How Distributed Leadership and Teachers’ Psychological Capital Influence Turnover Intention? Understanding The Mediating Role of Trust in Principal and Work Engagement

Abstract

This study examined the relationships among school principals' distributed leadership, teachers' psychological capital, trust in the principal, work engagement, and turnover intention. The research sample consisted of 397 primary and secondary school teachers. The study employed a cross-sectional survey design using quantitative methods. Distributed Leadership Scale, Psychological Capital Questionnaire-Short Form, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-Ultra short version, Trust in the Principal Scale, and Teachers’ Intent to Move to Another School Scale were used to gather the data. Multiple mediator analysis in structural equation modeling (SEM) with the bootstrapping method was used to analyze the direct and indirect effects of dependent variables on teachers’ turnover intentions. 95 % confidence intervals were calculated using 2000 samples to examine the mediating effects. The results indicated that the direct effects of distributed leadership and psychological capital on teachers’ turnover intentions are insignificant. Psychological capital negatively and indirectly affects turnover intentions through work engagement while distributed leadership negatively and indirectly influences turnover intentions via work engagement and trust in principal. The study emphasized the role of job and personal resources in understanding teachers’ turnover intentions. Based on the results, principals are recommended to demonstrate distributed leadership behaviors to build trust and use intervention strategies to strengthen teachers’ psychological capacities if they want to lower teachers’ turnover intentions.