.

Other literature reviewed included research that helped deepen the understanding of the concept

of school culture. Not only does a school culture relate to the “norms, values, beliefs,

ceremonies, rituals, traditions, and myths” (Bass, 1985, p. 258) of a school community, it also

has to do with the attitudes of the teachers and the students in the actual schools. A

transformational leader can help to create a culture where the teachers and students are excited to

teach and learn, where they interact in a positive way, and where the members of the school

community have a sense of being in it together (Lesson, 2021; Alley, 2019). A good school

culture will have a positive impact on teacher satisfaction, student achievement, and staff

retention. A school leader has a direct impact on the culture of the school. The literature bears

that out. This study seeks to prove just how statistically significant the relationship is to school

culture.

Research Methodology

The research was set up to determine whether transformational leaders were more effective at

leading through organizational change than transactional leaders. Approximately 2171

secondary school teachers were surveyed during the 2019-20 school year and it was determined

that a sampling of 327 would be enough to meet the standard of 95% of the population. Of the

2171 teachers surveyed, 382 completed surveys were assessed as being complete and usable –

well over the 327 required for significance. The data was collected using three collection tools

including the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ), School Culture Survey (SCS), and

the Organizational Change Management Scale (OCMS) after receiving permission from each of

the developers.

Data was collected in the fall of the year. Each instrument took around 15 minutes to complete.

Any incomplete surveys were eliminated. All data collection was done on a voluntary basis, and

the appropriate permissions were obtained and anonymity assurances were made.

Instrumentation

The MLQ is a survey given to leaders and their employees that determines the leadership style

by a series of 14 questions about how principals react to certain situations or deal with issues.

Each question is answered by choosing a rating on a Likert scale of strongly agree to strongly

disagree which are given numeric values of 1-5. Once all of the answers are tabulated, the total

score determines leadership style depending on where it falls on the overall rating scale.

Principals answer the questions about themselves, and teachers answer the questions about their

principals. All of that data is then used to determine the leadership style of the principal.

The SCS is another survey consisting of 29 questions that measure issues relating to task-

oriented, support-oriented, bureaucratic, and success-oriented factors in the school. The study

selected 10 of the 29 questions with at least 2 from each measured factor. Like the MLQ, the

questions are set on a Likert scale rating of strongly agree to strongly disagree and are

respondents are given aggregate scores based on the numeric values of their answers to the

questions.

QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH ARTICLE ABSTRACT ASSIGNMENT 4.1 3

Finally, the OCMS has 67 items, of which the study used 12. The items measure organizational

change during all of its stages – determining, preparing, implementing, evaluating. The

researchers chose three questions from each stage of organizational change.

Findings

Ultimately, the study sought to link leadership style with successful organizational change, and it

did. What it discovered was that the link is school culture. When a transformational leader has

built a school culture that recognizes and celebrates teacher success, achievement, autonomy,

and decision making, that leader can create an atmosphere where change doesn’t seem daunting

or negative or punitive. Many employees see changes as a direct attack on them personally or on

their work. Teachers are especially prone to this kind of thinking because so much of their work

is by its very nature personal. The teacher is the personality in the classroom who determines the

lessons and what will be presented and how. If the principal is seeking to change how things are

done in the classrooms, that can often come across as a personal attack. That is particularly true

when that change comes down from a transactional style leader – change to this, or else. A

transformational leader, makes teachers feel like they are part of the team. No one is singled out.

Everyone is going to try this new way or this change because it will make them ALL better.

That is what kind of culture they build through careful decision making and

recognition/celebration of success. The study bore that out. A transformational leader who

builds a strong school culture where teachers feel valued and successful, creates a situation

where negative attitudes toward change are mitigated (not eliminated).

The hypothesis that a transformational leader will be able to mediate between the staff and

change more successfully than a transactional leader was proven to have statistical significance.

Though transactional leaders also show ability to partially mediate between the determining,

preparing, and implementing stages, ONLY the transformational leader can fully mediate during

the evaluative stage. The evidence was pretty clear.

Conclusions

The results show that school culture plays a strong role in whether institutional change can be

successful. And school culture starts with the principal. A transformational leader can create a

culture that will embrace necessary changes for the good of the institution and especially for the

people the organization serves (in this case students). Understanding the relationship between

leadership style, culture, and successful change is the key to implementing much needed changes

in schools across all demographics and cultures. Essentially, a transactional leader can effect

school change, but a transformational leader can effect organizational change and make everyone

happy they did it. That is the difference between the change being successful and sustained.

Suggestions for Further Research

What comes out of this study is a powerful call to action for school leadership to grow and

develop transformational leaders and then put them in places where significant change needs to

occur. Research into how to develop the kind of leaders that are needed and to put them into the

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right positions can help to determine next steps for many school boards and district leadership

teams. Mapping out where the most structural and systemic changes need to be made can also

help to position leaders in places where they will have the most significant impacts.