Abstracts Category : Other

The Relationship between Organizational Culture and Perceptions of Leadership Style of Principals in the Middle East

by Amy D Atwell

This paper investigates the relationship between organizational culture and perceptions of leadership style of principals in the Middle East. Organizational culture and leadership are closely related and understanding this relationship lends itself to further understanding of leadership within educational institutions. There are a limited number of published studies examining the culture leadership relationship outside of the United States. This study uses the Competing Values Framework to define the organizational culture as clan, adhocracy, hierarchy, or market. Leadership style is defined as transactional, transformational, or laissez-faire. Organizational culture is measured using the Organizational Culture Assessment Inventory and leadership style is determined by the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. A quantitative correlational analysis was used, and data was analyzed using a regression analysis to determine the relationship between the variables. The results of the study indicate there was a combination of clan and market organizational culture, supporting the findings of transactional and transformational leadership styles. A lack of relationship or negative relationship across all four culture styles was found with laissez-faire leaders. Transformational leaders were found in clan, adhocracy, and market cultures. Transactional leaders were found in clan cultures.