The Effect of School Principals’ Ethical Leadership on Teacher Job Satisfaction: The Mediating Role of School Ethical Climate

Abstract

This study aims to examine the mediating role of ethical climate in the relationship between ethical leadership and job satisfaction. A cross-sectional survey was conducted for the study. Questionnaires were distributed to 641 teachers in Turkey. Regression analysis was conducted to determine the mediating effect of ethical climate. Bootstrapping tehchnique was used to test the hypotheses and the effects of mediation. Our results show that there is a positive relationship between principals' ethical leadership and teachers' job satisfaction and a positive relationship between ethical leadership and ethical climate. In addition, ethical climate partially mediated the relationship between ethical leadership and job satisfaction. Schools should focus on ethical leadership practices in the workplace. The study enriched the understanding of the factors that influence the relationship between ethical leadership, ethical climate and job satisfaction.

Keywords

• Ethical leadership
• ethical school climate
• job satisfaction
• ethical climate
• Ethical leadership, ethical school climate, job satisfaction, ethical climate

Kaynakça

1. Ahmad, I., & Umrani Waheed, A. (2019). The impact of ethical leadership style on job satisfaction: Mediating role of perception of green hrm and psychological safety. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 40(5), 534-547. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-12-2018-0461
2. Aldridge, J.M., & Fraser, B.J. (2016). Teachers’ views of their school climate and its relationship with teacher self-efficacy and job satisfaction. Learning Environments Research, 19(2), 291-307. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10984-015-9198-x
3. Bakker, A.B., & Schaufeli, W.B. (2008). Positive organizational behavior: Engaged employees in flourishing organizations. Journal of Organizational Behavior: The International Journal of Industrial, Occupational and Organizational Psychology and Behavior, 29(2), 147-154. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.515
4. Balcı, A., Özdemir, M., Apaydın, Ç., & Özen, F. (2012). The relationship of organizational corruption with organizational culture, attitude towards work and work ethics: a search on turkish high school teachers. Asia Pacific Education Review, 13(1), 137-146. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12564-011-9183-8
5. Bandura, A. (1977). Self-Efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191-215. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191
6. Banerjee, N., Stearns, E., Moller, S., & Mickelson, R.A. (2017). Teacher job satisfaction and student achievement: The roles of teacher professional community and teacher collaboration in schools. American Journal of Education, 123(2), 203-241.
7. Bedi, A., Alpaslan, C. M., & Green, S. (2016). A meta-analytic review of ethical leadership outcomes and moderators. Journal of Business Ethics, 139(3), 517-536. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2625-1
8. Boekhorst, J.A. (2015). The role of authentic leadership in fostering workplace inclusion: a social information processing perspective. Human Resource Management, 54(2), 241-264. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21669

