Exploring a New Cocktail Mix in Cyprus: School Principals’ Epistemological Beliefs and Leadership Styles

Abstract

In this chapter, an exploration of a new cocktail leadership mix among school principals’ epistemological beliefs and leadership practices in Cyprus is undertaken. The main objective of this chapter is to explore the relationship between the leadership styles school principals adopt and their epistemological worldviews within the contextual and governance structures in which they operate. To achieve this goal, a presentation and discussion of the results of the Pro-LEAD main study (methodology was described in Chap. 3) is offered. Again, as with the LISA study, the Pashiardis-Brauckmann Holistic Leadership Framework was utilized as the guiding model through which the relationship between school leaders’ epistemological beliefs and their leadership styles were explored. In summary, the findings showed that there was a relationship between the Entrepreneurial and Participative Leadership Styles and the Relativism Epistemological Worldviews. The practical applications of these results are discussed specifically with regard to their implications for the design of evidence-based school leadership training programs.