A study of leadership behavior of senior secondary school principals

CASIRJ Volume 5 Issue 2 [Year - 2014] ISSN 2319 – 9202

International Research Journal of Commerce Arts and Science http:www.casirj.com Page 395

A study of leadership behavior of senior secondary school principals

By Alka Rani Research scholar kurukshetra university,

Kurukshetra

Abstract: The study examined the effects of gender, length of experience and age on the

leadership behaviourof principals. A sample of 140 principals (92 males and 42 females) was

randomly drawn from Senior Secondary Schools of Haryana. In order to fulfill the objectives of

the study mean, standard deviation and t-test was used. The result showed gender does not affect

the leadership behaviour of the principals. However, Length of experience and age significantly

affect the leadership behaviour of the principals. It was found that more experienced principals

showed effective leadership behaviour in compariosion to their less experienced counterparts.

Principals belonging to higher age group also showed effective leadership behaviour.

Introduction

Leadership behaviour means the behaviour of a leader towards the followers. It is the skill of the

leader that sets the direction to motivate and move the group forward and also promotes group

members’ contributions (i.e., knowledge, skills, social interaction, etc.) to the whole. Effective

leadership behaviour will create inspiring and thought-provoking climate for the workers so that

they can enjoy a high level of morale and are motivated to receive new ideas and are always

ready to venture into new goals. In this regard Babayemi (2006) has rightly said that the

behaviour of the leaders has been identified as one of the major factors influencing the

productivity of subordinates in any organization in which the school system is not an exemption.

The principal, as an educational leader, holds the key position in the school. As an important

component of the school administration he has two important responsibilities-administration of

the school and the supervision of the personnel involved in the whole teaching and learning

process. Everything in the school including teaching and non-teaching staff, the curriculum,

methods, and co-curricular activities etc are organized by him. The efficiency of the school

depends on the efficiency of a school principal. In other words it depends on the ability and skill,



personality, and professional competence of the principal. He may be described as the sun

around which educational planets revolve (Kochhar & Jain, 2012). Principals are the pillars of

the educational system especially at the second tier of educational pyramid. The maintenance of

quality and standards in education depend largely on the extent to which they effectively carry

out their leadership responsibilities. Today, the position of the principal is far more sophisticated

and the job is far more complex than in previous decades. This complexity can best be seen in

the incredible number of functions that principals are expected to perform.

A school is known by the performance of its students and not by its building and infrastructure.

The principal plays a very important role in maintaining the efficiency of the school. Either the

school is affluent or inclement; the whole credit goes to the principal. His role is not only limited

with the field of education, but it goes beyond it. He also plays a very important role in the

community also where he resides. A school is as great as its principal. It is rightly said that the

schools become great not because of their magnificent building but because of brilliant

principals.

The principal is the keystone in the arch of school administration; he is the hub of educational

efforts; he is the major component of school administration on whose ability, skills and

personality the efficiency of the school depends (Parvez, 2010). The role of a principal today is

becoming increasingly complex. They are bombarded with innumerable duties and

responsibilities. His is an uphill task, and only persons with a clear perspective and rare abilities

can succeed (Mukerji, 1963). In spite of insurmountable pressures, some principals are highly

successful. They are able to achieve and maintain excellence in their schools, whereas some of

them are not. Here, question arises. What does make an effective principal? Why are some

principals successful at what they do while others are not? Is there any impact of age, gender and

length of experience on the effectiveness of principals? These are some of the questions which

the investigator will try to address in the present study.

Objectives of the study

To study the difference in leadership behaviour of male and female principals.

To study the difference in leadership behaviour of principals having more than five years

and less than five years of experience.


International Research Journal of Commerce Arts and Science http:www.casirj.com 97

To study the difference in leadership behaviour of principals having age above 50 years

and below 50 years.

Hypotheses

There exists no significant difference in leadership behaviour of male and female

principals.

There exists no significant difference in leadership behaviour of principals having more

than five years of experience and less than five years of experience.

There exists no significant difference in leadership behaviour of principals belonging to

above 50 years and below 50 years age group.

Sample

Simple random sampling technique was used to select the sample for the present study. A sample

of 140 senior secondary school principals from five districts of Haryana was taken for the study.

The sample comprised of 92 males and 48 female principals.