9. Bogler, R. (2001). The influence of leadership style on teacher job satisfaction. Educational Administration Quarterly, 37(5), 662-683. https://doi.org/10.1177/001316101121969460
10. Brief, A.P., Dietz, J., Cohen, R.R., Pugh, S.D., & Vaslow, J. B. (2000). Just doing business: Modern racism and obedience to authority as explanations for employment discrimination. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 81(1), 72-97. https://doi.org/10.1006/obhd.1999.2867
11. Brown, M. E., & Mitchell, M. S. (2010). Ethical and unethical leadership: exploring new avenues for future research. Business Ethics Quarterly, 20(4), 583-616. https://doi.org/10.5840/beq201020439
12. Brown, M. E., & Treviño, L. K. (2006). Ethical leadership: A review and future directions. The Leadership Quarterly, 17(6), 595-616. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2006.10.004
13. Brown, M. E., Treviño, L. K., & Harrison, D. A. (2005). Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 97(2), 117-134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2005.03.002
14. Chughtai, A., Byrne, M., & Flood, B. (2015). Linking ethical leadership to employee well-being: The role of trust in supervisor. Journal of Business Ethics, 128(3), 653-663. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2126-7
15. Cranny, C., Smith, P. C., & Stone, E. (1992). Job satisfaction: How people feel about their jobs. Lexington Books.
16. Crossman, A., & Harris, P. (2006). Job satisfaction of secondary school teachers. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 34(1), 29-46. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143206059538
17. Cullen, J. B., Parboteeah, K. P., & Victor, B. (2003). The effects of ethical climates on organizational commitment: A two-study analysis. Journal of Business Ethics, 46(2), 127-141. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1025089819456
18. Dawkins, S., Tian, A.W., Newman, A., & Martin, A. (2017). Psychological ownership: A review and research agenda. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 38(2), 163-183. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2057
19. Demirtas, O., & Akdogan, A. A. (2015). The effect of ethical leadership behavior on ethical climate, turnover intention, and affective commitment. Journal of Business Ethics, 130(1), 59-67. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2196-6
20. Dickson, M. W., Smith, D. B., Grojean, M. W., & Ehrhart, M. (2001). An organizational climate regarding ethics: The outcome of leader values and the practices that reflect them. The Leadership Quarterly, 12(2), 197-217. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1048-9843(01)00069-8
21. Dimmock, C., & Walker, A. (2000). zGlobalization and societal culture: redefining schooling and school leadership in the twenty-first century. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 30(3), 303-312. https://doi.org/10.1080/713657474
22. Dinham, S., & Scott, C. (1998). A three domain model of teacher and school executive career satisfaction. Journal of Educational Administration, 36(4), 362-378. https://doi.org/10.1108/09578239810211545
23. Dirks, K. T., & Ferrin, D. L. (2002). Trust in leadership: Meta-analytic findings and implications for research and practice. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(4), 611-628.
24. Efron, B., & Tibshirani, R. J. (1993). An introduction to the bootstrap. Chapman & Hall, Boca Raton.
25. Erdem, M., Aytaç, T., & Gönül, T. (2020). The relationship between teachers’ perception of organizational cynicism and school administrators’ behaviours of favouritism. European Journal of Education Studies, 7(6), 1-22.
26. Erkuş, A., & Selvi, H. (2019). Psikolojide ölçme ve ölçek geliştirme III: Ölçek uyarlama ve “norm” geliştirme. Pegem Akademi.
27. Freire, C., & Bettencourt, C. (2020). Impact of ethical leadership on job satisfaction: The mediating effect of work–family conflict. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 41(2), 319-330. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-07-2019-0338
28. Griffin, R. W., & Moorhead, G. (2014). Organizational behavior: Managing people and organization. Nelson Education.
29. Grojean, M. W., Resick, C. J., Dickson, M. W., & Smith, D. B. (2004). Leaders, values, and organizational climate: examining leadership strategies for establishing an organizational climate regarding ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 55(3), 223-241. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-004-1275-5
30. Gumus, S., Bellibas, M. S., Esen, M., & Gumus, E. (2018). A systematic review of studies on leadership models in educational research from 1980 to 2014. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 46(1), 25–48. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143216659296
