Educational Leadership Research

Abstract The guidance and management of schools is the responsibility of managers who shape the educational path of students with their decisions and actions. This phenomenological research deals with the conceptualization of entrepreneurial leadership among educational managers in schools. The research field of Kurdistan province and potential participants were all the educational managers at the primary level in the city of Sanandaj, 18 of whom were purposefully (heterogenously) selected and invited to participate using a semi-structured interview protocol. Based on the data analysis, five main classes Recognized for experiencing and understanding entrepreneurial leadership. These classes include leadership and guidance (the ability of managers to guide groups towards goals and create motivation to achieve desired results), facilitating and strengthening cooperation (creating an encouraging environment for communication), creating support and support (providing the necessary resources and support). for groups in order to increase efficiency and reduce obstacles), setting strategic goals (the importance of setting long-term goals and using appropriate methods to achieve them) and strengthening creativity and innovation (creating an environment where creativity and innovation are considered as key factors in the success of the organization) take) is This hierarchical structure is formed under the influence of four components of consciousness: character, connection, destination and consequence. Each of these components helps develop and strengthen entrepreneurial leadership and enables managers to operate more effectively in dynamic and challenging environments. The findings of this research show the educational policy makers what entrepreneurial leadership is like from the point of view of principals in schools.

Abstract Since teachers’ procrastination and job burnout—especially in underprivileged regions—undermine their motivation and efficiency, and educational leadership can influence these two variables, the present study aimed to examine the predictive power of school principals’ leadership styles for procrastination and job burnout among secondary school teachers in Bashagard during the 2023–2024 academic year. This correlational study included a statistical population of 315 teachers, of whom 172 were selected as the sample through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using the Tuckman Procrastination Questionnaire (1991), the Maslach Burnout Inventory (1997), and a researcher-developed questionnaire to assess leadership styles. Considering the non-normal distribution of variables, Spearman’s correlation and multiple regression analysis were applied. The results showed that principals’ leadership style has a negative relationship with both procrastination and job burnout, with coefficients of 0.35 and 0.63, respectively, while a positive relationship with a coefficient of 0.29 was observed between procrastination and job burnout. Regression analysis indicated that leadership styles significantly predict the changes related to procrastination and job burnout, with coefficients of 0.27 and 0.44, respectively, and the predictive power of leadership style for job burnout was stronger than for procrastination. Therefore, effective leadership styles can help reduce teachers’ procrastination and job burnout, thereby improving their educational performance and psychological well-being, particularly in disadvantaged regions such as Bashagard.

Abstract The present study aimed to design and validate a resilience model for elementary schools. This research utilized an exploratory mixed-methods approach (qualitative-quantitative). The qualitative sample consisted of 17 academic experts and exemplary teachers and principals from West Azerbaijan province, selected through purposive sampling based on theoretical saturation. In the quantitative phase, the statistical population included all elementary school teachers in Urmia during the 2024-2025 academic year, with 346 participants selected through stratified random sampling using Cochran's formula. Data collection instruments included semi-structured interviews in the qualitative phase and a researcher-made questionnaire in the quantitative phase. Interview data were analyzed using thematic analysis in MAXQDA2020, while quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS26 and Smart-PLS3. Qualitative findings revealed that the resilience model for elementary schools comprises eight overarching themes: infrastructural factors, structural factors, managerial factors, cultural factors, pedagogical factors, teacher agency, student resilience, and stakeholder support. Quantitative results demonstrated that all observed variables had acceptable factor loadings on their respective latent variables and were significant at the 0.01 level. The Goodness of Fit (GOF) index value of 0.622 indicated a favorable fit for the overall research model. The designed model can effectively enhance the quality and resilience of the educational system.

Abstract Abstract
Objective: The study aims to investigate the impact of person-organization fit on innovative work behavior with an emphasis on the mediating role of employees' emotional labor in the education department of Sanandaj. This research is applied in terms of its objective, descriptive in terms of data collection and analysis, and correlational in terms of hypothesis testing.
Research Method: Data was collected using a standard questionnaire. The reliability of the questionnaire was assessed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient, and content and construct validity were used to evaluate its validity. The statistical population of this study consists of employees of the education department in Sanandaj, totaling 5,800 individuals. A sample of 360 participants was selected using a convenience sampling method. For statistical analysis, two software programs, SPSS 25 and PLS 3 SMART, were used.
Findings: The results showed that person-organization fit has a positive and significant impact on innovative work behavior and emotional labor. Emotional labor also has a positive and significant impact on innovative work behavior, and person-organization fit, through the mediation of emotional labor, has a positive and significant impact on innovative work behavior.
Conclusion: Person-organization fit and emotional labor, which is the result of the individual's internalization process, guide the employees' mental states, leading to the demonstration of creative performance and innovative behavior.