Results and Discussion

To fulfill the objectives of the study, the obtained data was calculated and analyzed with the help

of mean, standard deviation and t-test. The results of various analyses have been presented in

separate headings as below:

Table-1

Significance of difference (Dimension wise) in Leadership behaviour (L. B.) of male and

female principals

Sr.

No.

Dimensions of

L. B.

Male Female t Significant

mean S.D. mean S.D

1 Emotional stablizer 19.54 3.25

20.14 3.35

1.02 Not

significant

2 Team builder 19.60 2.93

14.19 2.41

1.85 Not

Significant



3 Performance

oriented

20.54 2.70

21.31 2.49

1.63 Not

Significant

4 Potential extract 21.38 3.27

22.10 2.29

1.36 Not

significant

5 Socially intelligent 19.48 2.72

19.75 2.61

.544 Not

Significant

6 Value inculcator 20.88 2.97

21.81 2.86

1.78 Not

Significant

N=140 df= 138

A close examination of Table-1 has made it clear that the computed t-value for comparing male

and female principals in the domains of emotional stabilizer, team builder, performance oriented,

potential extract, socially intelligent, value inculcator is less than the critical values. Thus in

these areas the mean difference between male and female principals is not significant. It means

that male and female principals do not differ significantly in these areas.

Table-2

Significance of difference (total wise) in Leadership behaviour (L. B.) of male and female

principals

Sr

No.

Groups N Mean Standard

deviation

Sed

t

Significant

1 Male 92 121.44 13.98 2.39 1.75 Not

significant

2 Female 48 125.64 12.32

N=140 df=138

It may be inferred from table-2 that there is no significant difference in the leadership behaviour

of male and female principals. Value of t is 1.75 which is not significant. It means that there is no



significant difference in the leadership behaviour of male and female principals. Barbuto et al.

(2007); Ibukun et al. (2011) and Shakir (2013) also found that gender does not affect leadership

behaviour. The reason may be due to improved commitment to duty by both sexes. Enhanced

motivation by reward and possible commitment helps in becoming effective leaders. In the

changing scenario women also want to excel in every field and are devoted towards their

profession.

Table-3

Significance of difference (dimension wise) in Leadership behaviour (L. B.) of principals

having more than 5 years and less than 5 years of experience.

Sr.

No.

Dimensions of L.B Experience

above 5 years

Experience

below 5 years

t Significant

mean S.D. mean S.D

1 Emotional stablizer 20.42 2.88

19.11 3.53

2.40 Significant**


19.47 3.07

1.98 Significant*

3 Performance

oriented

21.5 2.36

20.15 2.75

3.09 Significant**

4 Potential extract 22.45 2.19

20.84 3.41

3.29 Significant**

5 Socially intelligent 20.14 2.28

19.04 2.92

2.48 Significant*

6 Value inculcator 21.95 2.47

20.48 3.21

3.01 Significant**

N=140 df=138



*significant at 0.05, **significant at 0.01 level of significance

A close examination of Table-3 has made it clear that the computed t-value for comparing

Leadership behaviour of principals having more than 5 years and less than 5 years of experience

in the domains of emotional stabilizer, team builder, performance oriented, potential extract,

socially intelligent, value inculcator is greater than the critical values. Thus in these areas the

mean difference between principals having more than 5 years and less than 5 years of experience

is significant. More experienced principals showed effective leadership behaviour in the above

said areas in comparison to the less experienced principals.

Table-4

Significance of difference (total score) in Leadership behaviour (L. B.) of principals having

more than 5 years and less than 5 years of experience.

Sr

No.


deviation

Sed

t

Significant

1 Above 5 years 68

126.88 10.37

2.20 3.52 Significant**

2 Below 5 years 72 119.11 15.09

N-140 df=138

**significant at 0.01 level of significance

table-4 has showed that the calculated t-ratio for the difference in leadership behaviour of the

principals having more than 5years and less than 5 years of experience is significant at .01 level

of significance which indicate that year of professional experience affect the leadership

behaviour of the principals. Mean scores of principals having more than 5 years of experience

are (126.88) which are higher than mean scores of principals having less than 5 years (119.11)

which indicate that more experienced principals have effective leadership behavior in

compariosion to their less experienced counterparts. Findings of the study are in line with that of



Shakir (2013) who also found that length of experience affect the leadership behavior of

principals. Findings showed that highly experienced principals showed effective leadership

behavior. It could be because more experienced principals generally have spent more years on

the job, attended seminars, and participated in relevant professional conferences and workshops,

consequently exposing them to new administrative techniques.