31. Gümüş, S., Hallinger, P., Cansoy, R. & Bellibaş, M. S. (2021). Instructional leadership in a centralized and competitive educational system: A qualitative meta-synthesis of research from Turkey. Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-04-2021-0073
32. Hackman, J. R., & Oldham, G. R. (1975). Development of the job diagnostic survey. Journal of Applied Psychology, 60(2), 159-170.
33. Hallinger, P. (2018). Bringing context out of the shadows of leadership. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 46(1), 5–24. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143216670652
34. Hartog, D. N. D. (2015). Ethical leadership. Annu. Rev. Organ. Psychol. Organ. Behav, 2, 409-434. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-032414-111237
35. Hayes, A. F. (2017). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A Regression-based approach. Guilford Publications.
36. Herzberg, F., Snyderman, B. B., & Mausner, B. (1966). The motivation to work (2d Ed). J. Wiley.
37. Huhtala, M., Kangas, M., Lämsä, A. M., & Feldt, T. (2013). Ethical managers in ethical organizations? The leadership‐culture connection among finnish managers. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 34(3), 250-270. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437731311326684
38. Kalshoven, K., Den Hartog, D. N., & De Hoogh, A. H. B. (2013).Ethical leadership and follower helping and courtesy: moral awareness and empathic concern as moderators. Applied Psychology, 62(2), 211-235. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1464-0597.2011.00483.x
39. Kim, W. G., & Brymer, R. A. (2011). The effects of ethical leadership on manager job satisfaction, commitment, behavioral outcomes, and firm performance. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 30(4), 1020-1026. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2011.03.008
40. Kinicki, A., Cole, N., Digby, V., Koziol, N., & Kreitner, R. (2010). Organizational behavior. McGraw-Hill Ryerson Higher Education.
41. knights, d., & o'leary, m. (2006). Leadership, ethics and responsibility to the other. Journal of Business Ethics, 67(2), 125-137. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-006-9008-6
42. Locke, E. A. (1969). What is job satisfaction?. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 4(4), 309-336.
43. Lu, C.-S., & Lin, C.-C. (2014). The effects of ethical leadership and ethical climate on employee ethical behavior in the international port context. Journal of Business Ethics, 124(2), 209-223. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-013-1868-y
44. Maslowski, R. (2006). A review of inventories for diagnosing school culture. Journal of Educational Administration, 44(1), 6–35. https://doi.org/10.1108/09578230610642638
45. Mayer, D. M., Kuenzi, M., & Greenbaum, R. L. (2010). Examining the link between ethical leadership and employee misconduct: The mediating role of ethical climate. Journal of Business Ethics, 95(1), 7-16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-0794-0
46. Mayer, D. M., Kuenzi, M., Greenbaum, R., Bardes, M., & Salvador, R. (2009). How low does ethical leadership flow? Test of a trickle-down model. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 108(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2008.04.002
47. Misener, T. R., Haddock, K. S., Gleaton, J. U., & Ajamieh, A. R. A. (1996). Toward an international measure of job satisfaction. Nursing Research, 45(2), 87-91.
48. Newman, A., Round, H., Bhattacharya, S., & Roy, A. (2017). Ethical climates in organizations: a review and research agenda. Business Ethics Quarterly, 27(4), 475-512. https://doi.org/10.1017/beq.2017.23
49. Olson, L. (1995). Ethical climate in health care organizations. International Nursing Review, 42(3), 85-90.
50. Özen, F., & Durkan, E. (2016). Algılanan örgütsel etik iklim ile öğretmenlik meslek etiği arasındaki ilişki. Kuram ve Uygulamada Eğitim Yönetimi Dergisi, 22(4), 593-627. https://doi.org/10.14527/kuey.2016.023
51. Palardy, G. J., & Rumberger, R.W. (2008). Teacher effectiveness in first grade: The importance of background qualifications, attitudes, and instructional practices for student learning. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 30(2), 111-140. https://doi.org/10.3102/0162373708317680
52. Piccolo, R. F., Greenbaum, R., Hartog, D.N.D., & Folger, R. (2010). The relationship between ethical leadership and core job characteristics. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 31(2‐3), 259-278. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.627
53. Puni, A., Mohammed, I., & Asamoah, E. (2018). Transformational leadership and job satisfaction: The moderating effect of contingent reward. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 39(4), 522-537. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-11-2017-0358
54. Qian, H., Walker, A. & Li, X. (2017). The west wind vs. the east wind: Instructional leadership model in china. Journal of Educational Administration, 55 (2), 186-206. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-08-2016-0083
