Investigating the leadership styles and national culture of Emirati female school principals

Abstract

With the growing expectations from the field of education, increases the importance of effective school leadership. The school proves its effectiveness depending on various factors; the principal's leadership style is the main one. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of the female gender and national culture dimensions on the leadership styles of Emirati female school principals, as educational leaders, and the relationships that exist among the different variables. Explanatory sequential mixed method approach was used in two phases for this study. In the first phase, the quantitative data were collected using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (5X-short) survey and the cultural dimensions survey. In the second phase, the researcher conducted semi-structured interviews and qualitative observations. The findings of the study indicated that Emirati female leaders tend to be more transformational in their leadership styles while they still practice transactional leadership to a certain degree. They were found to be more “androgynous” carrying the qualities of both male and female leaders. In addition, the leadership styles and their elements proved to have a significant relationship to national culture dimensions except for management by exception (active). Future research should include a larger sample size and the perspectives of the followers as well. It is important to conduct the study in different organizational contexts not only in schools to confirm the finding that women use “androgynous” style in the United Arab Emirate and beyond.