Leadership styles and teacher job satisfaction in Ethiopian schools

This quantitative study investigated the relationship between leadership styles and teacher job satisfaction in Ethiopia, based on teacher perceptions. The multifactor leadership theory also known as full range leadership theory and work adjustment theory provided the theoretical framework to explore the relationship. Analysis of data yielded three major findings: (1) while the practice of transformational leadership was significantly lower, the practice of laissez-faire was significantly higher than international benchmarks; (2) teacher job satisfaction was low and significantly lower among males; and (3) there were low to moderate correlations between leadership styles and teacher job satisfaction with aspects of transformational and transactional leadership predicting job satisfaction, a trend similar to studies in other African countries. This study suggests that practicing principals, leadership preparation programs, and reform initiatives for school success in Ethiopia, consider providing professional development that includes predictors of teacher job satisfaction-inspirational motivation and contingency reward among other things.