Despite a growing body of literature on the school superintendency, little is known about the role, influence, and satisfaction of district superintendents when school boards make compensation decisions for principals. This exploratory study, which reported findings from a sample of 215 Pennsylvania superintendents, attempted to identify and…

This qualitative study investigated the types of conflict elementary principals encounter and the behaviors of the principals that led to successful or unsuccessful results of those conflict situations. The Critical Incident Technique was used as the means of gathering data for this study. Data were gathered from 32 principals in a midwestern…

Women frequently encounter stereotypes concerning their conflict management skills when seeking administrative positions. So far, the literature has focused on conflict management models involving male subjects and male researchers. As women's representation in educational administration increases, traditional viewpoints and theories concerning…

The purpose of the study was to examine the conditions effecting teacher-principal joint operationalization of rules as these related to perceived mutual needs. Using the field study methodology of participant observation, the researcher observed and recorded the daily interactions between teachers and the principal in an urban elementary school…

Conflict and disagreement are not only inevitable, but fundamental to successful change. A key to managing conflict between principal parties is each party's attribution of the other's intent. This study tests the relationship between (1) principals' personality predisposition and their self-attributed conflict resolution behavior; (2) teacher…

When a popular high school principal was reassigned under difficult circumstances, the school's culture was torn apart. A narrative of how this happened and how the principal's successor was able to heal the rift is provided in this report. The paper provides details of the actions that led up to the board reassigning the principal and the outcry…

Headteachers in England, Scotland, and Denmark must respond to wide-ranging and often conflicting external demands. Simultaneously, they must develop strategies to enhance their staffs' skills and improve pupil performance. This paper examines the background of a collaborative research project on school leadership in the three countries;…

This paper offers a sample of the materials available on conflict from four different academic disciplines (psychology, social psychology, sociology, and communications). The author describes sample research dealing with intrapersonal and interpersonal conflict, as well as intragroup conflict and intergroup conflict. She emphasizes that conflict…

How do more experienced school administrators think about and attend to problems in school administration? This paper presents findings of a study that compared how principals and aspiring principals cognitively processed and solved a problem scenario. A total of 30 practicing principals and 24 aspiring principals (referred to as the "novice…

This is a study on the impact of culture on the leadership of Mexican principals facing political and socioeconomic pressures. The research is a continuation of an international study engaging researchers from 8 countries: Thailand, China, UK, Norway, Singapore, Norway, Brazil, U.S., and Mexico. The twelve high school principals who participated…

Research has shown that organizations differ on the basis of their willingness to change and the strategies they use to manage change. For this paper, data were gathered through a review of the literature and through nonstandard interviews with persons in two identified organizations who handle grievance procedures. The analysis identifies the…

This paper discusses the use of in-basket items, typical of what school administrators would face on the job, and small-group activities to encourage the novice (graduate students in school administration) to exhibit behaviors that result from reflective thought. The process involves classroom exercises that simulate situations typical of school…

The use of a schema analysis, or hierarchical classification system, to identify problem-solving approaches among principals with different levels of experience is examined in this paper. Forty-one students in Ontario--10 undergraduate teacher preparation students, 8 teachers with principal qualifications, and 23 principals grouped according to 3…

This case study exemplifies the particular challenges, successes, and failures a principal faced in coping with a small Catholic school's diverse problems and publics. Names were changed to ensure confidentiality. School policy and administrative leadership are discussed in terms of a principal's interaction with an embattled school board,…

In dealing with racial tension and conflict, the principal is not limited to a wing and a prayer and benign neglect. The roots of conflict can be identified. Conflict can be planned for and utilized constructively. For 10 years, in approximately 2,000 instances, conciliators and mediators of the Community Relations Service have stood side-by-side…