Teacher attitudes of principal leadership practices : teachers hired by the principal vs. teachers inherited

The purpose of this study was to examine teachers' perceptions of middle school principals' leadership practices. The researcher specifically examined whether teachers hired under the current principal perceived the principal's leadership practices differently than teachers who were already at the school when the principal was hired. Kouzes and Posner's Leadership Practices Inventory On-line was used to determine whether there was a difference between group perceptions.Thirty-eight principals who were members of the Indiana Middle Level Education Association participated in the study (41 % of principal members). Survey data was collected using the LPI-Online. Principals responded to the 30 item LPI-Online Self. Teachers responded to the LPI-Online Observer. Principals distinguished teachers hired from teachers who were already at the institution when the principal was hired.A statistically significant difference (p < .05) was found between the perceptions of the hired and inherited groups on three of the five leadership practices: Challenging the process, enabling others to act and encouraging the heart. There was no statistically significant difference in principal and hired teachers' perceptions, or between principal and inherited teachers on subscales inspiring a shared vision and modeling the way.Based on the findings from this study, the researcher suggested there are important dynamics involved in the changing of team members, especially the principal during times of school change initiatives. Based on the findings from this study the researcher concluded principals and hired teachers tend to exhibit a more positive interpersonal relationship than the principal and inherited teachers.