Abstract The present study was conducted with the aim of developing a model for empowering good and transcendent governance in the education system. This research employed a qualitative approach, utilizing two methods: meta-synthesis and thematic analysis. The study population consisted of two parts: for the meta-synthesis, books, articles, dissertations, and relevant documents were reviewed; for the thematic analysis, expert participants were selected—experienced education professionals with relevant academic backgrounds. Using purposive theoretical sampling and following the saturation principle, interviews were conducted with seven individuals. Data collection was carried out using a meta-synthesis data sheet and a semi-structured interview protocol. Thematic analysis was employed for data analysis, through which basic, organizing, and global themes were extracted. To ensure the confirmability and transferability of the findings, researcher self-audit and a structured process of documentation and reporting were applied. The findings indicated that the model for empowering good and transcendent governance in education comprises three dimensions. The "good governance" dimension includes components such as rule of law and respect for regulations, responsibility and accountability, clarity and transparency, participation and consensus, effectiveness and efficiency, capacity building, value development, and predictability. The "transcendent governance" dimension encompasses components such as a theocentric worldview, ethics-based leadership, people-centeredness, legitimacy and acceptability, effectiveness, and both material and spiritual perfection. Finally, the empowerment strategies identified include training and professional development, collaborative professional learning communities, individual development planning, and the enhancement of coaching and mentoring systems.

Abstract This study aimed to investigate the effect of resilience on the professional flourishing of school principals in Khorramabad County, and the mediating role of trust, amidst the increasing challenges within the educational system. Drawing upon psychological capital theory and employing a descriptive-correlational approach using structural equation modeling (SEM), data were collected from a statistical population of 1,252 school principals in Khorramabad. A sample of 297 individuals was estimated using the Krejcie and Morgan table and selected via stratified random sampling. Standardized questionnaires were used for data collection. The results indicated that resilience (including its psychological, social, and spiritual dimensions) has a positive and significant effect on principals' flourishing ($\beta = 0.318, p < 0.001$). Furthermore, resilience significantly influences principals' trust in their colleagues ($\beta = 0.491, p < 0.001$), and this trust, in turn, positively and significantly affects principals' flourishing ($\beta = 0.305, p < 0.001$). More importantly, the mediating role of trust in the relationship between resilience and principals' flourishing was confirmed ($\beta = 0.150, p < 0.001$). These findings highlight the importance of multi-dimensional resilience in principals and the necessity of strengthening organizational trust as a prerequisite for achieving prosperous and resilient schools, especially within the framework of Iran's Fundamental Transformation Document of Education. This underscores the need for designing integrated empowerment programs.

Abstract Due to educational developments and the inefficiency of traditional teaching models, the role of teacher leadership in schools has gained special importance. This qualitative research, using the systematic data-based theory approach of Strauss and Corbin (1997), examined the dimensions of teacher leadership in Iranian schools. Data collection was conducted through semi-structured interviews with teachers, principals, and professors in Sanandaj city and continued until theoretical saturation was reached. Data analysis was performed using MAXQDA (2020) software in three stages: open, axial, and selective coding. In open coding, 302 initial codes were extracted and, after merging, were organized into 66 axial codes. In selective coding, 18 selective categories were formed, which formed the final structure of the model. Paradigmatic model including contextual conditions (centralized structure, traditional culture, work pressure), causal conditions (changing educational needs and inefficiency of traditional teaching), Intervening conditions (the role of the manager, organizational support, in-service training), pivotal phenomenon (the emergence of the teacher leader as an agent of change), The strategies were (empowerment, learning networks, creativity, and teamwork) and the outcomes (increasing motivation, improving the quality of learning, strengthening professional identity, and collaborative culture). This research, while aligning with international studies, presented a local picture of teacher leadership in Iran and demonstrated the need for structural and cultural reforms to respond to today's educational challenges.

Abstract The aim of this study is to understand and explain the process of forming educational leadership identity among elementary school principals in Hamadan. Given that leadership identity is a dynamic، experience-based، and context-dependent phenomenon، a qualitative approach using grounded theory methodology with Strauss and Corbin’s (1990) analytical framework was adopted. Participants included principals identified as exemplary leaders according to formal educational and managerial performance indicators for the 1404–1405 academic year and holding a master’s degree or higher. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews، and sampling was initially purposive and subsequently theoretical، continuing until theoretical saturation was reached. Data analysis was conducted in three stages: open، axial، and selective coding، and a paradigmatic model comprising a core phenomenon، contextual conditions، intervening factors، strategies، and outcomes was employed. Findings indicated that the formation of educational leadership identity begins with causal conditions such as transformation in professional self-perception, experiencing the inefficiency of a control-oriented approach, and tensions arising from the gap between policy and practice, and manifests in the central phenomenon of a shift from task- and control-oriented leadership to learning-oriented and meaning-centered leadership. This process unfolds within the context of school culture and organizational resources and under the influence of managerial autonomy, teachers’ professional capacity, and parental pressures. Principals build trust, support professional development, and implement gradual change to foster a learning culture, strengthen teachers’ growth, improve student learning, and reinforce their leadership identity. The model can guide principals’ development and policies for preparing educational leaders.

