Do Jamaican Principals' Leadership Styles Correlate to Violence in School?

Abstract

The increase of violence among young people in the high school environment has become a concern among parents and educators alike. A study was designed to address whether there is a relationship between the leadership styles of principals and violence in secondary schools in rural Jamaica. Based on a correlational design survey of 414 teachers from 61 schools in five parishes, seven leadership styles were correlated with the amount of violence at each school. The result showed that there was a statistically significant positive correlation (r = 0.88) at the p < .05 level was observed in autocratic leadership in the Parish of St. Ann. A moderate significant correlation was recorded in St. Catherine in democratic leadership (r = -52) at the level of p < 0.01.