Research Article

Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions

Volume: 10 Number: 1 May 31, 2026
TR EN

Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions

Abstract

This study aims to determine teachers’ opinions on the influence tactics used by school principals. Employing a survey design, data were collected from 514 teachers working in public schools in the metropolitan city center of Eskişehir during the 2024–2025 academic year. Using simple random sampling, the research data were obtained through the Influence Behavior Questionnaire developed by Yukl et al. (2008) and adapted to Turkish by Gözü (2012). Parametric analyses were conducted after confirming the normal distribution. Descriptive statistics as well as tests of differences and relationships were performed during the data analysis process. The findings indicate that school principals rarely use hard tactics, occasionally use soft tactics, and tend to rely more on rational tactics. Furthermore, teachers’ perceptions regarding principals’ influence tactics differed significantly based on the gender of both parties and the duration of working in the same school and with the same principal. Another prominent result of the study is the existence of strong correlations among influence tactics. The results suggest that training programs for school principals should place greater emphasis on rational and collaborative influence tactics, and that gender and tenure dynamics should be considered in leadership development and policy design.

Keywords

Supporting Institution

No funding or financial support was granted for the study.

Ethical Statement

This study was conducted with the approval from the Anadolu University Social and Human Sciences Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Board (Protocol No. E-54380210-050.99-873648) meeting dated 27.03.2025, 20/89.

References

  1. Aydın, İ., & Pehlivan, Z. (2010). Strategies and personality types used by primary school principals in Turkey to influence teachers (Ankara case). Paper presented in WCES 2010, 2, 3652–3659.
  2. Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2013). Örgütleri anlamak: Sanatçılık, tercih ve liderlik (A. Aypay & A. Tanrıöğen, Eds.). Seçkin.
  3. Bülbül, S. (2019). Okul müdürlerinin kullandıkları etkileme taktikleri ile öğretmenlerin işe tutkunluk düzeyleri arasındaki ilişki. Unpublished master’s thesis. Uşak University, Türkiye.
  4. Bulris, M. E. (2009). A meta-analysis of research on the mediated effects of principal leadership on student achievement: Examining the effect size of school culture on student achievement as an indicator of teacher effectiveness. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. East Carolina University, United States.
  5. Bursalıoğlu, Z. (2024). Okul yönetiminde yeni yapı ve davranış (23rd ed.). Pegem Akademi.
  6. Charbonneau, D. (2004). Influence tactics and perceptions of transformational leadership. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 25(7), 565–576. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437730410561459
  7. Chhokar, J. S., Brodbeck, F. C., & House, R. J. (2007). Culture and leadership across the world: The GLOBE book of in-depth studies of 25 societies. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
  8. Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2018). Research methods in education (7th ed.). Routledge.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Other Fields of Education (Other)

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

May 31, 2026

Submission Date

December 3, 2025

Acceptance Date

January 10, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 10 Number: 1

APA
Özdemir, M. (2026). Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions. Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 10(1), 136-158. https://doi.org/10.30561/sinopusd.1835142
AMA
1.Özdemir M. Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions. Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi. 2026;10(1):136-158. doi:10.30561/sinopusd.1835142
Chicago
Özdemir, Murat. 2026. “Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions”. Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi 10 (1): 136-58. https://doi.org/10.30561/sinopusd.1835142.
EndNote
Özdemir M (May 1, 2026) Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions. Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi 10 1 136–158.
IEEE
[1]M. Özdemir, “Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions”, Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 136–158, May 2026, doi: 10.30561/sinopusd.1835142.
ISNAD
Özdemir, Murat. “Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions”. Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi 10/1 (May 1, 2026): 136-158. https://doi.org/10.30561/sinopusd.1835142.
JAMA
1.Özdemir M. Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions. Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi. 2026;10:136–158.
MLA
Özdemir, Murat. “Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions”. Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, vol. 10, no. 1, May 2026, pp. 136-58, doi:10.30561/sinopusd.1835142.
Vancouver
1.Murat Özdemir. Leadership Through Influence: A Quantitative Inquiry on School Principals’ Tactics And Teachers’ Perceptions. Sinop Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi. 2026 May 1;10(1):136-58. doi:10.30561/sinopusd.1835142