Leadership Style of Principals and Organisational Process in Secondary Schools

Abstract

The study investigates the relationship between leadership style of principals and organisational process in secondary schools and identifies effective leadership styles in the context of Hong Kong. The study is based on a survey involving 64 secondary schools and 627 teachers. Leadership style was measured in terms of relationship and initiating structure; organisational process was measured in terms of teacher‐teacher interactions, principal‐teacher inter‐actions, and perceived organisational effectiveness. MANOVA, ANOVA and t‐test were used to analyse the data. The results support the traditional belief that there is a strong relationship of leadership to organisational process. Among the four leadership styles, the “high relationship and high initiating structure” type seems to be most effective in terms of interpersonal interactions and perceived organisational effectiveness. The profiles of the four leadership styles are quite different, giving a helpful pattern for administrative practice. The results of the follow‐up case study deepen our understanding of the main study findings and the complex relationship between leadership and organisational process.