Principal job satisfaction, distributed leadership, teacher-student relationships, and student achievement in Turkey: a multilevel mediated-effect model

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the relationship between principal job satisfaction, distributed leadership, teacher-student relationships, and student reading achievement in Turkey. Using school- and teacher-level data from the PISA 2018 and TALIS 2018, we conducted a mediated-effect with antecedent effect model, in which the construct of teacher-student relationships was proposed as the mediator of the effects of distributed leadership on student achievement, while principal job satisfaction was included as the antecedent of distributed leadership. The results confirmed the indirect effect of distributed leadership on student achievement through teacher-student relationships. We also found that principal job satisfaction exercised a positive and significant effect on the enactment of distributed leadership practices. This study adds evidence to the international literature suggesting that principal job satisfaction is an important mechanism for distributed leadership practices and that the execution of such practices improves student achievement by promoting teacher-student relationships. Implications for policy, practice, and research are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• distributed leadership
• principal job satisfaction
• teacher
• student
• teacher-student relationships

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ali Çağatay Kılınç

Ali Çağatay Kılınç is currently working as a professor of educational administration in the Faculty of Letters, Department of Educational Sciences, Karabuk University, Karabuk, Turkey. His research focuses are school leadership, school improvement, and teacher professional learning.

Mahmut Polatcan

Mahmut Polatcan is currently working as an associate professor of educational administration in the Faculty of Letters, Department of Educational Sciences, Karabuk University, Karabuk, Turkey. His research interests include principal leadership, teacher professional learning, and instructional practices.

Selçuk Turan

Selçuk Turan is an assistant professor in the Ereğli Faculty of Education, Department of Educational Administration, Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University, Zonguldak, Turkey. His research interests include principal and teacher leadership, school improvement, and teacher professional learning.

Nedim Özdemir

Nedim Özdemir is an associate professor in the Faculty of Education, Department of Educational Administration, Ege University, İzmir, Turkey. His research interests are school leadership, student achievement, school improvement, and teacher professional learning.