Impact of Leadership Styles on School’s Organizational Culture

Abstract

This study examined the leadership styles of school principals and their influence on the organizational culture of eight public secondary schools in the Municipality of Baleno, Masbate. It was anchored on Schein’s Organizational Culture Theory, Lewin’s Leadership Theory, and Bass and Avolio’s Full Range Leadership Theory. A mixed research design combining quantitative, qualitative, and descriptive approaches was employed. The quantitative phase involved 62 respondents comprising 55 teachers and 7 administrative staff, while 15 qualified participants were purposively selected for the qualitative component. Data were gathered using a survey questionnaire checklist covering transformational, transactional, democratic, laissez-faire, and autocratic leadership, organizational culture, and perceived leadership influence. Frequency, percentage, weighted mean, and thematic analysis were used to analyze the data. Teachers perceived transformational leadership as the most practiced style, with a mean of 4.17, followed by democratic leadership at 4.07, while administrative staff rated autocratic leadership highest at 4.43, followed by transformational leadership at 4.25 and transactional and democratic leadership at 4.22. The schools generally demonstrated collaboration, academic excellence, discipline, positive professional relationships, open communication, and support for professional development, although shared traditions and some aspects of communication and staff relationships were inconsistently experienced. Qualitative findings indicated that supportive, collaborative, ethical, and vision-driven leadership strengthened motivation, participation, commitment, and organizational cohesion, whereas authoritarian, inconsistent, or disengaged leadership could weaken morale and collaboration. The study recommends strengthening transformational and democratic leadership, consistent communication, professional development, school traditions, integrity, respect, and inclusivity. The study supports SDG 4 – Quality Education, SDG 16 – Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions, and SDG 17 – Partnerships for the Goals through its emphasis on educational quality, participatory governance, and stakeholder collaboration. Its sustainability impact lies in strengthening educational, institutional, governance, social, and community conditions that support sustained school improvement and organizational effectiveness.