Predicting Organizational Commitment from Transformational and Transactional Leadership Styles among Secondary School Teachers in Southwestern Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between leadership style and organizational commitment of secondary school teachers. Participants were 420 (male = 200, female = 220) teachers randomly selected from five states in southwest Nigeria. Measures of leadership and organizational commitment were administered on the teachers. The results revealed that transformational, transactional and laissez faire leadership styles jointly predicted organizational commitment. While transformational and transactional leadership styles separately predicted organizational commitment, laissez faire leadership did not. Based on these findings, it is recommended that counseling and organizational psychologists should train principals to use transformational and transactional leadership styles in order to enhance organizational commitment of their teachers. Key words: Organizational commitment, Transformational leadership, Transactional leadership, teachers, motivation.