Transformational leadership: Analysis of gender leadership and perceptions of mandated school reform

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine transformational leadership and the perceptions of male and female middle or junior high school principals and teachers regarding mandated school reform within the state of Indiana. One hundred and five schools were included in this research. Data were gathered from principals and teachers using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (Form 5x-Short) developed by Bernard Bass and Bruce Avolio. Respondents were asked to complete a two-column survey based on leadership characteristics he or she perceived a principal ought to exhibit and leadership characteristics he or she perceived a principal actually exhibited. Three main hypotheses were identified to explore the perceptions of principals, teachers, and between four subgroups: male principals, female principals, male teachers, and female teachers. The first set of hypotheses explored transformational leadership characteristics the principal ought to exhibit. The second set of hypotheses characteristics the principal actually exhibits. The third set of hypotheses explored characteristics the principal actually exhibits compared to those the principal ought to exhibit. Ancillary questions explored issues of experience as well as knowledge and belief of mandated school reform. Gender, position, and the interaction between gender and position were examined. It was found that there were no significant differences in the perception of transformational leadership characteristics between male and female principals and male and female teachers. Gender did not have an effect on the perceptions of transformational leadership in regard to mandated school reform. There were significant differences in the perceptions of teachers and principals. Principals and teachers perceive the importance of transformational leadership. Principals, however, have higher expectations than teachers in regard to transformational leadership characteristics the principal ought to exhibit. The same is true for transformational leadership characteristics the principal actually exhibits and the transformational leadership characteristics the principal actually exhibits compared to what the principal ought to exhibit. Men and women principals have leadership styles specific to their gender but when exploring transformational leadership characteristics and mandated school reform there is no difference in gender perceptions. The attainment of effective leadership skills rather than the gender of the leader will help facilitate school improvement efforts