Invitational Leadership

Abstract

The quality of adult relationships within a school has more to do withthe quality and character of the school and with the accomplishmentsof students than any other factor. (Barth, 1990, p.163)This study focused on invitational practices of principals and thecorrelation between a principal’s inviting behaviors and teachers’ perceptions.It was hypothesized that there was a positive correlation betweena principal’s actions and teacher affective outcomes such as feelingsof trust, respect, job satisfaction, and perceived principaleffectiveness. The principal-teacher relationship was studied in an effortto elucidate the importance of positive human interaction in educationalsettings.A thorough review of the literature on the subject of InvitationalEducation from 1970 through 1991 revealed that little had been writtenon the application of Invitational Theory to administrative practices.Although Purkey and Warters (1986), Common (1983, 1984, 1985),Chambers (1983), and Cogar (1987) addressed the subject and offeredsuggestions for the application of Invitational Theory to the administrationof schools, Invitational Leadership was not a primary focus of thefounders and followers of Invitational Education.