Abstract Rapid and complex developments in the field of educational management have revealed the limitations of centralized structures and highlighted the necessity of transitioning toward more flexible models of school governance. Within this framework, strategic decentralization has been proposed as a structural approach to enhancing educational quality and strengthening teachers’ professional creativity. The present study was conducted to examine the effect of strategic decentralization on educational quality, with teachers’ professional creativity serving as a mediating variable. This research was correlational in nature and employed structural equation modeling. The statistical population consisted of 225 secondary school teachers from District 4 of Karaj, who were selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using questionnaires on decentralization, teachers’ professional creativity, and educational quality, and were analyzed using SPSS and LISREL software. The results indicated that strategic decentralization had a significant direct effect on teachers’ professional creativity (β = 0.75), and professional creativity also had a significant positive direct effect on educational quality (β = 0.54). Furthermore, the indirect effect of decentralization on educational quality through professional creativity was significant (β = 0.40). Model fit indices confirmed an acceptable fit between the proposed model and the empirical data. The findings suggest that strategic decentralization can play a decisive role in improving educational quality by fostering teachers’ professional creativity. Therefore, the purposeful development of decentralization policies, accompanied by structural support for teachers’ professional innovation, is recommended.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to analyze the problems of the thesis implementation process and dissertations of the students of the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences of Tehran University and to provide some solutions to the existing problems. The present study was conducted in the framework of qualitative approach with phenomenological method. The research field was the University of Tehran and the participants were 8 postgraduate students and postgraduate students of the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences of the University of Tehran. Data were collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed using the George method in five steps. Research findings showed that graduate students' perceptions of students' problems in the process of their thesis and dissertation were divided into 7 general themes including student problems or individual factors (9 themes), professors' problems (10 themes), macro community problems (8 themes), Includes bureaucratic problems (8 sub-themes), problem selection (2 sub-themes), material problems (3 sub-themes) and implementation problems (2 sub-themes).

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of quantum leadership on changes in quality through perceived communication quality and changeability. The present research was applied in terms of purpose and in terms of collecting descriptive information of correlation type. The statistical population of this study was all of the staff employed in the Islamic Azad University of Sefahan in Sefahan to be 1,000. Using the Cochran sampling formula, 287 individuals were selected through simple random sampling method. The research tool was Shleton Quantum Leadership Standards Questionnaire (2003) and questionnaire. The standard of commitment to change was Fedour et al. (2009) and perceived standard communication questionnaire of change proposed by Miller and Mang (1985) and the Readiness Change Standard questionnaire provided by Holt et al. (2007). On the other hand, Cronbach's alpha method was used to quantify the quantum leadership questionnaire (93/0) and The Change Commitment Questionnaire (0.81) and Perceived Communication from Change (0.85) and Readiness for Change (0.92) questionnaire were estimated. Data analysis was carried out at the inferential level including structural equation modeling. The results of the research showed that quantum leadership through its readiness for change has a positive and significant impact on the commitment to change, which has a coefficient of 0.39, but does not have a significant effect through the quality of the relationship on commitment to change. Also, the direct impact on the commitment to change is also Not meaningful.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of organizational cynicism on deviant behaviors in the workplace through organizational silence and destructive leadership. The purpose of this study was applied and descriptive correlational in terms of data collection. The statistical population of this study consisted of 1000 employees of Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran. The sample consisted of 287 individuals selected through Cochran sampling formula by proportional stratified sampling method. (And standard deviant behaviors questionnaire at workplace (Bennett & Robinson (2000)) and the Vakula & Brados Organizational Silence Questionnaire (2005) and Golparvar's malicious leadership standard questionnaire (2014). Experts, a formality based on the views of a number of statistical population and constructs were evaluated by factor analysis method and after validity of the necessary terms were confirmed. On the other hand, the reliability of the questionnaires with Cronbach's alpha method were (0.88), (0.85), (0.89), respectively were estimated. Data were analyzed at the inferential level including structural equation modeling. The results showed that organizational cynicism has a positive and significant effect on deviant behaviors in the workplace through organizational silence, which has a coefficient of 0.55, and through destructive leadership, it has a positive and significant effect on deviant behaviors in the workplace. It is 0.44 and also organizational cynicism has a positive and significant effect on deviant behaviors in the workplace which has a coefficient of 0.88.