55. Ren, S., & Chadee, D. (2017). Ethical leadership, self-efficacy and job satisfaction in china: The moderating role of guanxi. Personnel Review, 46(2), 371-388. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-08-2015-0226
56. Resick, C. J., Hanges, P. J., Dickson, M.W., & Mitchelson, J. K. (2006). A cross-cultural examination of the endorsement of ethical leadership. Journal of Business Ethics, 63(4), 345-359. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-3242-1
57. Schneider, B. (1975). Organizational climates: an essay. Personnel Psychology, 28(4), 447-479.
58. Schwepker, C. H. (2013). Improving sales performance through commitment to superior customer value: the role of psychological ethical climate. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 33(4), 389-402. https://doi.org/10.2753/PSS0885-3134330403
59. Shareef, R. A., & Atan, T. (2019). The influence of ethical leadership on academic employees’ organizational citizenship behavior and turnover intention: mediating role of intrinsic motivation. Management Decision, 57 (3), 583-605. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-08-2017-0721
60. Sharma, A., Agrawal, R., & Khandelwal, U. (2019). Developing ethical leadership for business organizations: A conceptual model of its antecedents and consequences. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 40(6), 712-734. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-10-2018-0367
61. Shekhawat, K. (2019). Nepotism, favoritism and cronyism in faculty hiring among institutions providing higher education. South-East Asian Journal of Medical Education, 13(1), 53-54. http://doi.org/10.4038/seajme.v13i1.63
62. Shin, Y., Sung, S. Y., Choi, J. N., & Kim, M. S. (2015). Top management ethical leadership and firm performance: mediating role of ethical and procedural justice climate. Journal of Business Ethics, 129(1), 43-57. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2144-5
63. Silah, M. (2002). Sanayi işletmelerinde önemli ve çağdaş bir gereksinim: Süreç danışmanlığı uygulamaları. Çukurova Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 26(1), 143-168.
64. Simha, A., & Cullen, J. B. (2012). Ethical climates and their effects on organizational outcomes: implications from the past and prophecies for the future. Academy of Management Perspectives, 26(4), 20-34.
65. Simkins, T. (2005). Leadership in education: ‘what works’ or ‘what makes sense’?. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 33(1), 9–26. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143205048168
66. Şişman, M. (2011). Örgütler ve kültürler. Pegem Akademi.
67. Spector, P. E. (1997). Job satisfaction: Application, assessment, causes, and consequences (vol. 3). Sage Publications.
68. Stouten, J., Baillien, E., Van den Broeck, A., Camps, J., De Witte, H., & Euwema, M. (2010). Discouraging bullying: The role of ethical leadership and its effects on the work environment. Journal of Business Ethics, 95(1), 17-27. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-0797-x
69. Stouten, J., Van Dijke, M., & De Cremer, D. (2012). Ethical leadership: An overview and future perspectives. Journal of Personnel Psychology, 11(1), 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1027/1866-5888/a000059
70. Suchman, M.C. (1995). Managing legitimacy: Strategic and institutional approaches. Academy of Management Review, 20(3), 571-610. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1995.9508080331
71. Tabachnick, B.G., & Fidell, L.S. (2013). Using multivariate statistics. Allyn & Bacon.
72. Treviño, L. K., Brown, M., & Hartman, L. P. (2003). A qualitative investigation of perceived executive ethical leadership: Perceptions from inside and outside the executive suite. Human Relations, 56(1), 5-37. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726703056001448
73. Treviño, L. K., Hartman, L. P., & Brown, M. (2000). Moral person and moral manager: how executives develop a reputation for ethical leadership. California Management Review, 42(4), 128-142. https://doi.org/10.2307/41166057
74. Turan, I., Şimşek, Ü., & Aslan, H. (2015). Eğitim Araştırmalarında likert ölçeği ve likert-tipi soruların kullanımı ve analizi. Sakarya Üniversitesi Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi, 30, 186-203.
75. Vera, D., & Crossan, M. (2004). Strategic leadership and organizational learning. Academy of Management Review, 29(2), 222-240. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2004.12736080
76. Victor, B., & Cullen, J. B. (1988). The organizational bases of ethical work climates. Administrative Science Quarterly, 33(1), 101-125. https://doi.org/10.2307/2392857
77. Yılmaz, E. (2006). Okullardaki örgütsel güven düzeyinin okul yöneticilerinin etik liderlik özellikleri ve bazı değişkenler açısından incelenmesi (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Selçuk Üniversitesi, Konya.