Table-5

Significance of difference (dimension wise) in Leadership behaviour (L. B.) of principals

belonging to above 50 years and below 50 years of age.

Sr.

No.

Dimensions of L.B Age above 50

years

Age below 50

years

t Significant

mean S.D. mean S.D

1 Emotional stabilizer 20.8 2.95

18.96 3.32

3.39 significant**


19.25 2.88 3.41 Significant**

3 Performance

oriented

21.65 2.31 20.17 2.72 3.37 Significant**

4 Potential extract 22.75 1.92 20.78 3.35 4.05 Significant**

5 Socially intelligent 20.38 2.14 18.97 2.89 3.17 Significant**

6 Value inculcator 21.96 2.40 20.62 3.21 2.71 Significant**

N=140 df=138

**significant at 0.01level of significance

A close examination of Table-5 has made it clear that the computed t-value for comparing

leadership behaviour of principals belonging to above 50 years and below 50 years age group in

the domains of emotional stabilizer, team builder, performance oriented, potential extract,

socially intelligent, value inculcator is greater than the critical values. Thus in these areas the



mean difference between principals belonging to above 50 years and below 50 years age group

is significant. Principals of above 50 years age group showed effective leadership behaviour.

Table-6

Significance of difference (total score) in Leadership behaviour (L. B.) of principals

belonging to above 50 years and below 50 years of age.

Sr

No.


deviation

Sed

t

Significant

1 Above 50 years 60 128.36 9.52

2.17 4.41 Significant**

2 Below 50 years 80 118.77 14.66

N=140 df=138

**significant at .01 level of significance

Table-6 showed that the calculated t-ratio for compairing the leadership behaviour of principals

belonging to above 50 years and below 50 years age group is significant at 0.01 level of

significance which indicate that age affect the leadership behaviour of principals. Mean scores

showed that the principals belonging to above 50 years group showed effective leadership

behaviour. Barbuto et al. (2007); Ibukun et al. (2011) and Shakir (2013) also found that age

affect the leadership behavior of principals. It could be due to the fact that age helps to the

principals in learning new techniques and understanding the viewpoints of other staff members

which ultimately helps them in improving their leadership behaviour.

Conclusion

From the findings of the study it can be concluded that principal’s age and years of

experience significantly influence leadership behaviour. No significant difference existed

in leadership behavior of principals based on sex. One important implication of this



study is that principals’ years of experience positively determined effective leadership

behavior of principals. This requires the attention of educational policy makers. Years of

experience could be perceived as an asset for effective leadership behaviour. So, there

is need to place high emphasis and priority on years of experience in the appointment of

principals. Such awareness could also help the policy makers to develop strategies and

mechanisms for developing effective leadership in the educational institutions. However,

it may be recommended that in as much as years of experience is a necessary criterion

for the appointment of principals, the educational authorities should not consider

experience in isolation. Experience should be considered along with age. Gender factor

should be de-emphasized in the appointment of principals as no significant differences

existed between male and female principals on effective leadership behaviour. All these

factors should be complemented with appropriate training in leadership and supervisory

functions of principals. There is need to fill the present gap observed between the

competence of experienced and inexperienced principals.

References

Barbuto, E. Jr., Fritz, S., Gina S. M. & Marx, D. B. (2007). Effects of gender, education, and

age upon leaders' use of influence tactics and full range leadership behaviors. Retrieved

http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/aglecfacpub/40

Ibukun, W.O., Oyewole, B. K. & Abe, T. O. (2011). Personality characteristics and principal

leadership effectiveness in Ekiti State, Nigeria. International Journal of Leadership

Studies, 6(2)

Kochhar, S. K. & Jain, P. B. (2012). School Administration and Management, New Delhi,

Sterling Publishers Private Limited

Mukerji, S. N. (1963). School Administration and Functions in India, Baroda, Acharya Book

Depot.

Parvez, M. (2010). School Administration, Aligarh, Kitab Ghar



Shakir, M. (2013). Impact of age, gender and length of experience on the effectiveness of

secondary school principals. International Indexed & Refereed Research Journal 4 (46)40-

44

A study of leadership behavior of senior secondary school principals

Documents

Transcript of A study of leadership behavior of senior secondary school principals