Abstract In this paper, using the approach of emic or orientation from the inside, have paid to analyze the understanding of scientific community actors from accreditation model of system higher education of country. research based on grounded theory, constitute the methodology of this study. according to the method, we have always sought to take on meaning, vision and mental mechanisms of higher education actors. the data of this study were obtained from four sources, which include, interviews, observations, notes and documents. to do so, first open coding, then, are we axial and selective action. having analyzed the data obtained in the first phase coding, in 2027 the concept was achieved. second stage of open data coding, In format of 1262 concept and 156 major categories were classified. in axial coding stage, 25 core categories were determined. in selective coding stage, again 25 core category to a higher level of abstraction we have upgrade and classified in terms of characteristics of conditions, interactive / process and outcome. in the end, category of quality discourse, fear and hope, as the most original and the most ultimate core category Select and according to its features were developed. then, related made other categories in the form of a paradigm model with the this category.

Abstract The aim of this study was to determine the effect of Islamic leadership on deviant behaviors in the workplace through Islamic work ethic and social capital (case study of Islamic Azad University, Isfahan Branch (Khorasgan)). The present study was applied in terms of purpose and in terms of how to collect descriptive information of the correlation type. The statistical population of the present study consisted of all employees working in Islamic Azad University, Isfahan Branch, 1000, and 287 people were selected through Cochran's sampling formula as a sample. Ugansula (2011), Bennett and Robinson (2000) Standard Deviation Behavior Questionnaire and Nahapitogoshal Social Capital Questionnaire, (1998), and Ali's (1988) standard work-ethics standard questionnaire validated questionnaires based on content validity., Formal and structural were examined and after the necessary narrative terms, the validity of the questionnaires was estimated and analyzed by Cronbach's alpha method of 0.93, 0.91, 0.91 and 0.92, respectively. Data analysis at the inferential level consisted of structural equation modeling. The results showed that Islamic leadership has a negative and significant effect on deviant behaviors in the workplace through Islamic work ethic, which has a coefficient of -0.78, and through social capital has a negative and significant effect on deviant behaviors in the workplace. The coefficient of this effect is -0.67 and also the direct effect of Islamic leadership on deviant behaviors in the work environment is significantly negative. The coefficient of this effect is -0.77.

Abstract Senior leadership has been identified as a critical factor in fostering Enterprise
Resource  Planning  systems  success.  Although,  previous  studies  have
investigated  the  impact  of  transformational  leadership  on  Enterprise  Resource
Planning from various angles, however, the role of transformational leadership
on Enterprise Resource Planning systems success at the University has not  been
studied.  The  purpose  of  this  study  was  determine  the  role  of  transformational
leadership on Enterprise Resource Planning systems  success at the University.
The  research  model  was  tested  through  a  survey  in  Allameh  Tabataba'i
University, University of Economic Sciences, and Ministry of Science, Research
and  Technology.  Correlation  analysis  of  multivariate  data  was  done  on  the
completed  questionnaires  by  200  employees.  The  results  of  the  Structural
Equation  Modeling  showed  that  Transformational  leadership  is  positively
related  with  Enterprise  Resource  Planning  systems  success.  Organizational
culture  mediates  the  relationship  between  transformational  leadership  and
Enterprise  Resource  Planning  systems  success.  However,  transformational
leadership is not positively related with ERP explicit knowledge sharing. Also,
the  results  showed  that  organizational  culture  and  ERP  explicit  knowledge
sharing  is  positively  related  with  enterprise resource planning  systems  success
and  ERP  explicit  knowledge  sharing  mediates  the  relationship  between
transformational  leadership  and  enterprise  resource  planning  systems  success.
The research findings can provide guidelines for the top executives to facilitate
appropriate organizational culture, so as to foster ERP knowledge sharing and
achieve business benefits with the assimilation of ERP systems.

Abstract Spirituality in the workplace, new concepts in recent years in the business and management literature has emerged. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between spirituality and organizational commitment is the University of Kermanshah. The purpose of this study in terms of the application, in terms of performance and in terms of descriptive statistics is descriptive The study sample included all staff Razi University (500), who worked in the first half of 2014. Morgan and the sample using the sampling method, 200 questionnaires were selected with the help of organizational spirituality (Shamus and Dvchun, Mylemn 2000, 2003) and organizational commitment (Khan, 2002) were evaluated. To analyze the data, descriptive and inferential statistics (t two independent groups, Pearson correlation & stepwise regression) was used. Results showed a significant positive correlation between the dimensions of organizational spirituality and organizational commitment & Average score for the overall organizational spirituality, in line with organizational goals and continuous commitment of men more than women. Organization spirituality scores overall, alignment with organizational goals and continuous commitment of men than women. Check other assumptions indicate that the dimensions of organizational spirituality and organizational commitment there. Based on regression analysis of solidarity with colleagues and spiritual dimensions of organizational alignment with the organization's goals were positive predictors of emotional commitment and solidarity with colleagues, it is anticipated that ongoing commitment. Overall scores are positive predictors of organizational spirituality was for normative commitment.