Cultural Adaptation of Headmasters' Transformational Leadership Scale and a Study on Teachers' Perceptions

Abstract

Problem Statement: Transformational leadership increases organization members' commitment and engagement in meeting organizational goals and it enhances skills and capacities. Many studies reveal that transformational leadership behaviors, such as idealized influence, inspirational motivation, individualized consideration, innovative climate, and intellectual stimulation; are positively related to better performance and increased job satisfaction. It is considered that since managers of the future will be transformational leaders, they should be trained as transformational leaders.

Purpose of the Study: The main purpose of this study is to introduce usability of the Cross-Cultural Adaptation of Headmasters' Transformational Leadership Scale. It also purposes to discover headmasters' behaviors based on teachers' perceptions.

Methods: In this study, a descriptive statistical model was employed, and 822 teachers participated in the Malatya (n=442) and Adiyaman (n=380) provinces. The sample of this study was chosen by a purposive sampling method. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was employed to obtain evidence related to construct validity of the scale, and it administered on 330 primary schools teachers in Mardin. For Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), it was administered to 390 teachers in Adiyaman, Turkey.

Findings and Results: After EFA and CFA processes, it was proven that this scale is valid and usable for the Turkish context. As a result of the reliability and validity processes, the adapted form of the scale was composed of 23 items. Item sub-factor correlation was between 0.78 and 0.90, and item total correlation was between 0.61 and 0.80. Cronbach value was found to be 0.96. Other values found were 0.87 for vision building; 0.88 for individual consideration; 0.92 for intellectual consideration; and 0.91 for the innovative climate sub-dimension. As a result, it was discovered that 61.22% of the teachers remarked that their headmasters provided participation for vision building; 72.02% stated that their individual consideration were valued; and 65.07% claimed that their individual stimulation was supported. Finally, 80% asserted that they were encouraged for an innovative climate in their organizations.

Conclusion and Recommendations: Results reveal that teachers' perceptions about their headmasters' transformational leadership behaviors are positive in vision building, individual consideration, intellectual stimulation, and innovative climate. They perceive their headmasters' leadership qualities and communicative skills positively. It is recommended that headmasters who are incompetent should be trained carefully through in-service programs.