Modeling the Impact of Empowering Leadership of Principals on Teachers’ Job Innovation with the Mediating Role of Workplace Psychological Well-being
Keywords:
Empowering leadership, Job innovation, Workplace psychological well-being.Abstract
This study aimed to model the effect of principals’ empowering leadership on teachers’ job innovation by examining the mediating role of workplace psychological well-being in first and second cycle secondary schools of Ajabshir. This applied research employed a descriptive–correlational design. The statistical population comprised 587 teachers from Ajabshir’s first and second cycle secondary schools. Using Cochran’s formula and stratified random sampling, 232 teachers were selected. Data were collected through standardized questionnaires: Empowering Leadership (Arnold et al., 2000), Job Innovation (Janssen, 2000), and Workplace Psychological Well-being (Mahdad, 2009). Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling with the Partial Least Squares (PLS3) method. Results revealed that principals’ empowering leadership had a significant positive impact on teachers’ job innovation (β=0.666, t=16.065, p<0.001). Empowering leadership also positively affected workplace psychological well-being (β=0.736, t=17.238, p<0.001). Moreover, workplace psychological well-being significantly promoted teachers’ job innovation (β=0.246, t=5.158, p<0.001). Sobel test results confirmed the mediating role of workplace psychological well-being in the relationship between empowering leadership and job innovation (z=5.360>1.96). The study concludes that empowering leadership can foster teachers’ job innovation by enhancing workplace psychological well-being. School principals who adopt empowering approaches and create supportive, participatory, and psychologically safe environments can significantly strengthen teachers’ creativity and professional performance.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Jafar Beikzad (Corresponding author); MohammadMahdi Binesh, Naser Fathi (Author)
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