An Empirical Study on the Relationship Between Leadership Styles and Teacher Work Commitment

Abstract

Aims: This empirical study aims to examine the relationship between leadership styles and teacher work commitment among public school teachers in Tamil Nadu, India. Specifically, the study seeks to determine the extent to which transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership styles are practiced, assess teachers’ work commitment across affective, continuance, and normative dimensions, and analyze the nature and predictive influence of leadership styles on teacher commitment.

Study Design: The study adopts a quantitative, non-experimental correlational research design to investigate the relationships among the variables without manipulating them.

Place and Duration of the Study: The research was conducted in selected public schools in Tamil Nadu, India, during the academic year 2025–2026.

Methodology: The study involved a sample of 169 public school teachers, selected using a stratified random sampling technique to ensure adequate representation. Data were collected using standardized instruments, namely the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) to assess leadership styles and the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ) to measure teacher work commitment.

Responses were obtained using a five-point Likert scale, and the instruments demonstrated strong internal consistency, as indicated by satisfactory Cronbach’s alpha values. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics, including Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis, to examine relationships and predictive effects.

Results: The findings indicate that transformational leadership is practiced at a very high level, while transactional leadership is observed at a high level, and laissez-faire leadership at a relatively low level. Teachers’ work commitment was found to be generally high, with affective and normative commitment at very high levels, and continuance commitment at a high level.

Correlation analysis revealed that transformational leadership has a strong positive relationship with teacher work commitment, whereas transactional leadership shows a moderate positive relationship. In contrast, laissez-faire leadership demonstrates a weak negative relationship with commitment. Further analysis using regression confirmed that leadership styles significantly predict teacher work commitment, with transformational leadership emerging as the most influential predictor.

Conclusion: The study concludes that leadership style is a significant determinant of teacher work commitment in public schools. Among the leadership styles, transformational leadership proves to be the most effective in fostering higher levels of commitment among teachers. The findings suggest that strengthening transformational leadership practices can enhance teacher engagement, improve retention, and contribute to overall institutional effectiveness in the educational context.