A study to determine the perceived "effectiveness" of teaching principals as compared to supervising principals in the East Tennessee Development District

The survey instrument used was the Leader Behavior Description Questionnaire-Form XII. The items of the LBDQ were also reclustered under five leadership functions emerging from the literature on leader ship and responses were reanalyzed by function.

Findings of the study indicated that:

1. Staff members tended to disagree in their perceptions of the leadership behavior of their superiors as assessed on the 12 original dimensions of the LBDQ and on the five leadership functions.

2. Teaching principals perceived themselves to be more effective leaders in both analyses than their staff members perceived them to be.

3. The perceptions of supervising principals did not differ significantly from the perceptions of them held by their staff members.

4. Teaching principals did not significantly disagree with supervising principals in their self assessments.

Conclusions of the investigation included the following:

1. Both teaching and supervising principals tended to see them selves as more effective leaders than their staff members saw them to be.

2. Teaching principals and supervising principals tended to see themselves as equally effective in their leadership.

3. Teachers of teaching principals tend to see their principals more as teachers than principals.

4. In the theory and research of administrator leadership behavior, little attention has been given to the administrator's role in curriculum development and evaluation.