Examining The Effect of School Principals' Democratic Attitudes On Teachers' Perceptions of Organizational Alineation

Abstract

This study examined the effect of school principals' democratic attitudes on teachers' perceptions of organizational alienation. The survey method was used in the research, and the study population consisted of 7455 teachers working in Sakarya province. In comparison, the sample selected based on a simple random sampling technique consisted of 410 teachers. It was found that participant teachers perceived school principals' democratic attitudes as moderate level. Furthermore, teachers' perceptions of school principals' democratic attitudes and organizational alienation did not differ statistically regarding their gender and professional experience. In contrast, their perceptions differed in terms of school level. At the end of the research, it was reached that teachers' perceptions of organizational alienation correlated statistically positively with school principals' democratic attitudes. School principals' democratic attitudes could explain 9% of the variance in teachers' perceptions of organizational alienation. In light of these findings, school principals should create environments where teachers can express themselves freely and use horizontal and vertical communication channels effectively. Further, teachers should take part in professional team projects with school principals, where they can be involved in decision-making processes to increase their perceptions of school principals’ democratic attitudes. Based on all findings obtained in the study, school principals should create environments where teachers can express themselves freely and use both horizontal and vertical communication channels effectively. Further, teachers should take part in professional team projects with school principals, where they can be involved in decision-making processes to increase their perceptions of school principals' democratic attitudes.